Noble simplicity and calm greatness

The fascination with Antiquity is not only visible through the flora motif: another design element hints to it, and it is that of linearity.Simple, straight lines reminiscent of the architecture of Ancient Rome and Greece were used when designing this drop-front secretary.

This linearity and its inspiration from classical art is a characteristic of the French Louis XVI style of interior decoration. The Louis XVI style had developed at the end of the 18th century, and its ideals of simplicity and linearity contrasted with the previous curvilinear and heavily decorated Baroque style.

This style is reflected in this secretary with its straight lines, 90 degree angles, and overall feeling of simplicity and linearity. With these features, the craftsman of this object seems almost to have had as inspiration the definition of “ancient art” as given by the archeologist Johann Joachim Winckelmann (1717-1768): noble simplicity and calm greatness.