Sideboard
attributed to Joseph Alexis Bailly (American, 1825–1883)
c. 1855
- Medium
- walnut
- Classification
- Furniture and woodwork
- Dimensions
- Overall: 290.4 x 211.4 x 69.4 cm (114 5/16 x 83 1/4 x 27 5/16 in.)
- Culture
- America, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia?, 19th century
- Museum
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Decorative Art and Design
- Credit line
- Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
View at the Cleveland Museum of Art
About this work
Newly acquired wealth from railroad production, manufacturing, and an expanded economy produced a new elite class of Americans who looked abroad for sources of decoration to adorn their lives. Grand, baronial furniture, reminiscent of German hunting lodges or French castles, became popular during the mid 1800s among America’s wealthy. Elaborate displays of abundance were reflected in the carvings of flora, fauna, and freshly hunted game. The depictions of Native American hunters on this example, most likely made in Philadelphia, may have meant that this piece was displayed at one of the many international expositions that occurred during this period.
