Wonderful George II Little Chest of Drawers--Roy Aldridge Antiques

George II Chest of Drawers

This morning when I arrived at the Pasadena Antique Center (after dropping Jones off at Day Care--yes, he is spoiled. And yes, he has poodle best friends who were arriving at the same time as we did) I went immediately to my neighbor Roy Aldridge's shop. And there, up front, was one of the most charming English George II (c. 1730-40) little mahogany chests that I have ever seen. I was more than a little green with envy.

George II Chest Side View

George II Chest Back

Beautiful Top Surface Detail

This little beauty contains all of the bells and whistles that call to me when I look at period 18th century pieces. The chest is small in scale and in beautiful condition. Although someone slathered a finish all over her, the piece had not been stripped and retains its great patina underneath the newish stuff. This means that with care, the surface can be returned to its desirable patinated condition. It appears that almost all of the veneer work is present and in fairly good shape; there are a couple of losses to the top, which is to be expected when dealing with a piece of this age (over 270 years). The chest features beautiful cross banding and overall excellent veneer work. More importantly, the drawers retain their original modified bat wing brass hardware which is secured to the drawers with iron butterfly straps; on later pieces, the hardware is attached with hand turned screws and hand cut nuts. There is very little shrinkage to either the case of the piece or the drawers and the backing wood slats are also original.

George II Chest-Replaced feet

THERE IS ONE MAJOR PROBLEM WITH THIS BEAUTIFUL CHEST:  It's feet have been replaced. With period antique furniture it is extremely important to have all elements of the piece be original to it when assessing value.

But even with the replaced feet, I think that this little chests of drawers is a definite winner. The size is great and the decorative value is fantastic. And when I rest my hand on the piece, I can feel its deep, centuries old soul.

Roy's George II Chest of Drawers--LOVE

Roy Aldridge is located next to me in the Pasadena Antique Center. In addition to specializing in antique furniture and decorative objects, Roy is recognized for his knowledge of 18th and 19th century boxes and caddies. He has a great inventory of boxes in his shop. But Roy's true passion is fine art--his eye travels from Old Master works to Abstract Impressionism, highly desirable antique posters and other works on paper and oils.  He really inspires me to keeping learning my metier--well, I guess that we inspire each other.  It is so important to have great colleagues in this crazy business and I truly treasure Roy. Besides, he is English with that crazy British dry and raunchy sense of humor--so I am in stitches many times a day.

(I have spent an enormous amount of time attempting to position the photos -- does anyone have any ideas regarding what I am not doing??)

Oh, well--I think that I'll load the photos differently next time--but don't you just love this chest?????

Mary