Fine and Rare Diminutive George I Burr Elm Chest of Drawers

This fine chest belongs to a small recorded group of pieces of similar form which are thought to have been made in England under a strong Dutch influence. A related piece is illustrated in Lanto Synge’s Mallett’s Great English Furniture (1991) p.36 fig. 21 and another, illustrated below, was offered by the dealers Connell and Sons of Enfield Street, Glasgow, and advertised in Connoisseur Magazine March 1923.

What sets our chest apart from most of this group is the fact that the highest quality burr elm veneers have been used rather than walnut as is more usual for pieces of this type. The elm may well have been described as “mulberry wood” to purchasers at the time that it was made and there have been many article written in the intervening period on the myth of mulberry wood veneers-for example Edward H.Pinto, “The Myth of the Mulberry Burr Veneer” (Country Life, 2nd of October 1969). It is beyond doubt that the construction of a piece such as our chest would have been time consuming and difficult due to the serpentine surfaces and the use of an expensive veneer on top of this further illustrates the piece’s importance.

Our chest retains its original hardware which is also finely engraved-another sign of a luxurious piece of furniture created without any corners being cut at all.

Provenance

With Studio Antiques, Ltd., Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, UK, 20 October 1975.
Property of John H. Ford IV, Los Angeles, California.

England, c. 1715-25

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