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Couch
Couch

Couch

Place of OriginMyanmar (Burma)
Dateapprox. 1850-1910
MaterialsLacquered and gilded wood with glass rods and mirrored glass
DimensionsH. 30 1/4 in x W. 72 in x D. 32 1/2 in, H 76.8 cm x W. 182.9 cm x D. 82.5 cm
Credit LineGift from Doris Duke Charitable Foundation's Southeast Asian Art Collection
Object number2006.27.51
DepartmentSoutheast Asian Art
ClassificationsDecorative Arts
On View
Not on view
Text Entries

In photographs from the 1800s Burmese and Shan aristocrats and monks sit on couches such as this, Buddha images recline, and deceased monks are laid out. A similar couch, also with inlay of rather large pieces of mirror and with short, curving ball-and-claw legs, is in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. It has an apparently original green velvet cushion. The Asian Art Museum's couch had lost its cushion; a new one, also of green velvet, was made for it in 2008.

This couch was once owned by the New York interior designer Rose Cumming (1887-1968), and it can be seen in old photos of a room in her residence. Doris Duke may have known her, or perhaps have engaged her services, and eventually bought the couch from her.