Breakfast table

Date1800-1815

Attributed to Henry Connelly (1770 - 1826)

OriginAmerica, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (probably)

MediumMahogany, mahognay veneer, tulip poplar, white pine, cherry, and brass

DimensionsOH:29"; OW:50 1/4";(up); OW: 23 1/4" (downOD: 39 7/8"

Credit LineGift of the Sealantic Fund.

Object number1988-389

DescriptionAppearance: Rectangular drop-leaf table; rectangular leaves with scalloped edges; back has false drawer, front has real drawer, drawers have single shell and leaf pull rings; corners on front and rear have pendant drops with two rings over one-half ball; two pedestals with grooved sides and carved rosettes on either side of base; stretcher below table top flat on top and arched underneath; pedestals sit on two double saber shaped legs with acanthus leaves carved on knees with reeding down top of legs to brass hairy paw feet on casters; two lower turned stretchers between pedestals.

Construction: Top in two pieces and screwed down onto sides in six places; leaves attached by four hinges; sides in two parts, an inner and outer side; corner blocks on false drawer side; real drawer has runner and rear drawer stops nailed into side; brass feet screwed into legs; drawer sides dovetailed to front and back, bottom slipped into groove on sides and hailed on bottom at back, runners nailed on.
Label TextLyre-shaped pedestals, brass paw castors, and lions' head drawer pulls began appearing on furniture with the arrival of the classical taste in Philadelphia. The 1796 Philadelphia price book described this as "a pillar-and-claw dining table." Labor to make the basic form cost nine shillings. Each drop leaf cost one shilling more, and there were additional fees for carving and veneer.

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