拍品 1419
  • 1419

EXCEPTIONAL WILLIAM AND MARY WALNUT AND MAPLE CHILD'S SLANT FRONT DESK, MASSACHUSETTS, CIRCA 1720 |

估價
50,000 - 100,000 USD
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描述

  • Height 23 1/2 in. by Width 19 1/4 in. by Depth 12 1/8 in.
appears to retain its original surface and cast and engraved brass hardware; the maple sides are grain painted.

來源

William 'Willy' Richmond, Greenwich, Connecticut;
Acquired by William Richmond’s brother, Jacob Richmond, who was a prominent attorney in western Massachusetts. Jacob and his family resided in a large Historic Home built in 1791 by General Alexander Field, and the present lot (as well as another important Child’s Desk, lot 1420, were part of an important collection of American furniture formed by Jacob Richmond and his wife primarily during the 1950s and 1960s from the advice of his brother William. The present desk has remained in the "period rooms" of the Richmond residence In Massachusetts for nearly 60 years until its arrival in New York for the current auction;
by descent to his son, Robert Richards, the current owner.

Condition

Overall fine condition. Wear commensurate with age and use. Age cracks to the sides of the case and few in other areas. Secondary wood: white pine.
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.

拍品資料及來源

With its perfect proportions, untouched surface and exceptionally well-turned feet this child’s desk stands as a masterpiece of the form.  Herbert F. Schiffer and Peter B. Schiffer explain in Miniature Antique Furniture, (Wynnewood, PA: Livingston Pub. Co., 1972) that children’s or miniature furniture were not made as “samples” but rather as luxury goods for either the children of wealthy colonists or for the wealthy adults themselves.  The labor of making a diminutively sized piece was nearly as great as a full-size version and the additional hardware, locks, and hinges were the same cost as full-sized models.  While many surviving children’s desks are made out of pine or maple, that this desk’s front was made of imported Virginia or Pennsylvania walnut is a testament to its cost at the time.  Additionally, the desk’s meticulous joinery and quality turnings demonstrate that it was made in a highly skilled cabinetmaking shop. 
Understanding the heavy use many underwent, very few William and Mary children’s desks survive today.  A child’s desk that descended in the Jordan and Gay families of Biddeford, Maine with ball feet and three drawers is the closest equivalent to the currently offered lot. It, however, did not have valances placed above the pigeon holes and the interior drawers were replaced (see Samuel Pennington; Thomas M. Voss; Lita Solis-Cohen, Americana at Auction, (New York: E. P. Dutton, 1979), no. 341 and Sotheby Parke Bernet, New York, Fine American Furniture and Related Decorative Arts, May 1, 1981, sale 4590Y, lot 941 where it sold for $18,000). Another slightly later desk is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (acc. no. 10.125.93)(see Morrison H. Heckscher, American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985), p 264, no. 171). Other related New England ball foot children’s desks are illustrated in Schiffer, Miniature Antique Furniture, pp. 178-80, nos. 180, 181, 183.