Sunday, December 13, 2009

Portrait of Israel Forster

ATTRIBUTED TO RUFUS HATHAWAY A striking portrait of a young man, identified as Israel Forster and dated 1797 in an early note on the painting's stretcher when it was included in an exhibition of the artist's work in Duxbury, Massachusetts in 1987. Illustrated in RUFUS HATHAWAY: ARTIST AND PHYSICIAN, 1770-1822, pp.68 and 69, by Lanci Valentine. Exhibited March 18-May 17,1987 at the Art Complex Museum in Duxbury. Sight size 16½ inches by 20¼ inches. A rare and very fine Queen Anne high chest: maple, with burl walnut or maple veneered drawer fronts crossbanded with herringbone veneer of walnut. 

North Shore, MA, probably Ipswich, c.1735. Retains its original engraved brasses and a deep rich color. I first purchased this piece in central New Hampshire in 1979. One of a very small group sharing the same cornice molding, shaped apron, knee returns, and legs—all barely five feet tall. This example is 61½” in height. One of this group is shown in Sack, Fine Points, Early American Furniture, where it is described as “Best” and “a classic of early American Furniture.” Source:maineantiquedigest.com/i

No comments:

Post a Comment