Lot Essay
This matching high chest and dressing table, probably made between 1750 and 1755, represents an early example of the Philadelphia Rococo as it evolved from its more restrained antecedents to the fully developed exuberant aesthetic commonly associated with the mid-18th century craftsmen and artisans of this city. With its tall, architectonic form and bold, rococo carving, this suite is one of the most sumptuous and accomplished, yet distinctively native expressions within American 18th century design.
While several Philadelphia Chippendale case forms incorporate related construction techniques, body shapes and carved decoration, a few examples can be specifically linked to objects embellished by the carver of this suite. Similar case forms included a "Garvan" Carver attributed flat-top high chest, illustrated in Hornor's Blue Book, plate 122 and sold in These Rooms, June 23, 1993, lot 147, whose undercarriage drawer-supports, skirt line and shell-drawer embellishments imply a reciprocal awareness. The foot and leg carving on a Hollingsworth-Morris family matching high chest and dressing table(s), illustrated in Hornor's Blue Book, plate 136, 137 and 218, also employs comparable motifs to the examples illustrated here. The design and execution on the carved decoration on an earlier bonnet-top high chest of drawers illustrated in Sack, American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection, vol. VII, pp. 1936-37, no. P5203 relates the high chest to the example illustrated here as well. Finally, the knee carving on a Queen Anne side chair and the carved embellishments on a matching high chest and dressing table formerly owned by the Gratz Family, now both at Winterthur and both illustrated and discussed in Downs, American Furniture: The Queen Anne and Chippendale Styles (New York, 1952), figs. 115 and 198, relates these forms to the suite illustrated here.
The Mifflin Family Matching High Chest and Dressing Table was probably made for John Mifflin (1720-1798), a member of one of Philadelphia's oldest and most prominent Quaker families, and a cousin of Governor Thomas Mifflin. Mifflin's Front Street business, Mifflin & Dean, successfully imported goods from the Far East for local consumption. It was subsequently given to Lloyd Mifflin as a wedding present on the occassion of his marriage to Hannah Hacker in 1823.
While several Philadelphia Chippendale case forms incorporate related construction techniques, body shapes and carved decoration, a few examples can be specifically linked to objects embellished by the carver of this suite. Similar case forms included a "Garvan" Carver attributed flat-top high chest, illustrated in Hornor's Blue Book, plate 122 and sold in These Rooms, June 23, 1993, lot 147, whose undercarriage drawer-supports, skirt line and shell-drawer embellishments imply a reciprocal awareness. The foot and leg carving on a Hollingsworth-Morris family matching high chest and dressing table(s), illustrated in Hornor's Blue Book, plate 136, 137 and 218, also employs comparable motifs to the examples illustrated here. The design and execution on the carved decoration on an earlier bonnet-top high chest of drawers illustrated in Sack, American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection, vol. VII, pp. 1936-37, no. P5203 relates the high chest to the example illustrated here as well. Finally, the knee carving on a Queen Anne side chair and the carved embellishments on a matching high chest and dressing table formerly owned by the Gratz Family, now both at Winterthur and both illustrated and discussed in Downs, American Furniture: The Queen Anne and Chippendale Styles (New York, 1952), figs. 115 and 198, relates these forms to the suite illustrated here.
The Mifflin Family Matching High Chest and Dressing Table was probably made for John Mifflin (1720-1798), a member of one of Philadelphia's oldest and most prominent Quaker families, and a cousin of Governor Thomas Mifflin. Mifflin's Front Street business, Mifflin & Dean, successfully imported goods from the Far East for local consumption. It was subsequently given to Lloyd Mifflin as a wedding present on the occassion of his marriage to Hannah Hacker in 1823.