The cellarette was developed specially for use in the dining room in the late 18th century. The piece, whose name is a diminutive of wine cellar, was used to store or chill wine bottles. This particular cellarette, purchased for Hampton by Gov. Charles Carnan Ridgely, is considered the finest of all Baltimore cellarettes in the Late Neoclassical taste. The form resembles that of an ancient Roman temple, clearly showing the classical antecedents of the Empire style. The piece may have come from the shop of William Camp.