Cabinets such as this one are representative of the opulent consumption of the Gilded Age. Although equipped with doors and shelves in the sides, the primary function of this cabinet was not storage but display—a lavish pedestal for costly works of art. With its graceful, curved sides, the cabinet follows the form of large Renaissance-inspired furniture pieces that were introduced and popularized at the international exhibitions of the 1850s. It combines painted, carved, marquetried, incised, and gilt decorations representing some of the most costly and time-consuming methods used to craft furniture. Aside from the space intended to hold a sculpture, no surface was left undecorated.