Blanket Chest (Primary Title)
Unknown (Artist)
Between 1727 and 1775, approximately sixty thousand Germans passed through the port of Philadelphia. Although many remained to shape the culture of that city, others relocated to nearby counties or migrated further south and west into the southern backcountry.
Based on its style and construction, this chest was likely produced in the region of Berks County in southeastern Pennsylvania. The lift-top form, which sometimes included drawers, was an essential configuration for storage in German households and likewise became popular among Americans of German descent. The lively surface of this chest includes a pair of checkerboard panels detailed with a tulip-and-fan motif. With a freestanding flower at the center, each panel is flanked by vertical hearts arranged to overlap the case’s corners. This stylistic and technical combination underscores the converging influence of myriad cultural traditions on American decorative arts.
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