Join us at 12 noon on Tuesday October 12 for a free, open to all, program on recent research into the identity of a carved portrait bust finial on a desk and bookcase made in Philadelphia c. 1770 in the collection of Woodford Mansion in East Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. You can register for the event … Continue reading A Mystery Portrait Bust Revealed
Craft
This Than That
I started this blog in 2010 while working at the Philadelphia Museum of Art to document my carving project at Mount Pleasant, the historic house in East Fairmount Park. After the project was finished I continued with the blog as a way of recording my furniture conservation and restoration work. Mount Pleasant stair hall, August 2010 Along the … Continue reading This Than That
The Curious Case of the Brass
In the catalogue description of the Laird Family chest that sold on January 25, 2025 at Sotheby's, the chest was described as appearing "to retain its original fire-gilt cast brass hardware" early in the text and later was said to retain "its original fire gilt brass hardware." The wording is slightly different, the first quote … Continue reading The Curious Case of the Brass
All the Ceremonial Armchairs
I mentioned in the last post that I had not seen the large ceremonial Philadelphia compassed armchair illustrated in John Walker's 1983 publication, Experts Choice: 1000 Years of the Art Trade, until a recent online search turned up a copy that included the page with the chair. Now that I have images of all of … Continue reading All the Ceremonial Armchairs
ANOTHER VENERATED ARMCHAIR
Armchair. Made in Philadelphia c. 1755. Black walnut, hard pine. As mentioned in my post about January's Americana Week, another armchair from the only known set of Philadelphia compassed armchairs was in Christie's sale as lot 563. The loose seat is a modern reproduction. The front seat rim and one knee return are replaced. There … Continue reading ANOTHER VENERATED ARMCHAIR
In Proportion to the Trouble 