Körmöcbánya (today:
Kremnica, Slovakia), 1620
Walnut veneer on pine, with ash,
maple and dark-stained walnut inlay, as well as carved embellishments
282 x 593 x 132 cm
Inv. no.: 6980
(Room 10, No. 14)
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CHOIR-STALL (STALLUM)
Körmöcbánya (today: Kremnica, Slovakia), 1620
Church choir-stalls (stalla) are among the most
impressive relics of 17th-century furniture art in Hungary. These
were rows of seats - placed on either side of the chancel or choir
- that served to accommodate singers and clergy. The individual
seats were separated by armrests joined to the high back; above
the seats there were baldachins or an entablature. Prie-dieux supplied
with shelving were joined to the seating. A choir-stall could contain
one or more rows of seats.
Two of the earliest and finest works of Renaissance
furniture art outside Italy are the Nyírbátor choir-stalls. These
were made in
a workshop directed by the Italian craftsman Marone where Hungarian
joiners, too, were employed.
The choir-stall shown in the Museum was made
more than a century after the Nyirbátor choir-stalls. Bearing the
year 1620 on its
entablature, it formerly graced the main parish church at Körmöcbánya.
This piece of furniture is embellished with inlay and carvings
made from ash, maple and dark-stained walnut. << previous
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