A very rare Chippendale carved and figured cherrywood dressing table, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Circa 1775

Secondary wood is poplar. The proper right and left lower applied vine carving is lost on central drawer. The key holes all have a one inch diameter wooden plug. Has had multiple sets of hardware. Proper right upper drawer lip with a 5 1/2 inch long crack that has been reglued. The proper left upper drawer, top drawer lip with a 3 1/2 inch crack that has been reglued. Proper right lower small drawer, a drawer lip with a 5 1/2 inch crack that has been reglued; case sides are cracked due to normal shrinkage. Top two drawers were originally one long drawer. Altered in the early 19th century.
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.

This fine and rare dressing table vividly demonstrates the amalgamation of urban Philadelphia Rococo and German Baroque aesthetics. Lancaster, Pennsylvania was the largest inland town in eighteenth-century America and its population supported over 160 carpenters, joiners and cabinetmakers between 1760 and 1810.  This table’s robust carving on the skirt board, knees, quarter columns and central drawers is nearly identical to that found on an example now in the collection of LancasterHistory.org (see G.W. Scott, Jr., "Lancaster and other Pennsylvania furniture," The Magazine Antiques (May 1979), p. 990, pl. V).  That example lacks however the additional caving on the quarter columns or the rear legs. For other comparable dressing tables see, Christie’s, New York, May 23, 1980, lot 1165, Christie’s, New York, Fine American Furniture Silver and Decorative Arts, January 23, 1982, lot 393, Morrison Heckscher, American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1985), p. 262, Horst Auctioneers, Ephrata, Pennsylvania, March 28, 1998 that sold for $84,000 and Christie's, New York, Important American Furniture, Silver and Folk Art, January 18-19, 2002, lot 410 that sold for $76,375.