Artmink

New England Federal Period Painted Pine Blanket Chest with Two Drawers

By: Unknown rural cabinetmaker

Style: American Federal Period (vernacular New England case furniture)

Origin: United States (New England, likely Connecticut or Massachusetts)

Materials: White pine (primary and secondary), red-wash paint surface, brass (later) drawer pulls, iron lid hardware/locks (not fully visible)

Age: Circa 1790–1810

Condition: Fair to Good (expected abrasions, edge wear and losses to feet, oxidized surface, hardware likely replaced; structurally presentable)

Value: $500–$1,200 (auction)

Maker's Marks / Writing: Remnant printed/handwritten paper label at front (illegible in photo); no maker’s mark observed.

Date: 2025-10-31 16:33:17.369746

Description:

Rectangular lift-top blanket chest in red-wash paint, the case with hand-cut dovetailed corners, molded lid edge, and a drawer section containing two full-width drawers above shaped bracket feet with pierced returns. Likely white pine throughout with later brass bail pulls; remnants of an old paper label at the front center.

Curator Questions

Curated by Jade

Assessment:

This appears to be an authentic late-18th to early-19th century New England blanket chest with drawers. The large, slightly irregular hand-cut dovetails, oxidized pine, honest wear to edges and bracket feet, and dry red-wash surface support a period origin. The brass bail pulls look to be later 19th-century replacements and there may be scattered repairs and surface losses, all consistent with age and use. A word about fakes.. Colonial Revival and later reproductions are common in this category; telltale signs include machine-cut dovetails, uniformly shiny finishes, and contrived wear. Here, construction and surface read convincingly period, though a hands-on inspection would confirm secondary woods, drawer bottoms, and hinge type. Overall, a good vernacular example with sound country character. {chavatar_catchphrase}

Individual Images:

• none

Provenance:

Not provided

Condition:

Fair to Good (expected abrasions, edge wear and losses to feet, oxidized surface, hardware likely replaced; structurally presentable)

Identification Score: 92%

Form, construction, and details (two-drawer base, shaped bracket feet, hand-cut dovetails, red-wash pine) strongly indicate a New England Federal-period blanket chest.

Authenticity Score: 70%

Hand-cut dovetails, oxidized pine, wear patterns, and early paint suggest period; however, later hardware, possible restorations, and the limits of a single photo warrant caution.

Image Memory Note

None     None

Keywords

American, New England, Federal Period, blanket chest with drawers, pine, red-wash, dovetailed, circa 1790–1810, United States

Report ID:  : 4kueff

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