Design for a Mirror to go over a Cabinet

Art Historical Context

This delicate 19th-century design, created anonymously by a British artist, depicts an elegant mirror intended to crown a cabinet, a common feature in Victorian-era interiors. Rendered in pen and ink with watercolor on a modest sheet measuring just 2 15/16 x 6 1/2 inches, it exemplifies the precision of ornamental draftsmanship. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department as part of The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, this work highlights the meticulous planning behind decorative furnishings. In 19th-century Britain, such designs were essential for cabinetmakers an...