Writing and Toilet Table (table mécanique) c. 1750 - 1755

This writing and toilet table was made in France by Jean-François Oeben sometime before 1763. This object belongs to a tradition of furniture-making in which utility is matched by extreme craft and a demonstration of wealth. Consider how such an elaborate object would have functioned in the daily life of an elite woman in the 18th century. The table combines traditionally masculine and feminine functions: it’s both a writing desk and a space for applying makeup. This hints at the changing role of women in French society during the Enlightenment, as they became increasingly involved in intellectual and political life. Studying inventories of aristocratic households and the writings of the period gives us a glimpse into the way these objects were used and understood. The social life of the 18th century was highly codified and depended upon a complex network of objects and spaces. The historian’s job is to reconstruct this world through detailed archival research.