Bay Colony Antiques is proud to offer for sale this wonderful 19th century antique Federal Period Mahogany worktable. Stands of this form emerged at the end of the 18th century and were primarily made in Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, & Baltimore. We’re leaning towards this being a Baltimore table because of the inlay patterns & how good the conch shells are. Pictorial inlays like these were usually made by an independent craftsman who would wholesale them to cabinet makers. The conch shell has tight banded whorls throughout the body all the way up to the apex. The outer lip has a dramatic wavy edge, and the inlay was masterfully shaded which was achieved by slightly burning each individual piece in heated sand. Conch shells were a semi common motif used in early American cabinet making and were popular all throughout the country but were by far the most popular decoration in Maryland and stuck around longer. The study of shells, or Conchology, was a topic of interest to 18th century intellectuals along with anatomy, astronomy, botany, entomology, geology, physics, etc. The table has a single drawer with an inlaid escutcheon & string inlay. The same string inlay panels are found around the entire table, even on the back. The back also has two conch shells, and the table has tapered legs with line inlay and cuffed ankles. The table is in wonderful condition with our only notes being some light sun fading, mainly to the top, and minimal surface wear. If you look at our picture of the stand on its back with the drawer removed you can see the top is a solid piece of Mahogany. The stand measures 29 1/2” wide x 21” deep x 28 3/8” tall.
