Blanket Chest Circa 1790-1810

Details

Description

A decorative antique blanket chest or dowry chest, likely from the late 18th or early 19th century, featuring distinctive folk … Read more A decorative antique blanket chest or dowry chest, likely from the late 18th or early 19th century, featuring distinctive folk art painted decoration that suggests a Germanic or Pennsylvania Dutch origin. The piece demonstrates several noteworthy characteristics that make it particularly collectible:

The style of folk art decoration, particularly the urns with roses and wheat sheaves, was very popular during the late 18th to early 19th century. The specific color palette - the sea-green background with red, yellow, and blue decorative elements - was commonly used in American folk art furniture between 1790 and 1830.

The keyhole escutcheon's style and the overall proportions of the chest are consistent with pieces from this period. The painted border pattern, with its geometric design and corner crosses, was a decorative motif frequently used in Pennsylvania German folk art of the Federal period.
The style and execution strongly suggests it was either made by or heavily influenced by Pennsylvania German craftsmen of this period. The preservation of the original painted decoration makes this a particularly interesting example of early American decorative arts. See less