Cabinet on stand - Cast iron

Antique Liberty-style tabletop easel, in artistic cast iron, copper-toned and silvered.

This type of structure was used in aristocratic drawing rooms between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to display small paintings, precious photo frames, dressing-table mirrors, or decorative books.

Upper Decorative Elements: On the pediment stand out two winged putti (or cherubs): the one on the left seems to be holding a tool or object, while the one on the right plays a lute or guitar. In the center, above the crosspiece, there is a vase or censer surmounted by two little birds. Just below is visible a finely detailed female face (a mascaron in Liberty or Neo-Renaissance style).

Lower Decorations: The vertical stiles feature a continuous geometric motif of herringbone or scale pattern. The base is supported by lion-paw or scroll feet, typical of historicist-style furnishings, and the lower band shows another reclining putto surrounded by pierced floral and vegetal motifs.