Americana Week

Late January is always the most exciting time of the year for American furniture scholars, with a glut of shows and auctions to attend. During Americana week, the auction houses typically offer an array of high quality furniture to the market. Attending the auction previews allows us to see and handle pieces that we may not see again, as they disappear into private collections or to museums.
Of interest this year is Sotheby’s New York, Sale 9607, Important Americana including Property from the Collection of Joan Oestreich Kend, January 20, 2017-January 21, 2017. Included in the sale is lot. 4231, a rare, Newport, Rhode Island ca. 1765, mahogany, carved and figured, scalloped-top tea table, with open ball and talon feet. The quality of workmanship is exquisite, though the carving on the knees differs from that usually seen with the Goddard and Townsend shops; but is no less skillfully executed. At some point in the table’s history, a drawer was added, probably in the last half of the 18th century. The tea table is offered to the market with provenance of descent through the Brown family of Rhode Island; owned by Nicholas Brown (1729-1791) a wealthy merchant. Sotheby’s states in the detailed provenance of the table, in somewhat understated terms that: ‘Newport furniture of this quality made by the Goddard and Townsend craftsmen and offering a direct descent from the original owners sells on the marketplace for record prices.’ The tea table estimate is $800,000-$1, 200,000.

Post sale note : At the sale the table reached $912,500 (hammer price with Buyer's premium).

Sotheby's Sale 9607, Newport, Rhode Island card table.

Sotheby's Sale 9607, card table, detail of knee carving.