Important Queen Anne Diminutive Highly Figured Mahogany Block-Front Chest of Drawers, signed by Walter Frothingham, Charlestown, Massachusetts, circa 1760

underside of long drawer bears chalk inscription Walter Frothingham / Charlestown; inside of backboards bear chalk inscription Joseph Hallowell; appears to retain its original cast brass hardware, retains a dark rich historic surface.

Helen Comstock, "Frothingham and the question of attributions," Magazine Antiques, vol. 58, no. 6, June 1953, p. 505, fig. 13 and 14;
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), p. 241;
Broke Jobe and Myrna Kaye, New England Furniture: The Colonial Era, (Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1984), pp. 141-2.
William Ketchum, Jr., American Cabinetmakers: Marked American Furniture, 1640-1940, (New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1995), p. 127.

Secondary woods include white pine. Original brasses. Grain crack to top. Very minor loss to vertical support of one rear foot and small split to one front foot facing.
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.

If the exuberance of a signature indicated a craftsman’s pride in their creation then this beautiful diminutive block front chest of drawers was one of Walter Frothingham’s favorite pieces. Helen Comstock was the first to announce to the world the discovery of the chest. However, since then no records have surfaced listing Walter Frothingham as a cabinetmaker. A chest in Historic New England's collection is nearly identical to the currently offered lot (see Broke Jobe and Myrna Kaye, New England Furniture: The Colonial Era, (Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1984), pp. 139-42, no. 14).  In the discussion of the chest, the signature was however misinterpreted to read Wm Frothingham, which it does not. The signature appears quite similar to that of Benjamin Frothingham Jr. that appears on a high chest in the collection of Winterthur Museum (see Nancy E. Richards and Nancy Goyne Evans, New England furniture at Winterthur: Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods, (Winterthur, DE: Winterthur Museum, 1997), p. 314, fig 1).  The interior of the backboards of the chest are inscribed Joseph Hallowell. Given the signatures location, the back boards could only have been inscribed when the chest was being constructed.  Therefore this remarkable chest stands as the sole surviving object identifying Walter Frothingham and Joseph Hallowell as likely apprentices in the master cabinetmaker Benjamin Frothingham Jr’s workshop.