Click on image to enlarge.

Side Chair
Walnut

Newport, Rhode Island, ca.
1740

Purchase with funds from the
Decorative Arts Endowment, 1988.225

Distinguished by the repeated, elongated S-shape
in the curves of the front legs, the vase form of the
center splat (the vertical wooden piece in the center
of the back), and the seat itself, this is a superb example
of eighteenth-century American furniture. The delicately
carved shell and foliage and the subtle curves visible from
any angle add to the interest of the design.