Description
This piece of furniture, found in bedrooms and reception rooms of wealthy residences, was highly prized in Italy throughout the second half of the Renaissance, particularly in Tuscany.
“Benches… could be enclosed to form chests, in which case they were sometimes called cassapanche, an appropriate designation, though unfortunately not always used.”
The Cassapanca, literally meaning “bench,” was at that time an oblong storage chest fitted with a backrest and armrests, whose lid formed the seat – often as deep as this example. It rests on a projecting plinth shaped to follow the outline of the piece.
Sober and majestic in its lines and composition, our fine Cassapanca features carved decoration of interlacing motifs, fleurons, and egg-and-dart friezes.
The backrest, which continues along the sides, as well as the bench opening into two storage compartments, is adorned with large molded panels. The lower section displays a bombe form and rises above a molded base.
This elegant Renaissance Cassapanca dates from the late 16th century and exemplifies a distinctly ultramontane type of furniture that contributed to the splendor of Italian palaces.
Bibliography :
Augusto Pedrini, Il mobilio, gli ambienti e le decorazioni del Rinascimiento in Italia, secoli XV e XVI.p 63, 73
Peter Thornton, La Renaissance italienne 1400 – 1600, Paris, 1991.