mahogany, 34"w, 30½"h, 22"d available
The Newport slipper-foot lowboy is a gem
of Newport furniture design, and another example of elegance with the
restrained use of ornament. This early Job Townsend design has four graceful
slipper feet and an incised Newport shell with a flat-center rosette. The
refined lines are capped with a thin overhanging top. It is replicated
from the original in the Doris Duke Collection at the Whitehorne House
Museum under an agreement with the Newport Restoration foundation.
Like other Newport lowboys, the case and
drawers are of fully hand-dovetailed construction. As with all pieces by
Jeffrey Greene, the Newport shell is carved by hand in the
manner of the original.
similar examples: Sack p. 211, Moses p. 41
with ball and claw front feet and shell
mahogany, 35½"w, 31"h, 22½"d
In the manner of the Goddard family of cabinetmakers, this lowboy features open-talon, overcut ball and claw front feet and a Newport shell with the traditional palmette center. A molding under the top adds to the stateliness of the composition.
Like other Newport lowboys the case is fully hand-dovetailed as are the drawers. This lowboy can also be made with four ball and claw feet.
similar example: Moses p.260
John Townsend
Slipper-Foot Lowboy
mahogany, 34"w, 31"h, 22½"d
Made in the early manner of John Townsend, this lowboy features a Townsend shell with his unique fleur-de-lis center and precise detailing throughout. The case stands on slender cabriole legs with with the distinctive Townsend curve and end in slipper feet. The thin top has a closely cropped overhang giving the piece a crisp appearance. The piece features delicate Townsend-style dovetail joinery in the drawers and case
Connecticut Scalloped-Top Lowboy
cherry, 31"h, 38"w, 23"d
This is a design from the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts with a boldly scalloped top. The center drawer features a deeply carved and precisely detailed fan carving. The apron is gracefully curved and flows into the pad-foot cabriole legs. If it looks familiar it is because the original is the cover piece on Greene's American Furniture of the 18th Century.
Being a Connecticut River Valley piece, the case is of mortise-and-tenon joinery with dovetailed drawers.
similar example: Greene, dust jacket cover
Small Goddard Lowboy
mahogany, 33"w, 30"h, 21"d
This lowboy in the manner of the Goddard family workshop is slightly more petite than the other Goddard lowboy shown, but has all the same features. It has open-talon ball and claw front feet, a traditional Newport shell with a palmette center, and a molding below the case top.
In accordance with Goddard family practice it has dovetailed case and drawer construction. Most originals of this type have ball and claw front feet, but it can be made with four.
similar example: Moses p.208
Boston Block-Front Lowboy
walnut, walnut veneers, holly, ebony, 34½"w, 30"h, 22"d
The block-front style is not known to have made its way onto lowboys in Newport, but it did in Boston, the first city in the colonies to adopt the new treatment. This Boston design carries the blocking the full height of the case, from the apron through the top.
In addition to the drawer fronts, the case sides and top have bookmatched walnut burl surfaces with cross-banded surrounds and checkerboard string inlays. The combination of the form and the intricate surface give this a remarkably powerful presence in a compact package.
similar example: Sack p. 207
Connecticut Lowboy
cherry, 34"w, 31"h, 20"d
A simple but refined Connecticut lowboy design with gently scrolled aprons and a nicely detailed fan carving on the center drawer. The cabriole legs end in crisp pad feet. The overhanging top has an ogee-molded edge and incised corners
The case is of mortise-and-tenon construction and the drawers are dovetailed throughout. These were usually made in cherry but are equally handsome in figured maple.
maple, 34"w, 30½"h, 21½"d
A Boston area lowboy design from the William and Mary era with trumpet-turned legs and ball feet. The curved cross-stretchers are also rounded in cross section and sport a finial at the center. The case has a boldly shaped apron and two more pendant drops. The drawer openings are surrounded with double arch moldings and the pulls are brass drops.
Structurally, it has a pegged mortise-and-tenoned case with dovetailed drawers. It is shown in an ebonized finish on maple, but it may also be japanned or made in figured maple or walnut.
ref. Fairbanks & Bates p. 131