Barbk Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Hello all, I am a new user and I have a question relating to an old chest of drawers. There is a drawer missing and I would like to try to have a new one made, but I have no idea what type of wood this could be. As background, I believe the chest is an American Hepplewhite c.1790 - 1810. The first picture with the hardware is the top drawer, and the second picture is the same wood, but is used to form the back of the bottom drawer. Any help would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Beasley Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Looks like cherry to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gee-dub Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 I’m going with the mahogany family. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chet Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 It really looks like mahogany or sapele to me. I did a quick google search and although he used different woods like maple and satinwood, mahogany was his most common base wood so I think that is were I would start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Another vote in the mahogany world.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbk Posted March 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Thank you for your responses. Wow! I guess I just always thought of mahogany as a darker color, so I never thought to even check for this. It does appear very similar when I now do a google search! The vertical striations are throwing me off though. Have you ever seen this in either mahogany or sapele? Would you also say the case could be mahogany as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 I'm unfamiliar with Mahogany but that ray fleck looks a lot like QS cherry or QS maple. I didn't think that Mahogany produced such effect but i don't have a lot of experience with it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkinneb Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Sapele would be my guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spanky Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 It would be QS lumber forsure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Byrdie Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 The big clue is the thought that this is a early American Hepplewhite piece. Mahogany was not thought of in the same terms then as it is now and sapele is also an unlikely candidate. I'd have to agree with those who think QS cherry, quite common for the time period and prevalent in early American revolutionary or federal period furniture. edit: I'm going to reverse what I say above. Google is your friend and a quick search for " woods commonly used by Hepplewhite" came up with the following: (I am not the author but didn't bother to take the time to find a credit) Woods Used in Hepplewhite Style Pieces As Hepplewhite furniture is characterized by contrasting veneers and inlays depicting seashells or bell flowers, pieces often contain more than one type of wood. For the base, mahogany was most often the wood of choice, but satinwood and maple were also popular. Other woods include sycamore (especially common for the aforementioned veneers), tulipwood, birch, and rosewood. Since those crafting these pieces frequently used the local woods at hand, American versions of Hepplewhite's designs can be made of ash or pine as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Found this picture. This is Qtr. Cherry with finish on it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 The ray flakes seem too numerous / strong / long for mahogany but believable for sapele. The wood in the full carcass does not appear to be the same wood as the drawer. Is it? Can you get a closeup of the carcass where it shows cathedral grain? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 I've never heard of Sapele in period furniture, but that doesn't mean much. A Federal period piece I made replacement drawer parts for, fortunately, had Poplar drawer parts other than the fronts. I expect they ordered clapboards in different thicknesses for the various parts, and drawer parts would not usually be the same wood as the show wood. Do all the drawer parts look like that particular sample. quartered Sycamore: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 25, 2019 Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Found this looking for ray flecked quartersawn Poplar: https://www.lumberjocks.com/topics/55374 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbk Posted March 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 36 minutes ago, phinds said: The ray flakes seem too numerous / strong / long for mahogany but believable for sapele. The wood in the full carcass does not appear to be the same wood as the drawer. Is it? Can you get a closeup of the carcass where it shows cathedral grain? I didn't think so either, but you can see in this picture that toward the back of the case, the wood appears to be the same (the same pattern of grain is there) although the color is quite different -- the sides are made of two full boards. I can see the same marking on the inside of the case as on the outside in that area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbk Posted March 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 37 minutes ago, Tom King said: I've never heard of Sapele in period furniture, but that doesn't mean much. A Federal period piece I made replacement drawer parts for, fortunately, had Poplar drawer parts other than the fronts. I expect they ordered clapboards in different thicknesses for the various parts, and drawer parts would not usually be the same wood as the show wood. Do all the drawer parts look like that particular sample. quartered Sycamore: 38 minutes ago, Tom King said: I've never heard of Sapele in period furniture, but that doesn't mean much. A Federal period piece I made replacement drawer parts for, fortunately, had Poplar drawer parts other than the fronts. I expect they ordered clapboards in different thicknesses for the various parts, and drawer parts would not usually be the same wood as the show wood. Do all the drawer parts look like that particular sample. quartered Sycamore: The drawer parts seem to vary, but maybe not... -some look like the same wood, and some look different. I think fortunately for me, the largest drawer back appears to be made of the same wood. This drawer is also broken, so I wondered if a new drawer front for the missing drawer could be made from this, and a secondary wood could be used to replace that drawer back. At least then all the drawer fronts would match. I would have to find someone who could do this well, and duplicate the inlay that is present on the other drawers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted March 26, 2019 Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 I doubt it was made by Hepplewhite himself but is American made after his style so the material used could be anything. I doubt it's a piece made directly by him as he lived in London and any piece that got shipped here would be incredibly valuable. Still putting my money on cheery the pores don't look pronounced enough to be Mahogany though closer pictures would help. Also mahogany doesn't strike me as having pronounced cathedrals again not a ton of experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbk Posted March 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 1 hour ago, Tom King said: Found this picture. This is Qtr. Cherry with finish on it. That looks just like it. Could it be QS black cherry that old? I'm told the chest is 1790 - 1810... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 26, 2019 Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/research/centers/woodanatomy/wood_idfactsheet.php Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbk Posted March 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 8 minutes ago, Tom King said: https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/research/centers/woodanatomy/wood_idfactsheet.php Oh that's a great resource, thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted March 26, 2019 Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 No problem. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted March 26, 2019 Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 1 hour ago, Barbk said: QS black cherry that old? Well the oldest recorded Prunus serotina is 258 years. Even if that was today it'd put it in the middle 1700s i'm sure the species is MUCH older than 250 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark J Posted March 26, 2019 Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 4 hours ago, Barbk said: I'm told the chest is 1790 - 1810... By whom? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barbk Posted March 26, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2019 9 hours ago, Mark J said: By whom? A local antiques appraiser. They thought it was an American Hepplewhite Style chest of drawers, probably manufactured in the South in the early part of the 19th century, but possibly earlier. The Drawer construction is typical for that period as well. Drawer fronts have line & fan inlays which were popular in the federal period. The cockbeaded drawers indicate a professional cabinetmaker in the city, not a country piece because of that and the inlay. As I do more investigation I am learning more and more about the piece, but I didn't ask on the type of wood, which is why I am turning here to see what your members might think. I have attached a picture of it as found. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjeff70 Posted March 27, 2019 Report Share Posted March 27, 2019 The pulls aren't Hepplewhite are they? They resemble Chippendale. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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