Featured Oncology Researcher Stumped After Extensively Researching Antique Dresser

Hi All and thank you so much for the warm welcome! I'll reply to you individually late tonight. I'm behind on my classes as a result of my newly discovered "passion" (I like that way better. Thanks, Any Jewelry!) but will catch up and get to responding. I wanted to post my photos and get graded, and your insights, on this dresser. I inherited from my grandmother in the late 90s in New England (Mass) at the time. My grandmother inherited it from her grandmother, so I know it's at least 160 years old just based on that knowledge. My grandmother is quite the story teller, so it's hard to get a fix on our family's heritage, much less this dresser's. I mentioned in my introduction, I work in Oncology Research. I LOVE research. And oncology is not black and white, but it is nowhere near as grey as antiques! I'm embarrassed to even post my findings. I'd be thrilled to get a 50 on this "test".

1. The piece is either from England or the New England, going back at least 6 generations in Massachusetts.
2. 41" 1/4 wide at top, 41" wide main body of dresser, 40" tall, 20" deep at the top, 19 1/2" main body
3. There are no marks indicating manufacturer, unless it could be under the paper that lines the drawers. I resized these down to roughly the suggested pixel size. Will include a link to my Google Photos Album if helpful or can upload them larger. This is my first post, first deep dive into antique research.

So don't laugh, here's my best guess after EXTENSIVE research:
circa 1790-1810
mahogany or elm, possibly walnut??? with pine and cedar lined drawers
Regency (period or of the style?), Georgian, Hepplewhite (I thought when I saw the blue drawers but it's not paint, or fabric, it's like paper mache though may be ancient cabinet liner) 2 over 3 long graduated drawers with beaded edge on bracket feet. 'Prince of Wales Feathers' drawer pulls, likely not original, inlayed brass escutcheon (no key).

I can't wait to hear how wrong I am. This is the most fun I've had in ages! I look forward to your comments.
Kenna

https://photos.app.goo.gl/WMhTRkQtYN22BBb49
(this a link to ALL the photos if interested, not infected with anything - I work with patient records all day nearly every day so have layers of protection, so it's safe if you want to see more, or I can upload here)

Thanks again!

 

I am forcing myself to close the page so I can study. Have a 11:59pm deadline. You'll definitely find me here at midnight.

 

Beautiful! Those are the Prince of Wales feathers and coronet on the pulls.

 

The brasses were likely imported from the UK or made to resemble some that were. Where the chest is from...no idea. I'll let the furniture guys handle that part.

 

It is a lovely piece ! The brasses are replaced,you can see the ghost of the original ones. Part of me thinks its real,part thinks later reproduction,but a very good one. What do all those tags say ?

 

If you mean these tags, only maybe a bit better!! But I'm sure OP can read them for you!!

​

 

They're from a moving company and are modern.

 

They're just tags the movers put on it when I moved to Houston from Northampton. My grandmother is not the most reliable historian, though she is certainly entertaining. I know for sure she inherited it from her grandmother (it's a point of contention among my thankfully distant relatives) but where it originated is anyone's guess. Sometimes she insists it was brought over by boat by our German Jew ancestors during the occupation. You don't have to be a historian or a math major to realize that doesn't add up. Another time, or a few glasses of wine later, she'd insist it was hand carved by my Great, Great, Great Grandfather - a "famous Sioux Warrior" or other times, "the first Chief of the Aboriginal Nation in Australia". She's not senile, but she is crazy. The only thing I am certain of is that it came here (to Houston) from Massachusetts on a big, outrageously expensive moving van. How it got to Massachusetts or if it was simply constructed there, we will likely never know. The only mark I could find on it was on the underside of a couple of the drawers - a very lightly carved circle inside another lightly carved circle. I assume someone was just practicing drawing circles.

I got excited when I saw the blue inside the drawers because I had read about Hepplewhite and it looked like what I pictured but when I saw actual pictures, I realized I had misinterpreted what I read. I have noticed that a majority of people selling pieces on Chairish and 1stDibs seem to have a lot in common with my grandmother. There is no way half of what I've read on there is true about the pieces listed. I saw a pair of iron bench rails listed for $1700 with a detailed history and kid you not, I have an identical set leaning against my house outside. And apparently I got my mirrored lamp for a steal at $295. I found it listed for $7500!

I'm clearly deliriously tired and rambling. Thanks everyone for looking. I'll hop back on tomorrow to look for updates and respond to everyone. I appreciate you all and this is most frustrating form of fun I've ever had, but I'm having fun either way. Thanks!
Kenna

 

Thanks! The Prince of Wales feathers is where I came up with 1790, but they too are available today on Etsy for like $10/each. Is it okay to take one of them off and see if there's any information on the other side of it? I don't want to damage the dresser any more than it has been but I've got to solve this puzzle!

 

She lives in a wonderful world, let her. It is probably more beautiful than what we regard as the real world.

As Johnny observed, those are replacements, in the photo of the inside of one of the drawers (reposted below) you can see that there used to be other pulls with the bolts closer together.
There is also a larger hole in the centre, which could mean there was yet another type of pull or knob originally.

The square nuts look older to me than the ones you find on Etsy etc, but I'll leave more precise information to the experts.
Tagging @verybrad , @Ghopper1924 .

 

A bit late, but welcome to Antiquers
@Kennabonner

 

Someone can jump all over me for this, but I don't think it's pre industrial revolution because the veneers are too thin.

Assuming that I'm seeing veneer here:

 

Looks like the real deal to me. Mahogany veneers with later - but sympathetic - pulls. Very nice, but a bit outside my wheelhouse stylistically. It makes me wish for our old friend James Conrad to come popping in. Too bad that won’t be happening….

 

I think this period would have been too late for James, but he could certainly have said something about the wood, techniques, etc.

He made the choice that was right for him. I hope he is as comfortable as possible.

 

A bit out of my wheelhouse as well. Definitely mahogany veneer and looks to be legitimately late 18th or early 19th century. The only similar chest I found with that reeded edge on the top is listed as Georgian by an auction house in the UK.

Georgian mahogany chest of two short above three long graduated drawers on shaped bracket feet, 106.5cm by 105cm by 53cm. | Thomas Watson

 

Awesome. Thank you! That gave my confidence just the boost I needed to obsessively research one more night.

 

Thanks! This is the most fun I've had in ages!

 

No, I appreciate the observation. The only place I possibly saw veneer used was on the side of the bottom right leg (if you were the dresser, you're bottom right). Drawers are definitely solid, though I believe three types of wood were involved in their construction. I'll take a picture of that one piece on the legs, but I question whether they're original to the piece as well. Both front legs have cracks and have been repaired but a long time ago. One sec and I'll add a photo. Are there any other angles anyone needs? I thought that was the dovetail but wasn't clear if you needed to see it from above or any other angle. Thank you!

 

It's not veneer on the feet. It looks like the two pieces (the front and side of the foot) have simply swelled and it created a shadow, giving the appearance of a veneer but they're solid blocks of hand sawn wood. Solid, connected, just drifting apart.

 

Thanks, Judy! Happy to have found you folks! I hope you all appreciate sarcasm. I'm not feeling at all pompous. Humbled, amused, obsessed, curious. I've got to switch gears, catch up in every other area of my life I've been neglecting since I started down this path.