Buffet
Robert Adam (Kirkcaldy 1728 - London 1792)
Category
Furniture
Date
1767
Materials
Giltwood, Mahogany
Measurements
865 x 2140 x 900 mm
Order this imageCollection
Osterley Park and House, London
NT 771751
Caption
Side board tables were traditionally placed in dining rooms to provide extra serving space and this example was designed by the famous architect and designer Robert Adam. It was used to display gold and silver plates while a huge silver wine-cooler stood underneath it.
Summary
Side board table, carved and gilded wood with mahogany top. Stands on turned baluster legs, two at the back corners, and four along the front, all having gadrooned, acorn-shaped feet. The legs intricately shaped and carved with stylized acanthus and gadrooning, have square blocks with rosettes just below the frieze. The frieze is decorated with the Greek key motif, incorporating circular paterae, and above each leg is a ram's head. Below the frieze a valence of pendent acroteria. The top is of plain mahogany, the edge of which is inset with a guilloche decoration of gilded wood.
Makers and roles
Robert Adam (Kirkcaldy 1728 - London 1792), designer