Sideboard

Description

Newly acquired wealth from railroad production, manufacturing, and an expanded economy produced a new elite class of Americans who looked abroad for sources of decoration to adorn their lives. Grand, baronial furniture, reminiscent of German hunting lodges or French castles, became popular during the mid 1800s among America’s wealthy. Elaborate displays of abundance were reflected in the carvings of flora, fauna, and freshly hunted game. The depictions of Native American hunters on this example, most likely made in Philadelphia, may have meant that this piece was displayed at one of the many international expositions that occurred during this period.

Provenance

Mr. and Mrs. Franklin Corn Montross of Troy, Ohio. Said to have been acquired about 1900 on the east coast of the United States, probably Philadelphia or Baltimore.; By descent to their daughter, Mrs. Leon E. Brown of Troy who sold the piece at auction in Cincinnati, c. 1984 (Peter Hill Inc., East Lempster, New Hampshire).

Sideboard

Joseph Alexis Bailly

c. 1855

Accession Number

1985.72

Medium

walnut

Dimensions

Overall: 290.4 x 211.4 x 69.4 cm (114 5/16 x 83 1/4 x 27 5/16 in.)

Classification

Furniture and woodwork

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund