Empire frame
Unknown Artist
1815–20
Medium
Pine
Dimensions
Overall: 20 1/2 × 24 11/16 in. (52 × 62.7 cm) Sight: 15 9/16 × 17 11/16 in. (39.5 × 45 cm) Rabbet: 16 3/8 × 20 1/2 in. (41.6 × 52 cm)
Classification
Frames
Culture
British
Department
Robert Lehman Collection
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975
Accession Number
1975.1.2288
Art Historical Context
Step into the elegant world of Regency-era Britain with this striking *Empire frame*, crafted from pine around 1815–20 by an unknown artist. Dating to the immediate aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, it exemplifies the Empire style—a bold neoclassical aesthetic inspired by ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman motifs, popularized by Napoleon's decorators and adapted across Europe. In Britain, such frames adorned portraits and landscapes in grand homes, enhancing the grandeur of oil paintings with their architectural presence. Made of pine, a lightweight yet sturdy wood ideal for ornate carving, t...