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Slant Front Desk on Frame
Slant Front Desk on Frame
Slant Front Desk on Frame

Slant Front Desk on Frame

Period1740 - 1760
MediumAmerican birch (determined by microanalysis), white pine (determined by microanalysis), chestnut, and tulip poplar
Dimensions41 × 38.25 × 20.5 in. (104.1 × 97.2 × 52.1 cm)
InscribedA pencil inscription in the top right secret drawer reads, "D.C. / A.E." Written in ink in the top right secret drawer is "11 Dollars 1/2. 6 Dozen Pieces."
ClassificationsStorage Furniture
Credit LineGift of Mrs. J. Amory Haskell, 1936
Object number1990.522
DescriptionWhen the beveled fall front of the desk opens, it sits on a pair of pull-out lopers fitted with small brass pulls. The interior features five pigeon holes over drawers, each with a scalloped valence. The left and right sections project forward, and have two stepped drawers. The three center sections have just a single drawer. Behind the lower drawers of the two projecting sections are hidden drawer compartments. The lower section of the case consists of four graduated full-width drawers, each with brass bails and shaped and engraved backplates, and similar escutcheons. The desk sits on a low frame with an applied molding strip along the top edge. A shallow scalloped skirt is above four short cabriole legs with knee blocks that end in Spanish feet with small blocks underneath. The brasses are all replacements, and the fall front hinges have been reset. The piece has been refinished with a dark stain.
Curatorial RemarksAlthough birch is mentioned regularly in New England cabinetmakers' accounts, few pieces of furniture using it as a primary wood have been published. Most birch furniture comes from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine. But the mix of woods in this desk suggest an area of origin further south. The backs of the drawers are dovetailed so as to slide into the sides, rather than vice versa as is more usual. A similar desk incorporating a mix of birch with maple, tulip poplar, white pine, and basswood is described in Barry A. Greenlaw, New England Furniture at Williamsburg (Williamsburg: The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, 1974), cat. no. 96, 97-98.
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