Albert Museum

Leeds, Leeds Star
5th April 2017
1 min read

Object of the week- Transforming table

A new acquisition at Temple Newsam House, this beautifully-made table hides an intricate internal mechanism which allows it to transform. Made from mahogany with inlaid and finely engraved brass decoration, the desk was made in around 1740, possibly by Thomas Potter, a London-based master craftsman. A complex system of internal springs and weights can…
Leeds, Leeds Star
9th March 2017
1 min read

House’s new transforming desk is more than meets the eye

It could well be the world’s oldest and most beautifully made Transformer. And next week, visitors can get an up close look Temple Newsam’s magnificent mechanised reading and writing desk, crafted more than 270 years ago. The newly-acquired desk, made from mahogany with inlaid and finely engraved brass decoration, was fashioned in around 1740,…