Table

Description

Pine table with dovetailed drawer in each end. Legs of hard pine (?), tapered on insides and arrises chamfered starting about 1" below apron and increasing to bottom so that bottom of legs approach hexagons. Aprons and drawer rails joined to legs with mortise and tenon joints. Edges of top slightly rounded. Drawer knobs of between-centers turned cherry. Drawers of pine except basswood bottoms. Fronts are lipped. Table painted with a red wash.

Notes

Throughout the 19th century the Church Family at Mount Lebanon produced a wide array of furniture forms. Most of these forms were made for use within the community, and their designs were based on specific functions. This small, pine table has drawers on opposite sides. The drawers may have stored sewing or writing implements or other small materials. The legs are slender and taper to less than an inch at the floor. The edges of the legs are chamfered, which augments their slender appearance. In section, the legs are square at the top and octagonal at the bottom. The Shaker who made this table put long hours into its manufacture. This is apparent upon examination of the drawer construction: all four corners of each drawer have dovetail joints (which is uncommon even on expensive furniture of the World), the drawer bottoms are slid into grooves and secured by nails, and the drawer fronts overlap the apron with decorative quarter-round moldings. The drawers are made of pine, with basswood bottoms, and cherry knobs. The table top consists of two pieces glued together and screwed into the frame from below. The reddish-orange wash that covers the table was originally much brighter than it appears today. There are a few areas of wash that have escaped exposure to bright light and contact with hands, mostly on the underside of the top. The wash in these areas is much lighter in hue and more orange, which represents a color closer to the original than the rust-colored red wash covering the top and the legs. This table may have been made by the same craftsman and at the same time as 1950.2685.1, based on the nearly identical materials, methods of joinery, dovetailing, size and shapes of cherry drawer knobs and finish. In addition, this table has drawers marked "III" and "IIII" while 1950.2685.1 has drawers "I" and "II".