Figure 8  Nicolaas Verkolje (1673–1746), Two Ladies and a Gentleman at Tea, 1715–1720. Dimensions not recorded. (Courtesy, Victoria and Albert Museum, London.) Art historian Peter Thornton notes that small oval tables like the one depicted in this scene were very popular in Holland. “Such forms often had a painted top which was hinged on a tripod pillar, so that when not in use, it could be placed close to the wall where it provided colorful decoration” (Authentic Décor: The Domestic Interior, 1720–1920 [New York: Viking, 1984], p. 79, no. 95).