Paint Decorated Schoolgirl Academy Worktable, Massachusetts Circa 1821 (Drawer is signed and dated)

The underside of one drawer displays script and a charming sketch of a well- dressed family of four, quite likely done during the period.

The elegant and fashionable Federal lady's two-drawer worktable features a slightly projecting top with ovolo-corners above a case containing two beaded drawers; the case is raised on delicately tapered and finely turned ring, baluster, and spool legs terminating with peg-feet beneath spool and compressed ball turning. The panels and drawer fronts are ornamented with landscapes and classical ruins, each vignette centered by leafy floral border; a wonderful floral and leaf garland spirals each leg.

Date: 1821

Measurement: Height: 28.5"; top: 21 by 16"

Material: Curly maple and Northeastern white pine

Condition: The decoration and surface are original and generally fine, there are no traces of decoration on the top. The top drawer was originally fitted; partitions are missing; turned wooden pulls appear to be early working-period replacements.

Reference: Closely related ornamentation is found on examples produced at Mrs. Rawson's School, Boston Neck, Roxbury, and Newburyport, Massachusetts. For a closely related, nearly identical table [and decoration by Elizabeth Perkins] see Woman's Painted Furniture 1790-1830 - American Schoolgirl Art by Betsy Krieg Salam, pp. 155-161. (University Press of New England, 2010).

$4,500

SKU: 605-124

For More Information, Please Contact David Hillier at 978-597-8084 or email drh@aaawt.com.

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