Name/Title
Bed, Four-PosterEntry/Object ID
91.2.1Description
Bedstead
Charleston, SC
c. 1800
Mahogany with satinwood inlay and yellowpine in cornice
This bedstead has an architectural cornice consisting of three serpentine facia boards with coved upper modlings. Each facia is inlaid with a large segmented patera at its central swell, a smaller similar patera at each peaked terminus, and line inlay defining the perimeter.
This cornice is supported by four tapering posts. Each carved foot post has a reeded column which swells at its base to a stylized vase, resting upon a square post inalid with an inverted segmented fan and concentric lines of inlay which converge above applied molded Marlboro foot facings. The square head posts also have applied Marlboro feet, and have an octagonal taper above the headboard.
Four mahogany rails having quarter-round moldings on outer edges connect the posts, the side rails being notched to receive fourteen splats. A serpentine head board (replaced) slides into an applied cradle nailed on to the inner sides of the head posts.
The inlaid fans on the legs are similar to those found on a Charleston "cabinet" in the Baltimore Museum of Art (see E. Milby Burton, "Charleston Furniture: 1700-1825" [University of South Carolina Press: Columbia, SC 1970], fig. 67). While there are no published (as of 1991) examples of bedsteads with fans inlaid in a similar way, approximately a half dozen examples have been documented to date by the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts. Other distinctive Charleston features include the notched mahogany rails and the sliding headboard.
Hung with reproduction chinoserie fabrics.
Mattress of synthetic materials and manufactured by Newport News Mattress Company of Virginia.Collection
Historic Charleston Foundation CollectionAcquisition
Accession
91.2.Source or Donor
Sumpter Priddy III, Inc.Acquisition Method
PurchasedCredit Line
PurchaseMade/Created
Date made
1790 - 1810Place
City
CharlestonState/Province
South CarolinaCountry
United States of AmericaLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Secondary Object Term
Bed, Four-PosterNomenclature Primary Object Term
BedNomenclature Sub-Class
Sleeping & Reclining FurnitureNomenclature Class
FurnitureNomenclature Category
Category 02: FurnishingsDimensions
Height
105 inWidth
65 inLength
82 inDimension Notes
Max. H: 105"
Max. W: 65"
Headboard to Footboard: 82"Material
Mahogany, Pine, Yellow, SatinwoodLocation
Location
Building
Heriot Street storageMoved By
Westbrook DeliveriesDate
November 1, 2012Notes
Reason: Construction in house
Until: / /Location
Room
204Building
Nathaniel Russell HouseCategory
PermanentMoved By
SJDate
July 28, 2004Location
Room
204Building
Nathaniel Russell HouseCategory
PermanentGeneral Notes
Note
Notes: Included in "Furniture of Charleston" by Brad Rauschenberg and Jon Bivins, 2003.
8 x 10 B&W Photograph in file.
2 x 2 color transparencies and 2 x 2 b x w negatives are in Gavin Ashworth Binder.
Status: OK
Location Details1: 1Created By
admin@catalogit.appCreate Date
July 13, 1998Updated By
sferguson@historiccharleston.orgUpdate Date
May 24, 2023