Trestle-based Work Table, about 1840-45
Attributed to Phyfe and Son (active 1837–40), New York
Mahogany (secondary woods: mahogany and pine), with brass hinges
30 1/2 in high, 20 1/4 in. wide, 13 1/2 in. deep
This mahogany work table, with a shallow coffin-shaped work box and ring turned legs to simulate bamboo is a refined and creative example that speaks loudly of the production of the later career of the legendary Scottish émigré cabinetmaker Duncan Phyfe (1770–1854) who worked in New York for more than fifty years. Cabinetmaker of choice to many of America’s most important families—the Bayards, Brinckerhoffs, Pearsalls, and Banckers, among others—Phyfe produced an extraordinary array of chairs, sofas, tables, sideboards, and every other conceivable form of furniture for an audience who knew and demanded the best that New York had to offer. Not only did Phyfe’s workshop make a veritable array of worktables in a succession of Neo-Classical styles from Hepplewhite and Sheraton to high style Empire and Restauration-inspired examples, but his influence was far reaching, widely admired, and often imitated, though most often to a lesser degree of finesse and quality.
This work table is a combination of various design elements that Phyfe collated from other pieces to create an entirely new and unique design. Specifically, the workbox component, in the form of a shallow “casket,” features beautifully selected richly figured mahogany veneers as its sole ornament, reminiscent of high style French Restauration furniture that must have served as Phyfe’s inspiration. Inside, it is fitted with a removable wooden tray designed to hold personal items. The ring-turned legs, presumably a simulation of bamboo, are a clear reference to Thomas Sheraton’s 1803 design for “Supper Canterburies.”