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Mathäus Funk also spelled Matthäus Funk (; 18 April 1697 - 24 September 1783) was a Swiss ebonist and
Funk was born 18 April 1697 in
cabinet maker
A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood (solid ...
who was primarily active in Bern, Switzerland
Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...
. Many of his furniture pieces were featured in notable auctions like Lempertz
Lempertz (officially Kunsthaus Lempertz KG) is a German auction house which emerged from a bookstore and art gallery founded 1845 in Bonn, Germany. It is entirely owned and controlled by the Lempertz family and headquartered in Cologne, Germany.
...
or Sotheby's
Sotheby's ( ) is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine art, fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, an ...
.
Life
Funk was born 18 April 1697 in Murten
Murten (German language, German, ) or Morat (French language, French, ; ) is a bilingual Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality and a city in the See (district of Fribourg), See district of the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Fribourg (can ...
, Old Swiss Confederacy
The Old Swiss Confederacy, also known as Switzerland or the Swiss Confederacy, was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or ), initially within the Holy Roman Empire. It is the precursor of the modern state of Switzerlan ...
, to German-born Johann Lorenz Funk, a postal carrier, and Anna Margarita Funk (née
The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
Sergant). He completed an apprenticeship as cabinet maker followed by journeyman years
In the European apprenticeship tradition, the journeyman years (, also known in German as , , and colloquially sometimes referred to as , ) is a time of travel for several years after completing apprenticeship as a craftsman. The tradition date ...
learning the ebonist trade.
He took-up residency in Bern
Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...
on 23 November 1724. Since 1725 he was married to Maria Magdalena Wäber, who hailed from an old, well-established Bernese family. They had one son, Daniel Funk, who became a watch maker. After the death his sister-in-law, Rosina Wäber, managed the household. Another brother of his wife, Abraham Wäber, emigrated to England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. His nephew-in-law, John Webber, became the expedition painter of James Cook
Captain (Royal Navy), Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 176 ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Funk, Mathaus 1697 births 1783 deaths