WWI German Trench Art Drawings

This Swiss-engineered cipher machine is a fascinating piece of 20th-century military and engineering history, and this particular example is one of the ...

Made for one of the most celebrated sports figures of the 20th century, this incredible Cartier presentation tray was gifted to the baseball star Joe DiMaggio...

An invaluable addition to the 19th century home, this domestic medicine chest contained nearly everything needed to nurse a member of the house...

A masterpiece of both cabinetmaking and mechanical engineering, this one-of-a-kind expanding table was crafted by the renowned cabinetmaker Samuel Hawkins of London for the Great Exhibition of 1851. Diminutive in size, the fascinating table was designed as a model to demonstrate Hawkins’ innovative patent screw movement to visitors of the Exhibition – six million people in total over five months. It was exhibited again a century later at the Victoria & Albert Museum during the Festival of Britain, an event intended “to symbolise two main qualities of the national character: realism and strength on the one hand, and, on the other, independence and imagination” (Catalogue of the Exhibition, 1951, p.117). To this day, the miniature masterpiece demonstrates the quest of English furniture makers to combine technical innovation with superb craftsmanship. Displaying exceptional ingenuity, Hawkins’ wind-out screw mechanism allowed one to extend the table’s base to accommodate concentric leaves with the simple crank of a handle. It is based on the inventive expanding table originally designed by Robert Jupe in 1835, which used a swivel mechanism to separate sections of the tabletop and allow for segmented leaves to be inserted. Hawkins’ tabletop, on the other hand, extends outwards directly from the center in order to accommodate additional leaves around its diameter. This unique design allowed the mechanism to also smoothly operate on rectangular tables, which could be wound out from the middle to allow for more table space. Hawkins was not alone in his endeavor to combine the technical merits of engineering and mechanics with the most artful pursuit of cabinetmaking. The first half of the 19th century saw a prolific increase in the popularity of applying new ideas to traditional furniture principles, which allowed furniture to serve many purposes. The resulting “patent” furniture was practical and refined, though few were as innovative as Hawkins’ prodigious design. Carved with the year of the Exhibition on the beautifully designed pedestal base, the table is a testament to the significance of this innovation. The model is mentioned in detail in the catalog of the Great Exhibition of 1851, the first international exhibition of industry, manufacturing, and science. Held at London’s dazzling Crystal Palace, its visitors were treated to exhibits from around the globe, including feats of engineering, innovations in industry, and marvels of design. Queen Victoria herself was a frequent visitor, along with her husband, Prince Albert, and others including Charlotte...

Pencil drawing by Riccardo Cavigioli in the early 1920s representing a two-seat biplane airplane for reconnaissance Brandenburg C I of 1916. Measure with frame cm 58 x 31, inch 23 x ...

Pencil drawing by Riccardo Cavigioli in the early 1920s depicting a two-seat biplane airplane for reconnaissance Brandenburg C I of 1916, built by Ufag in Budapest. Measure with fram...

This Indian ink drawing by Riccardo Cavigioli represents a two-seat biplane airplane for reconnaissance Rumpler C I, produced in Germany in 1916 and powered by a Mercedes D III 160 h...

Pencil drawing drawn by Riccardo Cavigioli in the early 1920s representing three single-seat biplane airplanes. Right= two single seat biplane fighter Nieuport 11 Bebe of 1915. Left ...