Design for 4 seat Phaeton, no top, no. 3139a
1875
Medium
Pen and black ink, watercolor and gouache
Dimensions
Sheet: 6 5/16 x 9 1/16 in. (16 x 23 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of William Brewster, 1923
Accession Number
23.112.773
Tags
Art Historical Context
In 1875, at the peak of America's Gilded Age, Brewster &.—a premier New York carriage manufacturer founded in 1810— this exquisite design drawing for a four-seat phaeton, an open, lightweight carriage favored for its speed and elegance. Labeled "no top, no. 3139a," it captures firm's mastery in crafting bespoke vehicles for the elite, from tycoons to presidents. This open phaeton, pulled by horses, embodied leisurely outings and social display just before automobiles began to eclipse horse-drawn transport. Rendered in pen and black ink with watercolor and gouache on a modest 6 5/16 x 9 1/16-i...
About the Artist
Brewster & Co.
**Brewster & Co.** Brewster & Company, a premier American coachbuilder renowned for its exquisite carriage designs, was established in 1810 in New Haven, Connecticut, by James Brewster (1788–1866). Born in 1788, Brewster trained as a wagonmaker's apprentice starting at age 16 in Northampton, Massachusetts, before relocating to New Haven, where he set up his workshop and quickly gained acclaim for...