Gaming Table
Period1760 - 1790
MediumMahogany, and striped maple
DimensionsClosed: 28.63 × 33.88 × 16.5 in. (72.7 × 86 × 41.9 cm)
InscribedBranded on the underside of the table top, "Property / Mrs. J. A. Haskell."
ClassificationsTables and Stands
Credit LineGift of Mrs. J. Amory Haskell, 1936
Object number1991.658
DescriptionThis card or gaming table features a two-part hinged top of thick serpentine leaves with rounded edges and squared corners atop a frame comprised of wide front and side serpentine rails that also end at squared corners. Four bracketed cabriole legs with plain knees taper to four carved claw and ball feet. The back rail of the frame is straight and unfinished, while the left rear leg swings out to support the top table leaf. The mahogany from which this table was in part made is of an unusual light color.Curatorial RemarksThe card table is an uncarved, four-leg version of the New York serpentine front type. Two other examples virtually identical in form and construction are known. One is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, accession number 1974.356.39. Like this table, its mahogany has mellowed to a light amber color. The second was sold on 13 October 1944 at Parke-Bernet Galleries in New York as part of the collection of Mrs. J. Amory Haskell, Part III, lot 598. Illustrated in the catalog, it was described as having a "handsome bronze colored patina."
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