Antique Furniture 101

Dumb Waiter: a type of furniture stand, consisting of at least two - usually three - tiers, resting on a tripod base of cabriole or saber legs; tapering in size, the tiers are traditionally circular, but can be square; developed around 1740 in England, and used to hold serving dishes, it is another example of the numerous, portable pieces of furniture developed in the 18th century.

Gate Leg Table: a type of drop-leaf table, whose sides are attached to legs that are hinged beneath the tabletop; the legs swing out, gate-like, allowing the leaves to be raised; the tabletop itself is usually round or oval, and plain, while the legs are often elaborately turned or spiral and connected by stretchers. A single drawer is common. Most examples are made of oak, walnut or maple (if from New England), though fancier mahogany versions do exist.

Dating from the late 16th century, this Baroque piece of portable furniture flourished throughout the 17th century and is highly characteristic of Jacobean and William and Mary furniture, representing the less formal, more intimate dining customs of the period. It continued throughout the 1700s, gradually waning in favor of more graceful portable designs, such as the Pembroke table. The later 18th-century versions usually have thinner, simpler legs and rectangular tabletops.

Ladder-Back Chair: a slender chair whose back consists of two poles connected by several horizontal slats, resembling a ladder; the slats may be straight or slightly curved; dating from the Middle Ages, it is characteristic of country furniture, such as that made by the Shakers, though more formal versions exist

Also Known As: slat-back, ribbon-back (variation)

Lowboy: a small table with one or two rows of drawers, so called in contradistinction to the tallboy or highboy chest of drawers. Both were favorite pieces of the 18^th century, both in England and in the United States; the lowboy was most frequently used as a dressing-table (a called a dressing table in Britain), but sometimes as a side-table. It is usually made of oak, walnut or mahogany, with the drawer fronts mounted with brass pulls an escutcheons. The more elegant examples in the Queen Anne, early Georgian and Chippendale styles often have cabriole legs, carved knees, and slipper or claw-and-ball feet. The fronts of some examples also are sculpted with the scallop-shell motif beneath the center drawer.

A vanity is a form of lowboy usually equipped with a mirror, used for applying makeup or other fashion.

• Highboy: a type of case furniture, consisting of a chest-on-stand: two stacked pieces, with the top being a chest of drawers (typically two small ones at the top, then several of uniform or graduated depth below) that rests on a shorter, wider base that contains several smaller or shallower drawers; developed in England in the late 17th century, it became highly popular in the American colonies, especially the northeastern and mid-Atlantic ones, by 1730; early varieties were typical of William and Mary style, with flat tops, long ring-turned or trumpet legs with stretchers that rested on ball or bun feet; as the 18th century wore on, became typical of Queen Anne and Chippendale styles, resting on shorter cabriole legs with pad, paw or claw-and-ball feet; tops became more ornate, with scroll top pediments and finials.

Also Known As: tallboy (English variation)