The Morris Family Important Chippendale Carved and Highly Figured Mahogany Marble-Top Pier Table, Philadelphia, circa 1765

appears to retain its original finish and original marble top; lacking one knee return

Elizabeth Dawes (1746-1826), daughter of Abraham (1704-1766) and Mary Dawes, who married James Morris (1753-1795) in 1772, at Dawesfield;
To their daughter, Hannah Morris (1773-1842), who married Thomas Chalkley James (1766-1835) in 1802, at Dawesfield;
To their daughter, Phoebe James (1818-1902), who married Saunders Lewis (1813-1893) in 1843;
To their daughter, Elizabeth Lewis (1849-1931), who married Col. George Meade;
To their daughter Edith Meade (1880-1968), who married Horace H. Francine;
To their daughter, Phoebe Meade Francine (1913-2007), who married Carroll Wetzel;
Thence by descent to the present owners.

proper left front leg side knee return missing; proper right rear back return restored
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.

Distinguished by its original richly-colored marble top, vibrantly-figured mahogany frame, and diminutive proportions, this handsome table was originally owned by the prominent Quakers, James and Elizabeth (Dawes) Morris, at Dawesfield, in Whitpain Township, Pennsylvania. This important historic house served as the headquarters of General George Washington from October 20^th through November 2^nd of 1777, during which time he issued a proclamation of full pardon to deserters who should return before a specified day, congratulated the troops on the victory at Red Bank, and court-martialed Brigadier-General Wayne for his negligence in the defeat at Paoli. The table has descended directly through maternal lines of the family of James and Elizabeth Morris at Dawesfield and nearby family homes on the same tract of land until the present time. 

This table appears to retain its original elaborately-shaped serpentine top made from highly variegated King of Prussia marble undoubtedly obtained from a local quarry in Montgomery County, perhaps in Whitemarsh Township. Based upon a design for a "Marble Slab" illustrated in The Gentleman & Cabinet-Maker's Director by Thomas Chippendale, the top is of a complex shape that was difficult to execute and therefore more expensive to cut.¹  Tables of the type with a shaped top set upon a rectangular frame with straight sides were a rarity even in their own time and few survive today. Additional examples of the form, including a pair of Massachusetts side tables and a Portsmouth console table, have been illustrated in by Israel Sack Inc. in American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection.²  While unusual for marble-top tables, this combination of a shaped top on a straight-sided frame has precedence in American Chippendale tables made in Philadelphia, New York and Newport.³

For a Philadelphia table with a King of Prussia marble-top of a similar shape also with an incised beaded edge and a frame with cabriole legs of a related stance and nearly identical claw feet, see a sideboard table in the Karolik collection at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston with carving attributed to Nicholas Bernard and Martin Jugiez.⁴ 

¹ London, 1762, plate CLXXV.
² See Vol. VIII, P19, p. 2372 and Vol. IV, P3903, p. 1054.
³ For examples, see a Philadelphia card table illustrated in Sack, Vol. II, no. 847, p. 342; a New York card table in Sack X, p. 2592; and a Newport tea table in Sack X, P5614, p. 2677.
⁴ See R. Curt Chinnici, "Pennsylvania Clouded Limestone: Its Quarrying, Processing, and Use in the Stone Cutting, Furniture, and Architectural Trades," American Furniture 2002, edited by Luke Beckerdite, fig. 13, p. 114.