Empire style
..... Illustrated FURNITURE Glossary

Empire Pier table (Console table)
On display at the Athenaeum of Philadelphia in 2005

Standard Empire form from 1810 to 1840.

A pier table was often used in a hall or placed between windows in a parlor, it was also the right height for use in a dining room as a serving table New York examples were often simply designed but featured elegant ormolu or painted decoration. In Philadelphia, designs were more elaborate, with scrolls replacing columns and bottom shelves cut in more complex patterns.

Dolphins: A symbol for the Dauphin (pron. DAW fin), eldest son of the king of France found in the Empire and Louis XVI (Neoclassical) styles.

Pier/console table



Pier/console table   ...   Frieze with gilded floral design on corner blocks   ...   Dolphins  / veneered   columns support table top



Frieze with gilded floral design on corner block, with gilded palmette (anthemion) at end of center frieze  ..  Gadroon molding borders the frieze bottom



Engaged veneered columns  flank the rear mirrored back   ...   Lion's paw  front feet



Photos and their arrangement © 2005 Chuck LaChiusa
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