A Queen Anne inlaid and figured walnut bonnet-top high chest of drawers Boston, circa 1750

Lacking trompe l'oeil paint on concave drawers.

Refinished, lacking trompe l'oeil paint on "shell" drawer. Finials replaced, drops replaced.
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.

With its vibrantly decorative figured walnut veneered façade, this elegant high chest is one of a handful of surviving examples. It was of the highest style in Boston, Massachusetts in the mid-1740s.   The drawers are fronted by a brilliant walnut crotch veneer with the flame figure deliberately chosen to center the upward rhythm of the veneer. Other decorative features that aim to delight the eye include the sizable moldings at the arch top and at the waist, made of walnut to accentuate the outline, the inlaid herringbone borders of the drawer fronts which recall the viewer's attention to the fine details, the shells which appear on the upper and lower case. The shells on the current offered lot would originally have been gilded.  A related example sold in at Sotheby’s, Important Americana sale on January 18, 1998, lot 1721, sale 7085, for a world record price of $937,500. Other examples are in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (see Morrison Hecksher, American Furniture, Late Colonial Period; Queen Anne and Chippendale Styles, (New York:1985), no. 155 pp. 241-4 and Richard H. Randall, Jr., American Furniture in the Museum of Fine Arts, (Boston: 1965), no. 54, pp. 69-70).