Model of a symmetrically curved double staircase reaching a landing and continuing up as a single stair; steps and risers inlaid in warm browns of contrasting wood with asymmetrical busts of Voltaire, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, philosophers who emphasized Reason and Emotion, fabricated from white porcelain on newel posts at top. The negative space created by the two curved staircases creates a doorway or pathway and the model rests on a narrow platform.

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Object Timeline

-0001	We photographed this object.
2006	We photographed this object. We exhibited this object.
2007	We acquired this object.
2013	This was an Object of the Day.
2015	We photographed this object. We photographed this object.
2016	We photographed this object. We photographed this object.
2021	You found it!

Staircase Model (France)

This is a staircase model. It is dated early 19th century and we acquired it in 2007. Its medium is mahogany, ebony, pear or sycamore, oak; biscuit porcelain. It is a part of the Product Design and Decorative Arts department.

This double revolution staircase is unmistakably a masterwork, confirmed by details such as the carefully turned, ebony balusters and the sophisticated veneering used to create an inlaid “carpet.” A hint of revolutionary politics is introduced through a juxtaposition of Sèvres biscuit porcelain busts of the French philosophers Voltaire (left) and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (right).

This object was featured in our Object of the Week series in a post titled An Enlightened Staircase.

This object was donated by Eugene V. Thaw. It is credited Gift of Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw.

Model, Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) Shield Tunneling Machine ("Big Bertha")

Model, Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) Shield Tunneling Machine ("Big Bertha")
plastic, steel.
Courtesy of Hitachi Zosen Corporation.
12.2013.1

El Camino Real Model
wood, metal, paint.
Gift of Peter Wexler.
1971-5-1

Boullée Chair Model
painted wood, felt, cardboard.
Gift of David McCorkle and Ernest Hood.
2010-12-23

Our curators have highlighted 9 objects that are related to this one. Here are three of them, selected at random:

This glossy white porcelain vase is shaped like a squared bottle with curving handles at each side, arcing out from the shoulders to join the vase near the top of the long, narrow neck. The line of the handle and side is a smooth S curve. Painted on the front and side are large orange-brown lilies, one on each side, with muted green-brown foliage. Smaller white and yellow daisies are painted at the base of the lilies, growing up from the straight bottom edges of the vase.

Two-Handled Vase Vase
porcelain, vitreous enamel.
Gift of Arthur Altschul.
1994-117-3

Set Of Silversmith's Models (USA)
ivory.
Gift of L. Rydes.
1958-90-1-a/z

Teapot (England)
silver, caved wood.
Gift of Anonymous Donor.
1952-166-98

Its dimensions are

H x W x D: 68 x 48.3 x 41 cm (26 3/4 in. x 19 in. x 16 1/8 in.)

Cite this object as

Staircase Model (France); mahogany, ebony, pear or sycamore, oak; biscuit porcelain; H x W x D: 68 x 48.3 x 41 cm (26 3/4 in. x 19 in. x 16 1/8 in.); Gift of Eugene V. and Clare E. Thaw; 2007-45-12

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Made to Scale: Staircase Masterpieces—The Eugene & Clare Thaw Gift.

Short URL http://cprhw.tt/o/2DRTK/
Accession Number 2007-45-12
Object ID 18703477