Shaker Sisters’ Writing Desk on Frame
Probably Enfield, CT | c. 1850
Butternut, walnut, pine, and cherry
32 ½” h. x 28 ⅜” w. x 20 ¾” d.
This lift-lid Shaker Writing Desk on Frame is a fine example of Shaker craft. Comprised of four different kinds of wood, it is both beautiful and functional—the ideal form to accommodate a Shaker Sister’s bookkeeping and correspondence.
The base is cherry, with a mortise and tenoned skirt and classic square-to-round legs that have a slight medial swell marked at the fullest point with a single scribe line. The articulated moldings around the perimeter of the desk and work surface are rendered in walnut, and the finely dovetailed case, which includes a backboard extending above the case to create a backsplash, is made from butternut. Finally, the lift lid, with accurately restored olive-green wool felt, is pine. The interior of the case has been lined in patterned paper—an attribute generally associated with smaller Shaker woodenware and fancy objects, not full-sized pieces of furniture. The desk retains its original lock.
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