- 1436
FINE CHIPPENDALE CARVED AND FIGURED MAHOGANY TILT-TOP TEA TABLE, SIGNED BY JOSEPH SANFORD (1740-1784), NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND, CIRCA 1765 |
估價
25,000 - 35,000 USD
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招標截止
描述
- Height 29 1/4 in. by Width 33 in. by Depth 32 3/8 in.
signed in white chalk on the underside of the top, J. Sanford.
來源
Jeremiah Lee House, Marblehead, Massachusetts;
Ginsburg and Levy, Inc., New York;
Benjamin and Cora Ginsburg;
Sotheby's New York, Important Americana, October 7, 2006, sale 8209, lot 328;
C.L. Prickett, Yardley, Pennsylvania.
Ginsburg and Levy, Inc., New York;
Benjamin and Cora Ginsburg;
Sotheby's New York, Important Americana, October 7, 2006, sale 8209, lot 328;
C.L. Prickett, Yardley, Pennsylvania.
出版
Helen Comstock, American Furniture (The Viking Press, 1962) no. 397;
Ginsburg & Levy Advertisement, Antiques, 97:5 (May 1970), p. 633;
Patricia E. Kane, "The Palladian Style in Rhode Island Furniture: Fly Tea Tables," American Furniture 1999, Luke Beckerdite, ed. (Milwaukee, WI: The Chipstone Foundation, 1999), fig. 14, p. 12.
Ginsburg & Levy Advertisement, Antiques, 97:5 (May 1970), p. 633;
Patricia E. Kane, "The Palladian Style in Rhode Island Furniture: Fly Tea Tables," American Furniture 1999, Luke Beckerdite, ed. (Milwaukee, WI: The Chipstone Foundation, 1999), fig. 14, p. 12.
Condition
Overall fine condition. There is a 1.5" square patch to the underside of two feet.
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.
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
Displaying skilled craftsmanship and signed by its maker, this tea table stands as a rare and important survival of Newport furniture. Paralleling the fashion for tea drinking, the form was introduced during the second quarter of the eighteenth century and appears to have been made with the greatest frequency in Newport during the 1760s and 1770s. Numerous references in Job Townsend, Jr.’s daybook/ledger indicate that the cost of mahogany examples of the form fluctuated from 65 to 80 shillings during the 1760s. Surviving bills and accounts indicate the Newport woodworkers John Goddard, Benjamin Baker, and James Taylor also made the form. The only Newport example signed by its maker, this table reveals that a fifth craftsman, Joseph Sanford (1740-1784) was also a maker of fly-top tea tables.
As the only known work signed by Joseph Sanford (1740-1784), the table is a crucial document of his work. Previously, his profession was only evident in the written record.1 Like many woodworkers, he appears to have supplemented his income through the trade of goods, for in 1763, he advertised the sale of “Teneriffe wine” and is identified as a joiner.2 His inventory, taken on November 15, 1784, includes “Sundry Joiner’s Tool, Bench” valued at 3 pounds 12 shillings as well as a large quantity of lumber.3 The son of Captain Esbon (1693-1743) and Mary (Woodward), Joseph may have trained under his father whose probate papers identify him as a house carpenter and owner of “carpenter and joiners tools.” Alternatively, he may have trained under his sister’s brother-in-law, Constant Bradley (1717-1801), a documented Newport cabinetmaker working in the 1750s. Along with several of his brothers and sisters, Joseph removed to Newport, Nova Scotia in 1760 and, as indicated by the advertisement cited above, was back in Newport, Rhode Island by 1763. The following year he married Mary Clark(e) (1740-1811) and upon his death in 1784, was buried in Newport’s Common Burial Ground.4 Closely related to three other tea tables, this table, and its signature identifies one of the woodworkers involved in their production. No two of the tables are exactly alike, yet all display at least one component part this is identical to another. Thus, a comparison of the four tables reveals a complex interaction of at least two shops and specialized craftsmen who either worked in more than one shop or supplied separate shops with their turned and carved component parts. As Sanford is identified as a joiner rather than a turner, it is likely that the table was for the most part made in his shop. The turned pedestal, knee carving, and foot carving may also have been executed by Sanford, but could also have been done by as many as three different individuals. The knee carving is identical to that on a table in a private collection and was undoubtedly carved by the same hand, yet that table with birdcage support and variant cleats was clearly constructed in a different shop. Both tables also have identical shaping relieving the underside of the legs and base of the support and it is possible that the same craftsman who embellished the knees also provided the decorative detailing in these areas.
Two additional tables, one in a private collection and one whose location is unknown, may also have been made in Sanford’s shop. The table in a private collection has an identical top with a thin molded lip as well as the same knee carving, yet its pedestal, with a fluted column and a spiral-reeded ball, suggests the work of yet another specialized turner. With an elaborately molded rim and more extensive knee carving, the fourth table displays further differences, which while possibly indicating another shop, could also reflect variant designs made in the same shop or by the same carver. This table’s turned pedestal appears identical in both design and proportion to that on the Sanford table and was most likely executed by the same craftsman. The feet carving provide the final point of comparison. Those on the Sanford table differ from the other by having the lowermost part of the leg visually abutting the ball, with partial scribe line delineating the two elements. This contrasts with the other tables, which have the lower leg or outer tendons curving over the ball.
1 Wendell Garrett, “The Newport Cabinetmakers: A Corrected Checklist,” Antiques (June 1958), p. 560.
2 The advertisement reads, “To be sold by Joseph Sanford joiner and Joseph Smith, Living near the Point Bridge, Teneriffe Wine.” The Newport Mercury, June 27, 1763 (recorded under “Joseph Sanford” in the card catalogue at the Newport Historical Society).
3 Newport Probate Court Records, Book 1, pp. 214-215.
4 G. Andrews Moriarty, “President Joseph Sanford of Portsmouth, R.I. and His Family,” New England Historic and Genealogical Register, vol. 103 (October 1949), p. 272; “Notes,” vol. 104 (January 1950), pp. 73-75; Rhode Island Historical Cemeteries Database, www.newenglandancestors.org. Joseph Sanford’s sister Hannah (b. 1725) married Joseph Bailey (b. 1719), the brother of Constant Bailey. For more on Constant Bailey, see Ethel Hall Bjerkoe, The Cabinetmakers of America(New York: Bonanza Books, 1957), p. 36 and William C. Ketchum, Jr., American Cabinetmakers: Marked American Furniture, 1640-1940 (New York: Crown Publishers, 1995), p. 20.
As the only known work signed by Joseph Sanford (1740-1784), the table is a crucial document of his work. Previously, his profession was only evident in the written record.1 Like many woodworkers, he appears to have supplemented his income through the trade of goods, for in 1763, he advertised the sale of “Teneriffe wine” and is identified as a joiner.2 His inventory, taken on November 15, 1784, includes “Sundry Joiner’s Tool, Bench” valued at 3 pounds 12 shillings as well as a large quantity of lumber.3 The son of Captain Esbon (1693-1743) and Mary (Woodward), Joseph may have trained under his father whose probate papers identify him as a house carpenter and owner of “carpenter and joiners tools.” Alternatively, he may have trained under his sister’s brother-in-law, Constant Bradley (1717-1801), a documented Newport cabinetmaker working in the 1750s. Along with several of his brothers and sisters, Joseph removed to Newport, Nova Scotia in 1760 and, as indicated by the advertisement cited above, was back in Newport, Rhode Island by 1763. The following year he married Mary Clark(e) (1740-1811) and upon his death in 1784, was buried in Newport’s Common Burial Ground.4 Closely related to three other tea tables, this table, and its signature identifies one of the woodworkers involved in their production. No two of the tables are exactly alike, yet all display at least one component part this is identical to another. Thus, a comparison of the four tables reveals a complex interaction of at least two shops and specialized craftsmen who either worked in more than one shop or supplied separate shops with their turned and carved component parts. As Sanford is identified as a joiner rather than a turner, it is likely that the table was for the most part made in his shop. The turned pedestal, knee carving, and foot carving may also have been executed by Sanford, but could also have been done by as many as three different individuals. The knee carving is identical to that on a table in a private collection and was undoubtedly carved by the same hand, yet that table with birdcage support and variant cleats was clearly constructed in a different shop. Both tables also have identical shaping relieving the underside of the legs and base of the support and it is possible that the same craftsman who embellished the knees also provided the decorative detailing in these areas.
Two additional tables, one in a private collection and one whose location is unknown, may also have been made in Sanford’s shop. The table in a private collection has an identical top with a thin molded lip as well as the same knee carving, yet its pedestal, with a fluted column and a spiral-reeded ball, suggests the work of yet another specialized turner. With an elaborately molded rim and more extensive knee carving, the fourth table displays further differences, which while possibly indicating another shop, could also reflect variant designs made in the same shop or by the same carver. This table’s turned pedestal appears identical in both design and proportion to that on the Sanford table and was most likely executed by the same craftsman. The feet carving provide the final point of comparison. Those on the Sanford table differ from the other by having the lowermost part of the leg visually abutting the ball, with partial scribe line delineating the two elements. This contrasts with the other tables, which have the lower leg or outer tendons curving over the ball.
1 Wendell Garrett, “The Newport Cabinetmakers: A Corrected Checklist,” Antiques (June 1958), p. 560.
2 The advertisement reads, “To be sold by Joseph Sanford joiner and Joseph Smith, Living near the Point Bridge, Teneriffe Wine.” The Newport Mercury, June 27, 1763 (recorded under “Joseph Sanford” in the card catalogue at the Newport Historical Society).
3 Newport Probate Court Records, Book 1, pp. 214-215.
4 G. Andrews Moriarty, “President Joseph Sanford of Portsmouth, R.I. and His Family,” New England Historic and Genealogical Register, vol. 103 (October 1949), p. 272; “Notes,” vol. 104 (January 1950), pp. 73-75; Rhode Island Historical Cemeteries Database, www.newenglandancestors.org. Joseph Sanford’s sister Hannah (b. 1725) married Joseph Bailey (b. 1719), the brother of Constant Bailey. For more on Constant Bailey, see Ethel Hall Bjerkoe, The Cabinetmakers of America(New York: Bonanza Books, 1957), p. 36 and William C. Ketchum, Jr., American Cabinetmakers: Marked American Furniture, 1640-1940 (New York: Crown Publishers, 1995), p. 20.