A pair of mirrored commodes, 1822-25

Death Chamber of Archduke Carl

 

Conceived for a symmetrical arrangement, these two commodes were manufactured by the Danhauser furniture factory around 1822-25 as part of the furnishings for Archduke Charles’s palace. Until 1847 - the year Archduke Charles died - they were set up between the two windows in his bedroom and room of his demise, underneath the mirrors embedded in the wall.

Joseph Danhauser, Mirrored commode,1822-25 © Albertina, Vienna (Photo: elwoods.at)

Joseph Danhauser

Mirrored commode,1822-25

In 1919, they were being used in Archduke Frederick’s bedroom.

 

Their mirrored sides and fronts must be seen in the context of the mirrors mounted above them. The room’s enlargement achieved through the wall mirrors was thus consistently continued in these closed pieces of furniture and extended even to the lower sections of the room.