Giovanni Uldrich, 'Rotating reading desk ', 1792

Giovanni Uldrich, 'Rotating reading desk ', 1792

The signature 'Giovanni/Uldrich - Anno 1792', inscribed on gilt bronze plaquettes on the tabletop, suggests that the craftsman was an Austrian or German who as well as making furniture for the library of Maria Carolina of Austria did other woodwork with mechanical applications such as the manufacture of pianos. This was by no means an isolated case, for a number of foreign artists and craftsmen came to Naples to work in connection with the Court, importing and helping to disseminate techniques and new models. An example is this rotating reading desk belonging to Maria Carolina which in its typology reproduces a northern European medieval genre. In style, on the other hand, it reflects the neo-classical taste, for its structural elements reproduce the architectonic orders: the small columns supporting the large central wheel are in the Doric style, while the capitals are rigorously classical. On one side of the tabletop a metal handle, also fashioned in the classical style, is attached to an automatic mechanism and used to move a two-vaned ‘mill’ connected to eight lecterns by means of adjustable brass hasps. The cogwheels have been left visible, and when in use the mechanism makes a fascinating spectacle. The eight lecterns, which may be used to support all sorts of reading material, can thus be viewed contemporaneously. The quality of the craftsmanship and materials makes this specimen of 18th century technology an item of great artistic value.