19TH CENTURY

Irish vernacular case furniture was typically made in one piece as indeed this example was. Pieces made in the northern counties of Ulster are often noticeably more restrained and less ornate than those from elsewhere in Ireland, the legacy perhaps of Presbyterian Scottish settlement in the north. This example was made in this northern tradition and has sledge feet, open storage below and no drawers. The plain shelves above have crossbars on the two upper shelves enabling plates to be held facing downwards and sloping forwards. A number of similar dressers (although with drawers) are illustrated in C. Kinmonth, Irish Country Furniture 1700-1950 Yale University press, 1993, pages 102-107 and on page 129 (without drawers).