3-009-084 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

The International Exhibition: safe by Wertheim and Wiesse, of Vienna, 1862. '[This safe] is noticeable for beauty of workmanship as well as strength of construction. The interior is admirably fitted up, the drawers and shelves being lined with red velvet. The panels are of chased steel, as are the inner sides of the doors. The outer panels of the doors are also richly chased. The cornice is decorated by an arabesque in relief, the moulding being of polished steel. This work may suggest to our manufacturers a fact which does not seem to be generally recognised here - viz., that ornamentation does not necessarily lessen the strength of an article, while it considerably enhances the pleasure with which it can be looked upon. The superiority of...[this safe] over its fellows is due, not to its greater security, but its lightness and elegance, resulting from judicious ornamentation; it illustrates beauty combined with strength. Baron Rothschild has marked his appreciation of the labours of Messrs. Wertheim and Wiesse by becoming the purchaser of their safe...They have produced more than 10,000 safes, many of which have been subjected to intense heats without the slightest injury being done to the articles contained within'. From "Illustrated London News", 1862.