Federal Canopy or Field Bed, New England, circa 1800

Description

Birch and pine with original red paint stain. H. 64” (without canopy), L. 70” (rails), W. 54 ½” (end rails)

This rare and beautifully designed bed with its reeded posts and bowed canopy is in a remarkable state of preservation, retaining its wonderful original red paint stained surface.

Reference:
Fine points of Furniture, by Albert Sack, p. 94, for a nearly identical example labeled “Best”.
Also, The New Fine Points of Furniture, by Albert Sack, 1993. P., for another nearly identical bed labeled “Superior”.

American Furniture, The Chipstone Foundation 2014, edited by Luke Beckerdite. Article by Nancy Goyne Evans “Documentary Evidence of Colored Finishes and Decoration on Bedsteads and Cornices: Late Colonial and Federal Periods”,Page 224-256. The two beds here are illustrated and discussed as Figure 1, P. 224 and Figure 2, P. 226