Kindel Model #83-006 Philadelphia Van Pelt Highboy Chest Sold Products

The Philadelphia High Chest is a superior example of American Rococo style which requires extraordinary skill of hand carvers. Embellished with motifs derived from Chippendale’s Director (London, 1762), the original high chest was made for William and Mary Turner (circa 1765 and 1780) and descended by inheritance into the Van Pelt family. It was acquired by Henry Francis du Pont in 1929 and is now displayed in the Port Royal Parlor at Winterthur. In his book American Furniture: Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods (New York, 1952), Joseph Downs celebrates this high chest as the “highest development of the Philadelphia Chippendale school of furniture” for its outstanding qualities of design and carving. Due to the complex cabinetry and hand carving alone of 100 hours per chest, the Philadelphia High Chest is a celebration of a century of American craftsmanship and outward example of the important relationship between Kindel and Winterthur. The highly polished hardware is solid brass.