Design for an Over-Mantle Mirror Frame
19th century
Medium
Graphite
Dimensions
sheet: 13 7/8 x 11 in. (35.3 x 27.9 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1962
Accession Number
62.600.623
Art Historical Context
Nestled in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, this graphite drawing from 19th-century France presents a refined *Design for an Over-M Mirror Frame*. Created anonymously by a skilled French draftsman, the 13⅞ × 11-inch sheet captures precise lines and elegant proportions typical of preparatory sketches for grand interiors. Graphite, a versatile medium favored for its subtlety and erasability, allowed artists and designers to refine intricate details before committing to carved wood or gilded frames. Over-mantle mirrors were prized focal points above fireplaces in ...
About the Artist
Anonymous, French, 19th century · 1800–1900
**Anonymous, French, 19th Century (ca. 1800–1900)** The artist cataloged as Anonymous, French, 19th century embodies the enigmatic yet essential contributions of unidentified creators to France's vibrant 19th-century art world. Active roughly between 1800 and 1900, this figure—or potentially collective workshop—produced a diverse array of works amid the nation's transition from Neoclassicism thro...