Dressing table with mirror, #0110

Object NameDressing Table

Manufacturer Roycroft (American (East Aurora, NY), 1895 - 1938)

Date1900

OriginUSA, New York State

MediumOak, silvered glass, copper fittings

Dimensions56 1/2 × 39 × 17 1/2 in. (143.5 × 99.1 × 44.5 cm)

ClassificationsFurniture

Credit LineGift of Mr. & Mrs. Wallace Wright. In the Farm House Museum Collection, Farm House Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Object number78.9.1

Status

On view

Collections

CultureAmerican

Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025: The Roycroft community of artisans, founded by Elbert Hubbard, operated a printing press and built handmade furniture between 1895 and 1938 in East Aurora, New York. The construction style of Roycroft furniture uses high-quality wood joined by pegs, pins, and mortise-and-tenon joints in the classic Arts and Crafts Style. A 1904 Roycroft furniture catalog states that the workers’ aim in making furniture was to embody three elements in each piece, “simplicity of design, the highest quality of workmanship, and durability.” This mission directly aligns with the Art and Crafts movement’s pivot away from the fussy Victorian Era styles. Most Roycroft objects are easily identified by either the orb and cross insignia or the incised “Roycroft” name. The dressing table has the signature orb and cross on each side of the drawer, while the magazine stand in the Curtiss Library has the orb on each side panel, and the chair has the symbol on the front of the seat.

MarkingsRoycroft mark on front leg.

PeriodArts and Crafts, Mission style

Locations