Box

Date1825-1850

OriginAmerica, Ohio, Coshocton County

MediumTulip poplar and paint

DimensionsOverall: 9 3/4 x 13 3/8 x 7 1/4in. (24.8 x 34 x 18.4cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1960.708.1

DescriptionSmall chest-style box on straight bracket feet with scalloped skirt and hinged lid. Overall paint detail is different shades of brown in a thumb-print decoration.

Maker unidentified.Label TextMid-twentieth century decor called for exposed surfaces. As a result, many older household furnishings were stripped of their once-fashionable layers of decorative paint and, in the process, lost much of their original character and eye appeal. Imagine how plain this little box would look without its overall pattern of "thumbprints"!
The repetitive imprints on this box probably were created with a wadded rag or sponge--but their oval shapes look like thumbprints. A variety of tools ranging from rags, feathers, and corncobs to commercially manufactured combs and brushes were used to create a spectrum of fascinating, irregular patterns in paint. Many such decorative painted effects are loosely called "wood graining" or "graining" today, even when, as in this case, the finished appearance bears little resmeblance to the swirls, whorls, stripes, and striations that occur naturally in wood.
Some structural features of this box are widely associated with New England manufacture, such as blind dovetailing and a lid nearly flush with the front of the box. Other closely related boxes have been documented to Coshocton County, Ohio, however, and it is hoped that further research will reveal the name(s) of the decorator and woodworker.ProvenancePurchased from dealer Mary Allis, Fairfield, Connecticut.