Cabinet Maker: Alexander Roux (American, born France, 1813–1886)

1860–75

American Decorative Arts

On view, 1st floor, American Decorative Arts before 1900

Known in its day as a French or drawing room cabinet, this form served primarily as a decorative pedestal; the narrow interior provided only a modest amount of storage. French immigrant craftsman Alexander Roux operated one of the largest and most fashionable shops in New York. The Rococo-style porcelain plaques and the Neoclassical-style inlay on the doors illustrate the confluence of stylistic traditions found in American furniture of the mid-nineteenth century.

Medium

Rosewood veneer, marquetry, plywood, soft maple, American black cherry, chestnut, eastern white pine, yellow poplar, and curly maple veneer with gilded bronze and porcelain

Dimensions

50 7/8 × 69 1/2 × 16 3/16 in. (129.2 × 176.6 × 41.1 cm)
other (Case): 59 1/8 × 14 1/8 in. (150.2 × 35.8 cm)

Credit Line

Mabel Brady Garvan Collection

Accession Number

1970.55

Geography

Made in New York, New York

Culture

American

Period

19th century

Classification

Furniture

Disclaimer

Note: This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect the Yale University Art Gallery’s complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of records is ongoing.

Provenance
Purchased in 1970 from dealer Peter Hill, Washington, D.C. Gift in 1970 to Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, Conn.
Bibliography
  • American Art: Selections from the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2023), 140-41, no. 61, ill
  • Helen A. Cooper et al., Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness: American Art from the Yale University Art Gallery, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 2008), 331–32, no. 212, ill
  • Handbook of the Collections, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1992), 97, ill
  • Gerald W. R. Ward, American Case Furniture in the Mabel Brady Garvan and Other Collections at Yale University (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1988), 9, 12, 53, 434–36, no. 224, pl. 23
  • Patricia E. Kane, "American Furniture in the Yale University Art Gallery," Antiques 117, no. 5 (June 1980), 1327, pl. 14
  • Kevin Stayton, A Century of Tradition and Innovation in American Decorative Arts, exh. cat. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Art Gallery, 1979–80), no. 6, ill
  • Charles F. Montgomery and Patricia E. Kane, eds., American Art: 1750–1800 Towards Independence, exh. cat. (Boston: New York Graphic Society, 1976), pl. 14
  • "Recent Gifts and Purchases," Yale University Art Gallery Bulletin 33, no. 1 (Summer 1971), 34, ill
Object copyright
No Copyright - United States
Additional information

Object/Work type

cabinets (case furniture), utilitarian objects

Marks

"R O U X" is stamped on the pair of keys to this object.

Inscriptions

"L" and "R" are written in black on the back of the left and right porcelain plaques respectively, and the right plaque also has "68" or possibly "681." "V 18/6" is written in pencil on the outside of the back of the pedestal. Stamped on the outside of the back and written in pencil twice on the outside of the back is "2676."

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