Desk

Drawing desks were used for reading or writing. This piece of furniture owes its name to the Latin 'pulpitum', equivalent to the Greek 'proskenion' in ancient theatre. The presented drawing desk belonged to the old castle collection. It is possible that it was brought here by Izabela Lubomirska, née Czartoryska, who gathered furnishings from her Warsaw residences in Łańcut towards the end of her life. The veneered piece of furniture is rounded in shape, which is typical of the Louis XV style - named after the French monarch who ruled from 1715 to 1774. The signature placed on the drawing desk clearly identifies the maker - the ébéniste Pierre Migeon (1696-1758). 'Ébéniste' was a term referring to artist-craftsmen who made high-quality veneered furniture decorated with inlay. The Migeon family workshop was located in Paris, on Rue de Charenton. Pierre Migeon, who worked primarily in the 2nd quarter of the 18th c., was one of the pioneers of using mahogany in European furniture-making. The described item is a work typical for this furniture-maker. The master craftsman, using traditional furniture shapes, decorated them in an innovative way with carefully selected thin veneer. He usually did not use bronze castings, which were fashionable at the time. In the days when combining veneer made of different types of wood to create colourful inlays was popular, the ébéniste often finished the surfaces of his works with monochromatic or uniform veneer. This gave his furniture a subtle, unforced elegance. His products were distinguished by their ease of use and functionality, as evidenced by the presented drawing desk. Teresa Bagińska-Żurawska https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9243-3967