拍品专文
With its boldly scalloped skirt, pinwheel carved plinth, fan-carved short drawers, use of cherrywood, slender cabriole legs, and high arching swan's-neck pediment, this high chest-of-drawers portrays the sophisticated work of a Connecticut craftsman fluent in the Rococo style. The maker of this high chest emphasized the curvelinear rather than the idiosyncratic designs of other Connecticut cabinetmakers. This high chest also reflects distinct characteristics associated with Wethersfield, specifically in the shape of the skirt centered by a tight reverse curve and the attenuated cabriole legs. Although such skirts are not unique to Wethersfield pieces, it has been argued that their use on locally owned blanket chests favors a Wethersfield attribution (Kevin M. Sweeney, "Furniture and furniture-making in mid-eighteenth century Wethersfield, Connecticut," Antiques (May 1984), p.1160).
A closely related high chest in the Hennage collection is illustrated in John T. Kirk, Connecticut Furniture: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries (Hartford, 1967), p. 50, no. 84. Another comparable example bearing pinwheels in place of carved fans is in the Henry Ford Museum, illustrated in Kirk, p. 50, no. 85. A dressing table with similar central fan, shaped skirt, and cabriole legs sold at Sotheby's New York, January 16, 1997, lot 203.
A closely related high chest in the Hennage collection is illustrated in John T. Kirk, Connecticut Furniture: Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries (Hartford, 1967), p. 50, no. 84. Another comparable example bearing pinwheels in place of carved fans is in the Henry Ford Museum, illustrated in Kirk, p. 50, no. 85. A dressing table with similar central fan, shaped skirt, and cabriole legs sold at Sotheby's New York, January 16, 1997, lot 203.