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Chest of Drawers

A work made of mahogany, birch, and white pine.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of mahogany, birch, and white pine.

Date:

1800–15

Artist:

Artist unknown (American, 19th century)
Portsmouth, New Hampshire

About this artwork

The serpentine form of the façade, the contrasting birch veneer in bold geometric patterns, the central drop pendant, and the beautifully curved French feet make this chest of drawers an outstanding example of 19th-century Portsmouth furniture. The top and sides of this chest have split in several places due to the typical Portsmouth construction that utilized nails to anchor the top and sides firmly to the core structure, thus preventing the natural expansion and contraction of the wood during changes in humidity. The chest retains its original stamped-brass hardware.

Status

On View, Gallery 168

Department

Arts of the Americas

Artist

Artist unknown

Title

Chest of Drawers

Place

Portsmouth (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

c. 1800–1815

Medium

Mahogany, birch, and white pine

Inscriptions

Inscribed in ink, on backboard: "J. Wentworth"

Dimensions

95.9 × 103.5 × 58.4 cm (37 3/4 × 40 3/4 × 23 in.)

Credit Line

Purchased with funds provided by the Antiquarian Society

Reference Number

1948.108

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/62553/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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