Images(4)

Desk and bookcase

Dateca. 1785

OriginAmerica, Virginia, Richmond (possibly)

MediumBlack walnut with yellow pine and oak

DimensionsOH: 83"; W (top section): 41 3/4"; W (bottom section): 43 1/4"; D (top) 11 7/8"; D (bottom) 22"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1959-173

DescriptionAppearance:
Desk and bookcase of 3 parts: Upper section: flattened top above cove molded cornice, embellishment with applied dentil molding; fits into bookcase section with small pegs at either end. Bookcase section: flat paneled doors embellished with applied ogee spandrels in upper corners; small, brass lock escutcheons on each door; 3 adjustable shelves inside; whole fits into desk section by means of 2 wooden pegs. Desk section: slant top desk simply fitted inside with pigeonholes and 7 drawers (with a "secret" drawer behind central drawer); 4 graduated drawers below with bail pulls; heavy molded skirt rests on 4 shaped ogee bracket feet.

Cornice
The yellow pine front and back rails of the cornice are joined to the sides with dovetails. The single bead flat walnut base molding is nailed from the underside to the front and side rails. Two short pegs on the underside of the side molding rest in holes in the top of the bookcase. Above the molding, vertically grained walnut veneer is glued to the front and side rails. Above the veneer, a cove molding with inset dental teeth above is nailed to the rails, and at the top, a sloped molding is nailed from above to the front and side rails. (the front section of the molding is replaced). The front and side rails have been cut down about ¼” (assuming original height was same as back rail).

Bookcase
The top is rabbeted and nailed into rabbets in the sides. The back consists of four butt joined vertical yellow pine boards nailed into rabbets in the sides and face nailed to the edge of the top and bottom. The yellow pine bottom is faced with walnut and rabbeted to fit into dados in the sides. Dados are cut in the sides of the interior to hold the two removeable and one (lower) adjustable walnut shelves.

The front bottom frame is rabbeted at the ends and blind dovetailed to the frame’s sides which are nailed to the bookcase sides which extend below the bottom board. A shaped molding is nailed from above to the upper edge of the frame. Pegs are set in the underside edge of the sides and rest in holes in the top of the desk.

The rails of the flat, two-board single-panel walnut doors are tenoned to the stiles. The panels are chamfered on the inside to fit into dados in the rails and stiles. The rails and stiles have integral molding on the interior edges and applied ogee spandrels in the upper corners. Bookcase lock is a replacement, key escutcheons are original.

Desk
The top of the desk is dovetailed to the sides. The back is comprised of four vertical, butt joined boards nailed into rabbets in the sides and top and face nailed to the edge of the bottom. The front edges of the sides are faced with a thick facing. The fixed writing surface of the desk rest in dados in the sides behind the facing. The writing surface is notched at the front corner to accommodate the facing, extends under the compartment drawers and is nailed from the back to the back. An additional ½” board faced with walnut front molding is added under the compartments to raise the floor. Dividers, shelves and supports for pigeon-holes and drawers are dadoed into the compartment floor, top, sides and each other. The fallboard is tongue and groove joined to battens. Edges are overlapped with integral thumb nail molding. Butt hinges and lock are original. Loper dividers appear to be glued between the desk writing surface and the upper drawer blade. Loper guides (modern) are glued to the upper drawer dust board. A wooden peg in the lopers acts as a stop.

The drawer blades are shouldered in dados in the sides. The dust board for the top drawer rests in dados in the sides and ends 5” from the back. The dust board is thinner than its drawer blade. Drawer supports for the two middle drawers are butt joined to the drawer blades and nailed to the sides. The walnut drawer blade for the bottom drawer is 2” deep and is faced with ¼” walnut (possibly replaced or repaired). It is butt joined to a single bottom board and both are dovetailed to the sides. Boards are nailed to the bottom board from below along the front and sides. The front foot assembly consists of vertical weight supporting blocks glued to miter joined ogee bracket feet with blind dovetails. The rear foot assembly consists of the supporting feet glued to side facing ogee bracket feet rabbeted to join rear facing modern brackets. The ogee bracket feet are screwed from below (modern screws in early recessed pockets). Modern blocks are glued to the edge of the bottom in the back and to the modern brackets. The bottom cove molding rests on top of the bracket feet and is nailed to the sides and bottom drawer blade.

Large drawers are of dovetail construction with bottoms chamfered to fit into dados in the front and sides, and nailed to the underside of the back. Fronts are walnut, backs, sides and bottoms are yellow pine. Interior desk drawers are also of dovetail construction, but bottoms, backs and sides are glued into rabbets. Fronts are walnut and secondary woods are yellow pine with the exception of two drawers with oak sides, one drawer with oak back and one drawer with oak sides and back.

With the exceptions noted in the desk drawers, the desk and bookcase is made of walnut primary wood and yellow pine secondary.
InscribedInside left bookcase door: Remnants of a newspaper clipping and possibly a photo, including words "...ficer" and "Duchess" and "acme photo." (Subsequently removed.)

Left top interior drawer: "R. I. Eggleston from his / Father" in pencil on inner bottom.

Second top left interior drawer: "Edmund Eggleston of Cumberland / to his son / Richard Beverly Eggleston of Nottoway / from him to his son / Stephen Richard Eggleston / of Richmond / from him to his son / Richard Irv...." in pencil on inner bottom.

Second top right interior drawer: "GHO" twice in crayon or pencil on outer back.

Center interior drawer: "____was left by / Edmund Egg[leston] ___ Hill Cumberland / Co.Va. to his old[est?] ___ Richard Beverly / who left it to his___ / Stephen Richard ___ who / left it to his son Richard ___" on outer bottom in brown ink.

Back of bookcase: "R.I. Eggleston/ Brandy/ Va." in black ink/paint (likely a 19th-century shipping mark).

Back of desk: remnants of a paper label.

Back of cornice: "1883" several times and a number of meaningless doodles, all in pencil.

There are also several other inscriptions on desk including assembly and posititin numbers on interior drawers and meaningless or illegible scribblings.
MarkingsNone.
ProvenanceAccording to history written in various places on desk, has been in the Eggleston family of Amelia, Cumberland, Nottoway, and Culpeper counties and the Cunningham family of Gloucester County for several generations.