The Hall Family important Chippendale carved and figured mahogany chest-on-chest, Attributed to Benjamin Frothingham, Charlestown, Massachusetts circa 1770

Appears to retain its original hardware and central carved and pierced urn-and-flame finial. Retains a dark rich historic surface.

Descended in the family of Benjamin Hall, who married Hepsibah Jones in Medford, Massachusetts in 1752

Israel Sack Inc., New York

Sack, Albert. The New Fine Points of Furniture. New York: Crown Publishers, 1993, p. 117 as a "masterpiece"

Sack, Israel Inc. American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection. Volume VIII, P5661, pp. 2178-9 as "a Massachusetts Masterpiece attributed to Benjamin Frothingham"

All four side scroll returns missing on foot facings; Appears to retain its original hardware and one finial is period. Side finials restored. Secondary wood white pine.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Illustrated as a "masterpiece" in The New Fine Points of Furniture by Albert Sack, this magnificent chest-on-chest is representative of a regional case form made in the Boston-area and on the North Shore of Massachusetts, with an upper case of flat drawers flanked by fluted pilasters combined with a block-fronted lower case. Although it follows the classic type, is exceptional for its richly conceived design, stately vertical proportions, and use of choice highly figured mahogany. It was originally owned by Benjamin and Hepsibah (Jones) Hall, who married in 1752 and lived in Medford, Massachusetts.

This chest-on-chest is attributed to Benjamin Frothingham, Jr. (1734-1809) of Charlestown on the basis of a chest-on-chest displaying his label with a very similar overall configuration. That chest descended in the Fiske family of Weston, Massachusetts and is currently in a private collection.¹  Both chests are of the same form with fluted pilasters, a blocked lower case, a related drawer configuration, and identical pilaster plinths. Many of the same parallels are displayed on a chest-on-chest with Frothingham's signature that descended in the Cabot-Perkins family of Boston from either Samuel Cabot, Sr. (1758-1819) or Thomas Perkins Handasyd (1764-1854).² In particular, the case of each is of the same overall form with upper drawers conforming to the profile of the pediment, identical pilaster plinths, drawer configuration and blocked facades. A chest of drawers with Frothingham's label exhibits closely related blocking, knee returns and bracket feet.³ A carved fan similar to the one articulated on the present chest is found on a chest-on-chest attributed to Frothingham illustrated as a "masterpiece" in Albert Sack, The New Fine Points of Furniture, New York, 1993, p. 123.

Born in 1734, Frothingham may have established his own business by 1753, the year he made the desk-and-bookcase with his signature now in the collection of the U.S. Department of State.⁴  A member of the First Church of Charlestown and a founding member of The Ancient Fire Society, he served in the military during the war, attaining the rank of Major, and joined the Society of the Cincinnati. His workshop was destroyed during the War but was probably rebuilt afterwards, since the years following the War appear to have been his most productive. Most of his surviving furniture, including this chest-on-chest, appear to date from this period.

¹ See Richard Randall, "Benjamin Frothingham," in Boston Furniture of the Eighteenth Century, 1974, fig. 1, p. vi.
² Christie's New York, Important American Furniture, Silver, Prints, Folk Art, and Decorative Arts, January 16, 1999, sale 9054, lot 702.
³ See Randall, no. 170, p. 244.
⁴ See Clement Conger and Alexandra Rollins, Treasures of State, New York, 1991, no. 13, pp. 94-5.