Fireplace (Chimney Piece and Mantel) Design
Medium
Classification
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Purchased for the Museum by the Advisory Council
Accession Number
1921-6-386-6
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
This 1712 print by French artist François II de Poilly (1666–1741) presents a detailed design for a fireplace, complete with chimney piece and mantel. Created at a moment when interior decoration held great cultural prestige in France, the work captures the refined architectural elements that would have adorned elite homes of the era. Prints like this one served as vital tools for sharing fashionable ideas among architects, craftsmen, and patrons. A fireplace often formed the visual heart of a room, so such designs helped spread elegant motifs and encouraged consistent styles across interiors. The print medium itself allowed precise, repeatable images that traveled far beyond a single workshop. Now in the Smithsonian American Art Museum collection, this piece—acquired through the Advisory Council—offers visitors a window into how artistic concepts moved from paper to built spaces. It reminds us of the quiet power of prints in preserving and circulating the decorative language of early eighteenth-century France.