PHILADELPHIA, 1717-1726

Details

A WILLIAM AND MARY PAINTED PINE BLANKET CHEST-OVER-DRAWERS
philadelphia, 1717-1726
The rectangular hinged top with molded edges and cleats opening to a deep compartment fitted with a lidded till all above a conforming dovetailed case fitted with two thumbmolded short drawers over a molded base, on bun feet, the top with original green paint, and case with original blue paint, inscribed under lid in chalk Mr. Graeme's/the govenor's dau hter (sic)
28½in. high, 55in. wide, 23¼in. deep

Provenance

Sold in these Rooms, June 2, 1983, lot 356

Lot Essay

The faint chalk inscription which appears to be contemporary with the chest refers to Dr. Thomas Graeme (1688-1772) and his wife, Ann Diggs, who were married shortly after their emigration from England to Pennsylvania in 1717. Ann Diggs Graeme's stepfather, Sir William Keith, served as Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania from 1717 to 1726. He returned to England in 1728. The Graeme's purchased his property, Horsham, located approximately 20 miles north of Philadelphia in 1739. Keith had built Horsham, a modest stone malthouse, in 1721-1722 and in 1755, Graeme began its conversion to a more comfortable country house, later known as Graeme Park (George B. Tatum, Philadelphia Georgian: The City House of Samuel Powel (Middletown, Connecticut, 1976), pp.5, 143, 144).