Secret Splendour: Hidden World of Baroque Cabinets at Bath's Holburne Museum

Exhibition Preview: Secret Splendour: The Hidden World of Baroque Cabinets, The Holburne Museum, Bath, until January 6 2013

Once upon a time, only the privileged few of the 17th century could peek inside the luxury baroque cabinets of wealthy hosts with the most.

Perched on decadent stands, they were made by skilled craftsmen across Europe, China, Japan, India and South America, fashioned in expensive exotic materials destined for Princes, noblemen and diplomats.

Nowadays their mystique only makes them more alluring – hidden in museums or country houses, their original meaning is obscured.

This exhibition includes cabinets from the V&A and Corsham Court, opened to the latter-day masses more than 400 years after their production peaked in the south German city of Augsburg, where a hive of artists and creators designed them.

Three are from the Holburne itself, but their origins lie in Paris, Antwerp, Italy and the Netherlands, or the Asian imports of the East India companies.

Replaced by fashionable furniture during the 18th century, they became collectors’ items during the 19th century, and conjecture around their usage leads to speculation of Wunderkammers and literal cabinets of curiosities for tortoiseshell carvings and hardstones.

Secret hidden drawers and mirrors only heighten the notion of wonder. Hidden stories aside, the rare chance to admire ivory, ebony, painted panels, verre églomisé, marble, marquetry and more is not to be missed.

• Open 10am-5pm (11am-5pm Sunday and Bank Holidays). Admission £6.50, concessions available. Follow the museum on Twitter @Holburne.

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