Lot 198: Southern Chippendale Walnut Slant Front Desk

Southern Chippendale walnut slant front desk, poplar and yellow pine secondary. Top of case with exposed dovetails with a lip molded hinged fall-board opening to a fitted interior of a plain central prospect drawer flanked on each side by four pigeonholes with scrolled valences over a bank of two dovetailed drawers and one long dovetailed drawer. The central prospect drawer opens to reveal two pigeonholes with a hidden valence drawer over two dovetailed drawers. The lower case with four graduated lip-molded dovetailed drawers and full-length dustboards. Ogee molded base transitions to ogee feet with spur returns. The bottom drawer covers a shallow cavity with blocking. The underside of the case also has blocking for the returns of the ogee feet. Note: the hidden valence drawer with written script to the bottom interior, “Nov. 6, 1887…placed in this drawer a Nashville mortgage for 1350 due Feb. 22, 1888…..”. The underside of this drawer with a Jan. 30, 1897 inscription relating to Boston/Philadelphia. 43 3/8 in. H x 38 7/8 in. W x 23 in. D. Possible East Tennessee with an oral history from Knox County, circa 1820.

PROVENANCE: The estate of John Z. C. Thomas, Knoxville, Tennessee.

CONDITION: Older cleaned surface. Brass batwing brasses replaced, brass escutcheon on fall-board missing but retained. Drawer sides with minimal buildup/reinforcement from wear (less than 1/4″). Some of the blocking on the underside of the ogee feet are later replacements.