Chest of drawers

The gentle swelling of the drawers and the serpentine design, contrasting bands of veneer around the perimeter of the drawers, and delicate hardware suggest the maker of this chest was familiar with the fashions of the day, including contemporary London furniture. Unlike the exuberance of earlier rococo designs, veneers, often displaying geometric patterns and classical architectural motifs, prevailed in furniture designs of the late 18th and early 19th century, foreshadowing the overt references to ancient Greek and Roman design that would follow in the first decades of the 19th century.