The New York attribution of this high chest of drawers is based on its history of ownership in the Mitchell family of New York and then Port Washington, Long Island, and on the craftsman's use of gumwood and spiral turnings, which are similar to those on several tables and other chests associated with New York. Such twist ornament, used in England in the late seventeenth century and on the European continent, where it originated, is rare in American furniture. The New York examples may reflect direct Dutch or French Huguenot influences.

Open full-size image