ABOUT THE WORK

During the second half of the 19th century (1850–1899), every big bahay-na-bato in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao had two round marble-top tables with tripod bases which reinforced the high social status of the homeowners, be they hacenderos (plantation owners), merchants, or both—the standard baluster bases were of reeded urns or upright acanthus leaves and the feet were of balland-claw or alternating C-scrolls. The one with a plain molded marble-top was placed in the center of the caida or entrance hall, which was the family living room. The much more expensive one with multiple grooves on the sides of the marble-top—the more grooves, the more expensive, therefore the richer the owner (according to Martin I. Tinio)—was placed in the center of the sala or living room which was the formal reception room for important guests and occasions. This extravagantly carved marble-top center table from around 1880 came from Pagsanjan and Santa Cruz in Laguna, which along with Biñan were the centers of trade in the lakeshore province. It is certainly a product of a master carver trained at the Paete School established by Gobernador Francisco de Yriarte, a well-known aesthete who sought to elevate the artistry and quality of the traditional carved wooden products of Paete and its environs. Gobernador de Yriarte was remarkably successful in his quest and the woodcarvers of Paete and the other towns of Laguna won many awards in ensuing national and international competitions. This exuberant round center table with highly articulated carving features a marble-top with three grooves from Southern China. The marble-top is supported by an unusual cenefa or round frame artfully carved with pelmets and swags with scalloped edgings. Owing to the delicacy and fragility of the carved cenefa, the standard support of two bars was increased by the maker with a crosswise support of two additional bars. The baluster base has swirling upright acanthus leaves and a plate of beadwork underneath. The extravagant feet are a melange of articulated C-scrolls, unfurling bulbous floral and foliar forms terminating in unusually discreet ball-and-claw feet. The biggest and grandest versions known of these grooved marble-top center tables are in the Aniceto Lacson y LedesmaRosario Araneta y Cabunsol estate in Talisay, Negros Occidental (reeded urn-shaped baluster base, ball-and-claw feet, circa 1880); the Museo De La Salle, De La Salle University Dasmariñas, Cavite (baluster base of stylized round acanthus leaves, feet of alternating C-scrolls, Ex Coll: Jose Ma. Ricardo Abad Panlilio, AngelesGutierrez David estate, Bacolor, Pampanga, circa 1880); Casa Manila house museum, Plaza San Luis, Intramuros (baluster base of upright acanthus leaves, feet of alternating C-scrolls, Ex Coll: Paterno-Devera Ignacio estate, General Solano Street, San Miguel, Manila, circa 1870); and in the Paulino and Hetty Que collection (reeded urn-shaped baluster base, ball-and-claw feet, circa 1860), Forbes Park, Makati City. (Augusto M. R. Gonzalez III)