Studio: international art (35.1905)

A ncient Tables,

Parade Table of Charlemagne, on
whose plate were engraved the plans
of Constantinople and Rome, and we
also hear of others made of silver and
gold even at a later period, but such
tables served purely for display.

Dining-tables in olden times were
of wood. Perhaps the finest existing
example is that in Schloss Kreuzenstein
on the Danube, near Vienna, belonging
to Count Hans Wilczek, the elder, who
has built a new castle of the mediaeval
style on the foundations of the old one
belonging to the family. This Schloss
is furnished with works of Gothic art,
furniture, pictures, illuminated books,
armoury, utensils of all kinds ; in fact,
articles of every imaginable description.

The dining-table in question has now
its place in the kitchen. It is of
massive oak, made from the trunk
of one tree, and is about twenty-four
feet long. It probably dates from the fourteenth
century, or even earlier; the supports are still
in magnificent condition, and will no doubt
bear the brunt of all time. There is absolutely
no attempt at any form of decoration on it; but,
nevertheless, it is a table that one can never
forget. The tables shown in Figs. II. and III.
are also from Schloss Kreuzenstein. Both date
from about the year 1500, and both are still in
excellent condition. It will be observed that one
of these is provided with foot-rests, but it is
doubtful whether it was ever used as a dining-table.

TRESTLE TABLE

(Figdoi Collection)

I5TH CENTURY

FIG. X. — TRESTLE TABLE

(Landes-Gewerbe-Museum, Briinn)

15TH CENTURY

The arched panels in the supports of this table
remind one of the arched windows over an altar.
The fretwork motif of the other is particularly
felicitous, while the delicate tracery ot the carving
and the design itself are eloquent expressions
of the thought and skill of the master who
made it. Works of art such as these are indeed
rare. Fig. IV. is another fine example from
Count Wilczek’s collection. It was probably made
more for ornament than for use. The top shows
empty fields, evidently intended to contain the
coats-of-arms of various nobles. It dates back to
about the year 1490. The claws of
the pedestal are ornamented with
various animals carved in oak. The
pedestal itself is pyramidal in form,
with finely-arched slabs and well-
defined edges, and the whole of the
table is in excellent condition. The
workman who conceived and made it
must have been conscious of the
dignity of labour. This table was
purchased from the descendants of the
original owner by the sculptor Gedou,
who was a well-known collector. He
was promised the shields which origin-
ally filled the now empty spaces, but
the promise was never fulfilled.

There are many fine tables and other
pieces of Gothic furniture in the Figdor
collection. Fig. V. shows a fragment
of a Gothic table of the fifteenth