Blanket chest

DateCa. 1800

OriginAmerica, Virginia, King William County

MediumYellow pine

DimensionsOH: 24"; OW: 40 3/8"; OD: 20 11/16"

Credit LineGift of The Burlington Gwathmey Foundation.

Object number1988-445

DescriptionAppearance: Rectangular chest; top with cross battens on ends and rounded edges; long hinges running 3/4 depth of top; base molding with bracket feet.

Construction: Cross battens mortised into top; hinges screwed on; sides rabbeted and nailed together; base molding and feet nailed on; corner blocks nailed on.
ProvenanceOwned by the Gwathmey family of King William County, Virginia. This is possibly one of the "2 pine chests at $1" mentioned in the 1824 inventory of Joseph Gwathmey; one of the chests was sold to John Gwathmey in the estate sale of 1836 and described as "1 Chest No. 2 $1.90". John Gwathmey bought and lived at Burlington until his death in 1839.

This chest was dicovered by Colonial Williamsburg's curatorial staff in a 19th century tenant house on Burlington plantation in 1987.