Shaker Drop-Leaf Worktable
New Lebanon, NY | c. 1840
Cherry
Old stain and varnish surface
26″ h. x 19 ½” w. (30 ¼” open) x 19 ½” d.
Provenance: The collection of Grace Van Eyck Tagliabue, Southport, CT. Received as a wedding gift in 1945 from the Maurice Whitney Family, Berlin, NY, who had purchased it directly from the remaining Shakers at Mount Lebanon, New York.
Exhibited: Masterworks of Shaker Design: Mount Lebanon, New Britain Museum of American Art, August 25, 2023 – March 3, 2024
Illustrated: M. Stephen Miller, Masterworks of Shaker Design: Mount Lebanon (New Britain Museum of American Art, 2023)
A fine, cherry Drop Leaf Worktable from the New Lebanon Shaker community retaining an old stain and varnish surface. Though many larger versions of this table are known, this quaint and beautifully proportioned example is a possibly unique survivor.
Supported by four square tapered legs, the table has a thin top and two rule-joined drop leaves held by shaped, pivoting leaf supports. The case is mortised and tenoned, fitted with a flush-fitted, dovetailed drawer that retains its original mushroom-shaped press-fitted knob. The top appears to have received an additional thin coat of varnish.
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