SAPFM Museum Furniture Collection

Chest

Chest, 1690–1720, oak
Date
1690–1720
Medium
oak
Dimensions
Overall: 96.9 x 122.9 x 47.3 cm (38 1/8 x 48 3/8 x 18 5/8 in.)
Form
Case Piece
Origin
America
Culture
America, Massachusetts, Connecticut River Valley (Hampshire county), late 17th - early 18th century
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Accession
1915.569
Credit line
Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust
Lift-top storage chests with drawers are one of the most typical furniture forms of the 1700s. Although this chest was clearly made by someone far removed from more sophisticated English examples, its maker produced a distinctly energetic form. The carved decoration includes an intricate tulip-and-leaf pattern. The letters "AA" in the center of the blocks on either side of the central motif indicate the chest was probably made for a young woman with those initials.
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