A Rare Diminutive Chippendale Block Front Desk and Bookcase

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About the Item

AN IMPORTANT AND RARE DIMINUTIVE CHIPPENDALE SHELL-CARVED AND FIGURED MAHOGANY AND CEDARWOOD BLOCK-FRONT DESK AND BOOKCASE

The blockfront desk-and-bookcase is one of the most highly regarded and sought after forms of Colonial American craftsmanship. Smaller in size, this example achieves remarkable distinction in its overall proportions and elegant design. It has survived in remarkable condition.

Within its measured proportions and self-contained design, this example exhibits many of the best elements of urban Rhode Island design. It distinguishes itself in the overall understatement of its style and ornament, relying upon the eloquence of its proportions and the refinement of its lines and materials to carry the design. Its stylistic subtleties spring from the curve of the tympanum board, which is echoed in the pediment board, and again in the shaping of the applied panels on the bonnet face. The rhythm of the blocked façade, the movement of the highly figured upper case panels, and the placement of the brasses all trigger a visual interest that encompasses the entirety of the piece.

This desk follows the design of blockfront case furniture made in Newport and Providence, Rhode Island. The design of the broken-arch pediment, with twin raised panels fronting the scroll board in imitation of drawer fronts, is a prominent Newport feature. The scheme was intended to help integrate the arc of the bonnet top with the rectilinearity of the case proper and it can be found on many Newport secretaries and chest-on-chests. The ogee bracket feet with blocked returns and scrolled volutes defining their insides edges is of a type found on Newport blockfront case furniture associated with John Townsend. (1) The concave shell of the prospect door, with its seven lobes and scribed outline terminating in scrolled ends, also relates to Townsend's work. (2)Also typical of Rhode Island work are the fallboard supports that are half the height as the drawer between them. Furthermore, the desk exhibits several Providence characteristics that can be differentiated from those of Newport. (3) These include the finials with cup-shaped urns and short flames, the complex moldings, and the arrangement of the desk and bookcase interiors. A similar pediment pitch, bookcase doors, moldings, and ogee feet are found on Providence desk-and-bookcase in a private collection that was made for the local blacksmith, Amos Atwell (d. 1807). (4)That desk has been associated with the work of Grindall-Rawson (1719-1803), a Providence cabinetmaker who was born and perhaps trained in Massachusetts. (5) A blockfront chest of drawers at Yale University ascribed to Newport or Providence also displays a related base molding and bracket feet as does a Providence blockfront chest formerly owned by Leigh Keno, Inc. (6)

(1) See Clement Conger and Alexandra Rollins, Treasures of State, New York, 1991, no. 51, p. 132-3.
(2) See ibid.
(3) Wendy Cooper and Tara Gleason, "A Different Rhode Island Block-and-Shell Story: Providence Provenances and Pitch-Pediments," American Furniture 1999, pp. 185-8.
(4) See ibid, fig. 17, p. 182.
(5) Ibid, pp. 188-93.
(6) See Gerald Ward, American Case Furniture, New Haven, 1988, no. 58, p. 137.

Exhibited: Morgan Memorial, Hartford, CT, Three Centuries of Connecticut Furniture, 1635-1935: An Exhibition at the Morgan Memorial, Hartford as art of the Celebration of the Tercentenary of Connecticut, June 15-October 15, 1935;
Hunter House, Newport, R.I., Rochambeau Celebration, 1955

Published: Lockwood, Luke Vincent, et al, Three Centuries of Connecticut Furniture, 1635-1935: An Exhibition at the Morgan Memorial, Hartford as art of the Celebration of the Tercentenary of Connecticut, Hartford, 1935, #268
The Magazine Antiques, September 1955, p. 177, David Stockwell advertisement, where it is described as satisfying "the dreams of most collectors ... with highly desirable scroll feet ... original brasses. The wood is magnificent flame grained mahogany. But, above all, this secretary is small, probably one of the smallest block fronts known."

Dimensions:
Height: 89.5 in (227.33 cm)Width: 42 in (106.68 cm)Depth: 22 in (55.88 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Cedar,Mahogany
Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
18th Century and Earlier
Date of Manufacture:
Newport or Provdence, Rhode Island, c.1770
Condition:
Retains its original hardware and finials. Three drawer bottoms in lower case restored.
Seller Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: 10033088895

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