American Marble Mantelpiece with Carved Arched Opening (c. 1853)
A white marble mantelpiece made in America around 1853, with an arched firebox opening, a carved central cartouche and a deep shelf, typical of mid-19th-century city parlors.
Arched marble mantels like this one filled the front parlors of American townhouses in the 1850s. The design is restrained: a softly arched opening, a carved cartouche at the keystone, scrolled shoulders and a deep, moulded shelf. Their proportions translate well to wood. A paint-grade or stained-hardwood version, with the arch and cartouche carved on the CNC, can bring the same character to a fireplace that has lost its original surround. The Metropolitan Museum's example is roughly 50 by 74 inches, a useful benchmark for scale.
Arched mantel surround in paint-grade hardwood with a CNC-carved cartouche; can also be finished to imitate stone. Must meet clearance codes for the specific fireplace.
A custom version typically runs $2,200–$5,000 per mantel, shipped.
- Style
- Victorian (Queen Anne, Eastlake)
- Element
- Fireplace Mantels & Surrounds
- Date
- ca. 1853
- Materials
- Marble
- Dimensions
- 50 x 74 in. (127 x 188 cm)
- Source
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art
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