The Brand Cabinet
William Hallett
c. 1743
Medium
Padauk, oak, and ivory
Dimensions
134 × 98 × 21 cm (52 3/4 × 38 5/8 × 8 1/8 in.)
Classification
furniture
Department
Applied Arts of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
228313
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This wall cabinet was designed by English collector, politician, and writer Horace Walpole, for his close friend Thomas Brand. Inspired by classical architecture, it was intended to hold the kind of medals and portrait miniatures young men collected on their “grand tour” of Europe, a rite of passage for aristocratic gentlemen in the 1700s. The ivory reliefs that decorate the cabinet’s facade pay tribute to ancient Rome, which was then idealized as a model of artistic, cultural, and political ach...