The George Washington Chippendale Carved Cherrywood Side ChairPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaCirca 1775
Bears an engraved oval silver plaque on the splat inscribed Belonged to GENL GEO. WASHINGTON. Chair marked III with original slip seat marked III.
Height 39 in. by Width 20 5/8 in. by Depth 18 in.; Seat Height 17 3/4 in.Condition reportIn overall very fine condition. The chair marked III with original slip seat marked III, and accession number M189. The feet were formally fitted with metal guides. Refinished.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colors and shades which are different to the lot's actual color and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation. The condition report is a statement of opinion only. For that reason, the condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS ONLINE CONDITION REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE/BUSINESS APPLICABLE TO THE RESPECTIVE SALE.ProvenanceAccording to tradition, this side chair was owned by George Washington;Dr. Thomas George Morton (1835-1903) at Clonmel, Chester County, PA, 1895. The chair appears in a c. 1895 photograph of interior of Clonmel (in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania);Israel Sack, Inc., New York, June 1961Catalogue noteNumbered III on its seat rail, this side chair stems from a set of Philadelphia side chairs with shell-and-tassel carved crest rails and triple pierced splats that are made of Cherrywood rather than the more commonly found mahogany. The chairs have pronounced ears, fluted stiles, a pendant shell on the seat rail, shell-and acanthus-carved knees, and claw and ball feet. They display rear clubbed feet, a distinctive and uncommon detail. An identical side chair in the Mabel Brady Garvan Collection at Yale University, numbered I on its seat rail, was likely made as part of the same set.1 An armchair from the set was formerly in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago and currently in a private collection.2
This chair bears an engraved oval silver plaque on the splat stating it “Belonged to General George Washington.” It may have been among the furnishings secured for him by Congress for one of his presidential dwellings at 3 Cherry Street in New York City and 190 High Street in Philadelphia, where the seat of government moved in 1790. In 1797, Washington sold several privately purchased items as he prepared to return home to Mount Vernon. A public sale of his furniture is not recorded. The remainder of the furnishings were presumably left in the executive mansion for use by President John Adams; some of these pieces were sold between 1797 and 1800.3
In the late 19th century, this chair was in the collection of Dr. Thomas George Morton (1835-1903), a physician working at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. He was born in Philadelphia on August 8, 1835 and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in medicine in 1856. He was a surgeon during the Civil War at the Satterlee United States Army General Hospital and the Chestnut Hill United States Army Hospital. He was the head physician at Pennsylvania Hospital and published several volumes on the hospital’s history, including a compendium of his notable surgical cases and operations. Dr. Morton owned this side chair in 1895 at Clonmel, his home in Chester County, Pennsylvania. It appears in an 1895 photograph of the interior of Clonmel in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
A side chair from a similar set of Philadelphia shell-and-tassel carved chairs without a pendant shell on the seat rail is in the collection of Winterthur Museum.4 An armchair of the same pattern is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.5 An identical armchair to the Metropolitan Museum chair is in the collection of the U.S. Department of State.6 For other related side chairs representing several sets, see a pair sold at Christie’s, Important American Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Prints and Decoys, January 18-19, 2007, lot 604; a pair illustrated by Israel Sack, Inc. in American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection, Volume 8, p. 2182; one in a Ginsburg & Levy advertisement in The Magazine Antiques (October 1955): p. 313; a pair that sold in these rooms, June 18, 1997, lot 763; one illustrated by Joseph Kindig, The Philadelphia Chair (York, PA, 1978): no. 39; and two others sold in these room, June 21, 1989, lot 409 and October 26, 1991, lot 325.
1 Patricia Kane, 300 Years of American Seating Furniture Chairs and Beds from the Mabel Brady Garvan and Other Collections at Yale University (Boston: New York Graphic Society, 1976): no. 130, pp. 152-53. acc. no. 1930.2496.2 Meyric Rogers, American Interior Design, (New York: Bonanza Books, 1947), fig. 31.3 For another Philadelphia side chair stemming from a separate set owned by George Washington, see one in the collection of Mount Vernon with an 1839 label on the slip seat frame that reads: “These chairs were in possession of Gen. George Washington While residing in Philadelphia as president of The United States of America and were purchased at a sale of his effects by Peter Hinkle and kept by him until his decease when they became the property of the present owner William Gardner A.D. 1839”. See report by Carol Borchert Cadou, Senior Vice President of Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens.4 Joseph Downs, American Furniture (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1952): no. 1235 Morrison Heckscher, American Furniture in The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 1985): no. 61, pp. 108-109.6 Clement Conger and Alexandra Rollins, Treasures of State (New York: 1991): fig. 15, p. 96.
The George Washington Chippendale Carved Cherrywood Side ChairPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaCirca 1775
Bears an engraved oval silver plaque on the splat inscribed Belonged to GENL GEO. WASHINGTON. Chair marked III with original slip seat marked III.
Height 39 in. by Width 20 5/8 in. by Depth 18 in.; Seat Height 17 3/4 in.Condition reportIn overall very fine condition. The chair marked III with original slip seat marked III, and accession number M189. The feet were formally fitted with metal guides. Refinished.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colors and shades which are different to the lot's actual color and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation. The condition report is a statement of opinion only. For that reason, the condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS ONLINE CONDITION REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE/BUSINESS APPLICABLE TO THE RESPECTIVE SALE.ProvenanceAccording to tradition, this side chair was owned by George Washington;Dr. Thomas George Morton (1835-1903) at Clonmel, Chester County, PA, 1895. The chair appears in a c. 1895 photograph of interior of Clonmel (in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania);Israel Sack, Inc., New York, June 1961Catalogue noteNumbered III on its seat rail, this side chair stems from a set of Philadelphia side chairs with shell-and-tassel carved crest rails and triple pierced splats that are made of Cherrywood rather than the more commonly found mahogany. The chairs have pronounced ears, fluted stiles, a pendant shell on the seat rail, shell-and acanthus-carved knees, and claw and ball feet. They display rear clubbed feet, a distinctive and uncommon detail. An identical side chair in the Mabel Brady Garvan Collection at Yale University, numbered I on its seat rail, was likely made as part of the same set.1 An armchair from the set was formerly in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago and currently in a private collection.2
This chair bears an engraved oval silver plaque on the splat stating it “Belonged to General George Washington.” It may have been among the furnishings secured for him by Congress for one of his presidential dwellings at 3 Cherry Street in New York City and 190 High Street in Philadelphia, where the seat of government moved in 1790. In 1797, Washington sold several privately purchased items as he prepared to return home to Mount Vernon. A public sale of his furniture is not recorded. The remainder of the furnishings were presumably left in the executive mansion for use by President John Adams; some of these pieces were sold between 1797 and 1800.3
In the late 19th century, this chair was in the collection of Dr. Thomas George Morton (1835-1903), a physician working at Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. He was born in Philadelphia on August 8, 1835 and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in medicine in 1856. He was a surgeon during the Civil War at the Satterlee United States Army General Hospital and the Chestnut Hill United States Army Hospital. He was the head physician at Pennsylvania Hospital and published several volumes on the hospital’s history, including a compendium of his notable surgical cases and operations. Dr. Morton owned this side chair in 1895 at Clonmel, his home in Chester County, Pennsylvania. It appears in an 1895 photograph of the interior of Clonmel in the collection of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
A side chair from a similar set of Philadelphia shell-and-tassel carved chairs without a pendant shell on the seat rail is in the collection of Winterthur Museum.4 An armchair of the same pattern is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.5 An identical armchair to the Metropolitan Museum chair is in the collection of the U.S. Department of State.6 For other related side chairs representing several sets, see a pair sold at Christie’s, Important American Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Prints and Decoys, January 18-19, 2007, lot 604; a pair illustrated by Israel Sack, Inc. in American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection, Volume 8, p. 2182; one in a Ginsburg & Levy advertisement in The Magazine Antiques (October 1955): p. 313; a pair that sold in these rooms, June 18, 1997, lot 763; one illustrated by Joseph Kindig, The Philadelphia Chair (York, PA, 1978): no. 39; and two others sold in these room, June 21, 1989, lot 409 and October 26, 1991, lot 325.
1 Patricia Kane, 300 Years of American Seating Furniture Chairs and Beds from the Mabel Brady Garvan and Other Collections at Yale University (Boston: New York Graphic Society, 1976): no. 130, pp. 152-53. acc. no. 1930.2496.2 Meyric Rogers, American Interior Design, (New York: Bonanza Books, 1947), fig. 31.3 For another Philadelphia side chair stemming from a separate set owned by George Washington, see one in the collection of Mount Vernon with an 1839 label on the slip seat frame that reads: “These chairs were in possession of Gen. George Washington While residing in Philadelphia as president of The United States of America and were purchased at a sale of his effects by Peter Hinkle and kept by him until his decease when they became the property of the present owner William Gardner A.D. 1839”. See report by Carol Borchert Cadou, Senior Vice President of Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens.4 Joseph Downs, American Furniture (New York: The MacMillan Company, 1952): no. 1235 Morrison Heckscher, American Furniture in The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 1985): no. 61, pp. 108-109.6 Clement Conger and Alexandra Rollins, Treasures of State (New York: 1991): fig. 15, p. 96.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
