Dressing stand

1825-1850

Measurements

22 5/8 in x 22 1/4 in x 7 7/8 in

Materials

Mahogany, mirrored glass; white pine (all secondary woods)

Credit Line

Historic Odessa Foundation, gift of Sara Corbit Reese Pryor

Accession Number

1974.57

Inscription

A paper label attached to the back of the case records a path of descent, beginning with “From the William Corbit House” and “Sarah Clark Corbit’s bureau stand probably left her by her mother, Mary Clark of Smyrna, Del. (1789-1814), daughter of John Clark. . . ” It traces the same history as a bowfront chest of four drawers (acc. no. 1975.35).

Condition Notes

The brass knobs on the outer drawers and the ivory escutcheon are replacements. Scarring indicates that the center drawer once had a center pull. Institutional records state that the mirrored glass is replaced, but no visible evidence on the frame indicates replacement.

Provenance

Manufacture of “Sarah Clark Corbit’s bureau stand” followed the 1814 death of Mary Clark Corbit, her mother and proposed original owner in an attached label, suggesting Sarah was the first owner. It then descended to Mary Clark Higgins (1847–1909), to Sara Clark Corbit (1871–1952), and to the donor.

Comments

The presence of white pine in this dressing glass or stand reliably indicates its American origin.  It survives with a history of ownership in the Corbit family that once suggested it was listed in William Corbit's 1818 probate inventory.  However, circular saw marks on the drawer bottoms indicate an earliest time of manufacture in the 1820s, thus indicating original ownership in the next generation.  Other post-1818 features include the turning profiles of the uprights, the finials, and the turned feet.

Bibliography

Sweeney, Grandeur, 117, pl. 13.

Zimmerman, A Stored Past, 142.