Table, Pier
Object number2003.147.1
Manufacturer
Joseph W. Woodwell & Company
Datec. 1830
Mediumwood/mahogany veneer/brass/mirror/marble
Credit LineMuseum purchase
DescriptionPier table. Late classical or Grecian-style mahogany-veneered with serpentine marble top that follows line of the apron. Rounded turnings beneath apron give rise to faceted front columns that flare at top and bottom and end in cylindrical turnings with crenelations at bottom. A thick shelf across bottom follows the serpentine lines of the top with two semicircular stepped turnings in the back, center. The table has a solid wood back with a rectangular mirror in the bottom half and half-columns of the same shape as the front columns flush with the surface at each side. Brass casters.Dimensions31.75 x 36 x 18.75 in. (80.6 x 91.4 x 47.6 cm)MarksSignature In crayon: "Woodwell" on the underside of marble top.
Historical NotesPurchased by the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania, this table from the Pittsburgh cabinet shop and furniture ware room of Joseph W. Woodwell & Company probably dates to the 1830's and descended in the LeMoyne family of Washington, Pennsylvania. Pier tables were intended to sit between windows (the pier) in formal rooms and this example represents the production of luxury furnishings for the Pittsburgh and western Pennsylvania market.Label TextThis marble-top table, made around 1840, is attributed to the Pittsburgh cabinet shop of Joseph W. Woodwell, based on the name “Woodwell” inscribed underneath the marble top. Such tables were designed to fit between windows (the pier) in formal rooms and usually held decorative objects or lamps. They represent the production of luxury furnishings for the Pittsburgh market. Woodwell operated both a workshop and furniture wareroom in Pittsburgh with his brother James, but by 1845 he sold his interest in the business and entered into the hardware trade. Woodwell Hardware continued to operate until 1954.
Related person
Joseph W. Woodwell
Terms
On View
On view
c.1860?
1832-1842
1940
