19th Century American Empire Flame Mahogany Four-Drawer Chest

Details

Description

The American Empire chest of drawers represents one of the most confident furniture statements of the nineteenth century, and this … Read more The American Empire chest of drawers represents one of the most confident furniture statements of the nineteenth century, and this flame mahogany example carries the style’s essential vocabulary with authority. The form is classic Empire: a projecting top drawer above three graduated drawers of increasing depth, the whole flanked by scrolled pilaster columns that curve from top to platform base in a single continuous sweep. The platform base terminates in outward-scrolling feet, a detail that grounds the piece and completes the Empire silhouette from floor to cornice.
The drawer fronts are veneered in flame mahogany — the dramatic feathered figure of crotch mahogany veneer that defined the prestige aesthetic of American Empire furniture production. Each drawer front presents a distinct and individual grain composition, the material selected and applied with an eye for decorative effect. The secondary wood throughout is pine, consistent with American case furniture production of this period.
The chest carries octagonal glass knobs. The scrolled pilaster sides and outward-scrolling platform feet are the defining architectural elements of the American Empire vocabulary as it developed in New England and Mid-Atlantic workshops — a style that absorbed its French and English precedents and produced something distinctly American in the process.
A chest that brings immediate period presence to a bedroom, hallway, or any interior that engages seriously with American decorative arts history.

Dimensions: 43w 25d 47.5h

Condition: age appropriate wear, vintage finish worn with losses, scuffs/scratches, edge wear, discoloration, wood loss, replaced drawer knobs, stains, interior marks, see photos. See less