Can you tell me a little about this clock and this fireplace?
Sure! This fireplace and its accoutrements were designed and installed by the design firm of the Herter Brothers for John Sloane who was a partner at W & J Sloane, a New York furniture company. The fireplace is designed in the Jacobean Revival style, influenced by 16th-century English furniture and design. It's massive, and yet finely detailed.
The clock itself was not designed by the Herter brothers, but actually imported from France.
Why doesn't the base of the wood column meet the mantle on this piece?
This mantel is a fragment of a period room in storage and so was never meant to be an independent object.
Do you have any thoughts as to why they might not touch?
We thought that there might be a missing piece of decorative molding?
That's a pretty good theory.
Is there anything about the style or form that looks incomplete to you? Like something might be missing?
Yes, the entire length of the mantle had a large gap between the base of the top piece
I see. Yes. I think that's because the entire work was acquired directly from the owner's house. So it was disassembled there and reassembled here...
I suppose it's possible it used to fit together more tightly, but I couldn't say.
What drew you to the fireplace in particular?
I love Herter Brothers so I was immediately drawn to it. I also noticed holes in the marble of the fireplace
What can you tell me about this?
This fireplace surround was once part of an elaborately decorated library in a mansion on Fifth Avenue (near the Metropolitan Museum of Art today). The room was designed by the Herter Brothers, who were one of the leading interior design and cabinetmaking firms in New York. Many of their clients were so-called "robber barons" -- self-made Americans with vast personal fortunes who wished to furnish their new luxurious homes in a style that looked historic. This fireplace is in the Jacobean Revival style; the finely carved woodwork resembles architecture and furniture from 17th-century England.
Can you tell me more about all of this?
This fireplace and its various parts were designed and installed by the firm of the Herter Brothers for John Sloane, who was a partner at W. & J. Sloane, a NY furniture company. The fireplace is designed in the Jacobean Revival Style, influenced by 16th century English furniture and design. The Jacobean style was noted for its 3-dimensional fullness of the design, which I think comes across with this sturdy mahogany fireplac