"A Chippendale carved cherry wood bonnet-top highboy; made in two parts; the upper with molded swans’ neck crest centering a pierced stylized cartouche above a pierced lattice-work tympanum, flanked by two turned finials, three short and four long graduated drawers below, the center drawer is fan carved, with fluted drawers, the center drawer with fan carving and fluted quarter columns flanking. The shaped skirt continues to angular cabriole legs ending in claw and ball feet. Made from cherry with eastern white pine and yellow pine (back of lower case.) There are scribed lines surrounding the carved shell and the drawer dovetails are small with little angle. It appears to retain its original brasses, lower section of the cartouche, turned finials and mahoganized finish.
A nearly identical highboy with a paneled finial support and replaced cartouche is at the Yale University Art gallery. There is another example with the original cartouche in the consigned to Sotheby’s for sale in 1991 it retained a considerable portion of the lower section of the original cartouche. The present cartouche was designed by Jeffrey Arnestein & Associate of Hartford, Connecticut and carved by Dimitrios Klitsas of West Springfield, Massachusetts. The design and execution were based on studies of the original cartouche section and firsthand comparisons with identical original cartouches from highboys documented to Chapin. The urn-turned side finials appear to be original to this piece."
Credit
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. Gift of Jonathan and Karin Fielding
