American Grecian-Style Mahogany Pier Table with Nero Portoro Marble, Meeks & Sons, circa 1830

Attributable to the New York cabinetmaker, Joseph Meeks & Sons, a very beautiful American Empire console or pier table in the Grecian style in fine West Indies mahogany with Italian black, nero portoro marble top that has white & some warm gold veins. New York, circa 1830. Top rests over a base whose apron offers a sculpted ogee edge & is supported by "S" shaped volutes. An inset mirror takes up a good part of the back, allowing for the reflection of light as well as affording the ability to check one's clothing & shoe apparel. Customarily, a pier table like this would have been placed at an entrance, hallway or staircase landing & would have been paired with a tall vertical mirror which would have hung above the table or partially rested on top of it. Original porcelain casters are concealed within the square feet. Restored in our workshop with a French polish finish.

Last photo is of a Joseph Meeks and Sons Pier Table in the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
Pier Table
1829–35
Joseph Meeks & Sons American

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 713

By the early 1830s, simpler Grecian-style furniture with rich mahogany and rosewood veneers and exuberant scrolled supports characterized a new direction in American furniture. Popular in the nation's drawing rooms through the 1840s, pier tables like this one were invariably displayed in tandem with a tall, gilded looking glass to create the effect of a continuous mirrored surface that extended the space of the interior and reflected light back into the room.

Measurements:
42.5" wide x 19.5" deep x 36" high

Style:
American Classical (Of the Period)

Materials and Techniques:
Mahogany,Marble,Mirror,Hand-Carved,Polished

Place of Origin:
United States

Period:
1830-1839

Date of Manufacture:
circa 1830

Condition:
Good

Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use. Expertly refinished with French polish in our workshop.