Lot 204
  • 204

AN IMPORTANT FEDERAL INLAID AND FIGURED MAHOGANY SERPENTINE-FRONT SIDEBOARD, MAJOR BENJAMIN FROTHINGHAM, JR. (1734-1809), CHARLESTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS, CIRCA 1805

Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 USD
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Description

  • mahogany
  • height 37 3/4 in.; width 59 1/4 in.; depth 25 3/8 in.
  • 95.9 cm; 150.5 cm; 64.5 cm
the top drawer retaining the original maker's label of Benjamin Frothingham; with rich old historical surface; the serpentine-shaped top with line-inlaid edge; conforming case consisting of a top row of three rectangular drawers, the lower section with two graduated center drawers flanked by end cupboard sections, the drawers all with crossbanded and line-inlaid borders with beaded edges; the case supported by six square tapered legs terminating in tapered feet with banded cuffs, the front four with line inlay and a single inlaid bellflower.

Provenance

Phillip Flayderman, Boston, Massachusetts
Israel Sack, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts
Private Collection
Israel Sack, Inc., New York, May 1987

Exhibited

Boston, MA, Boston Antique Exposition, 1929

Literature

American Art Association, Anderson Galleries, New York, Philip Flayderman Collection: Historic American Furniture, Colonial furniture, Silver & Decorations, January 2-4, 1930, sale 3804, lot 417;

American Art Association, Anderson Galleries, New York, One Hundred Important American Antiques: Colonial and Early Federal Furniture, Silver and Porcelains, Jan. 9, 1932, sale 3940, lot 53;

Mabel Muson Swan, "Furniture Makers of Charlestown," The Magazine Antiques, 46:4 (October 1944) 203 illus.

Mabel Muson Swan, “Major Benjamin Frothingham,” The Magazine Antiques 62:5 (November 1952) 395 illus.;

Richard H. Randall, Jr., “Benjamin Frothingham,” in Colonial Society of Massachusetts, Boston Furniture of the Eighteenth Century: A Conference Held by the Colonial Society of Massachusetts, 11 and 12 May 1972, (Boston, Massachusetts: The Colonial Society of Massachusetts, distributed by the University Press of Virginia, 1974), pp. 244-5, fig. 172;

Sotheby's New York, Important American Furniture, Folk Art, Folk Paintings, and Chinese Export Porcelain, October 25, 1986, sale 5500, lot 237A sold for $82,500;

Deanne Levison and Harold Sack, "Identifying regionalism in sideboards: A study of documented taper-leg examples," The Magazine Antiques 141:5 (May 1992), 823-4, pl. V

Condition

secondary wood is white pine; both door veneers have been patched at location of vertical shrinkage crack; several sections of band inlay on top replaced; most notably to sections on proper right front side, one being two inches in length and another one inch; hardware is replaced but locks and keyhole escutcheons are probably original; band inlay along bottom edge of case with a three inch section replaced above proper left inner leg; a majority of the cuff inlay on legs probably 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.

Catalogue Note

Major Benjamin Frothingham (1734-1809), one of the most important eighteenth century Massachusetts cabinetmakers, crafted this remarkable sideboard of diminutive stature during the last decade of his life.   It is notable with the center section composed of three graduated drawers rather than the ubiquitous paired hinged doors.  Frothingham used the same label, engraved by the notable Massachusetts silversmith Nathaniel Hurd (1730-1777), throughout his life.  Very few pieces survive with his label and this is only the second documented piece of Frothingham furniture in the Neoclassical taste.