A highly inventive boxwood library table combines profusely carved fruits and vegetation with four full-length figures forming the legs. They represent Prometheus chained at the wrists, Cinyras, the father of Adonis, who split open a myrrh tree from which emerged his new born son, and Mercury, who is depicted here as a beardless youth carrying a purse, his badge as one of the Roman gods of commerce.  Hercules, one of Brustolon’s favorite characters is also shown, bearing a club and a lion’s skin. It is a pleasing design feature that one side of the carved frieze is subtly arched to accommodate the sitter, while the foliate carved decoration on side facing the room is allowed greater profusion. The vegetation incorporated into the frieze includes sunflowers, symbols of devotion; grapes, which represent autumn and harvest, or the blood of Christ in Christian tradition; and bursting pomegranates, symbols of fertility and abundance.

An exceptional mirror from the State Bedroom at Temple Newsam house in Yorkshire has your 9 daily servings of fruit and veg right in it’s boldly carved frame!  The mirror, which combines both baroque and Palladian styles, is surmounted by a large three-feathered plume resting on crossed cornucopiae overflowing with a garland of fruit and foliage, which form the frame, and terminating in a winged putto mask. Among the carved goodies are wheat, peapods, figs pomegranates and pine cones, all of which symbolize fertility, birth or immortality. In accordance with Christian tradition, wheat and grapes depicted together represent the Eucharist, and the pomegranate, particularly one bursting open (as is the case in the present mirror), represents the resurrection of Christ.

A pair of wall brackets take the form of cornucopia, or horns of plenty, symbolizing bountifulness and issuing the fruits of the earth. Most commonly associated with the American holiday of Thanksgiving, the origin of the cornucopia actually stems from Greek mythology. It is supposed to have belonged to Amalthea, protector of the infant Zeus, who is sometimes represented as a she-goat that suckled the infant-god, and at other times a goat-tending nymph who brought him up. In one version of the story, Amalthea presents Zeus with her horn, filled with fruits and flowers. In a second version, it is Zeus who breaks off the horn of a goat and presents it to Amalthea, promising an abundance her desires. Because of this symbolism, the present pair of wall brackets would have signified the plenitude and generosity to be found in the owner’s home, and may have appropriately been hung in a dining room or banquet hall.

We’d love to hear about interesting antique objects you’ve seen in museums that incorporate fruits and veggies and from the Carlton Hobbs team, have a Happy Thanksgiving!

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