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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;James Conrad, post: 278026, member: 5066&quot;]Alrighty Then! A little Deja vu in progress here! once i get into research mode, BAM! i can&#039;t seem to help myself.</p><p>Last Friday, I fired off an email complete with pics &amp; info i had gathered to Christopher Storb, who is the Dietrich American Foundation Project Conservator at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. I just got an email back from Chris and according to him</p><p><br /></p><p>Dear James,</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Thank you for sending me the images of the table. Oak was definitely used as a secondary wood in the Delaware River Valley though it was not as prominent as the hard pines and, after 1740, yellow poplar. While it would be somewhat surprising to see oak used on what might be considered a Pennsylvania German table, it would not be completely out of the question.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>I really can’t say much about an objects authentication without examining it in person. In the close-up views it does seem to be made of walnut and some of the elements seem to have the appearances associated with historic objects though I would question if that could be said about the top from what I can see viewing the images. Tables with easily removable tops are notorious for turning up with the top missing or replaced.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>The Philadelphia Museum of Art owns a splay leg table of this form. It has been illustrated numerous times over the years and is plate no. 4 of the tables section in the museum’s publication<i>The Pennsylvania German Collection.</i> It has been reproduced hundreds of times yet it turned out to be a clever forgery made up of parts of old furniture in an attempt to deceive. It is such a beloved form and desired by collectors that I am wary of any similar tables.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Best,</p><p><br /></p><p>Chris</p><p><br /></p><p>And, here is the fake table that Chris mentions which is probably quietly stashed in the basement of museum in Philly</p><p>[ATTACH=full]88500[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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