A very fine and rare Chippendale figured mahogany chest of drawers, attributed to John Chipman, Salem, Massachusetts circa 1780

Appears to retain its original oversized brass hardware and it original surface.

Discoloration to surface on top; second board of top is original, secondary wood is white pine; cracks to proper left front feet facings; glue blocks along back edge of top replaced. Hardware appears to be original.
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.

This chest is attributed to the Salem cabinetmaker, John Chipman (1746-1819), on the basis of a nearly identical chest of drawers with his signature (see Peter Louis and Donald Sack, "John Chipman, cabinetmaker of Salem, Massachusetts," The Magazine Antiques (December 1987): fig. 6, p. 1321). That chest was advertised in The Magazine Antiques in May of 1968 by Charles Woolsey Lyon and its present whereabouts are unknown. The present chest also remarkably similar in its returns and central shaped pendant to a desk-and-bookcase in a private collection inscribed "Made by Chipman/Salem" (see Louis and Sack, pl. 1, p. 1318). The latter sold in these rooms, Important Americana from the Collection of Diane and Norman Bernstein, the Lindens, Washington, D.C., sale 8160, lot 71. Other case pieces with similar identifying qualities associated with Chipman's work include a chest of drawers in a private collection and a pair of chest at the State Department illustrated in Louis and Sack, fig. 7, p. 1321 and pl. V, p. 1324.

Trained in Salem during the 1760s, Chipman operated a shop on Liberty Street after the Revolution until his death in 1819. Made of high quality mahogany, masterfully executed, and exceptionally proportioned, his surviving furniture demonstrates the same internal construction techniques with base molding attached with a large dovetail in the Boston manner and dovetails of the drawer dividers left exposed in the Newport manner. The pendants are identical and the distinctive knee returns follow the patterns he favored for ogee bracket feet and claw feet. His legacy attests to his exceptional bench skills and no known craftsman made finer furniture in Salem during the late eighteenth century.