Table
Artist
Charles Parker Company
(American, active Meriden, Connecticut, 1832 - 1957)
Datec. 1885
MediumBrass, silver and other metallic plates, iron, other metals, wood, original fabric
DimensionsOverall: 29 x 19 x 17 1/2in. (73.7 x 48.3 x 44.5cm)
ClassificationsFURNISHINGS
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number2003.21
DescriptionTable made of brass and mixed metals; Rectangular table top with red silk cover and blue fabric on underside. Brass border around wood table top. Base of table in trestle form. Each end comprise a brass cylinder with hammered finish and flanked by triangular pierced brass ornament with stylized floral motif. Center panel, between legs, with hammered surface and applied cast floral ornament.On View
On viewCollections
Copyright<a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="https://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc/4.0/80x15.png" /></a><br />This work is licensed under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License</a>.
Label TextThe Charles Parker Company was one of the largest and most diversified of all 19th-century brass manufacturing firms in the United States. The Parker Company produced primarily utilitarian goods, but it also offered lines of luxury wares. At its height, the company operated five main manufacturing plants and advertised that they sold about 120 different types of merchandise.
An amalgam of color, texture, and line contribute to the luxuriant and exotic feel of Parker-made art brass furniture. Japanese prints and metal arts were the inspiration for the stylized floral elements used in combination with polychrome metal surfaces on this table.
From Brass Menagerie Exhibit:
The Charles Parker Company was one of the largest and most diversified of all art brass goods firms. Its success was tied to its founder and namesake, an incessant entrepreneur who had a strong head for business. Like many of the other art brass manufacturers, the Parker Company produced primarily utilitarian goods, but it also offered lines of luxury wares. The company operated five main manufacturing plants and advertised that they sold about 120 different types of merchandise including coffee mills, vises, sewing machines, spoons, forks, hollowware, spectacles, lighting, and guns. The success of the company is reflected in the fact that in 1886 Charles Parker had a personal worth of one to two million dollars. In 1906 the entire Parker Company employed about 1,500 hands. In 1957 Union Manufacturing acquired the Charles Parker Company, and by 1984 the firm had relocated to Juarez, Mexico.
An amalgam of color, texture, and line contribute to the luxuriant and exotic feel of Parker-made art brass. This table survives in remarkable condition. The original reddish-purple, silk-velvet top complements the warm hue of the metal surfaces. The floral element on the central panel is highlighted by tones of silver and gold and is set against the central panel of intentionally oxidized silver plate. The finish on the lattice-motif brackets flanking the legs shows a surprising dash of color and is a rare survival. Shades of pink, bronze, and green accent the pattern of entwined twigs and blooms.
