Chest of Drawers

John Janvier (1749–1801) or John Janvier Jr. (1777–1850)

Cantwell’s Bridge (Odessa), Delaware, 1790–1810

Cherry, tulip poplar

Sewell C. Biggs bequest; 2004.161

The signature “John Janvier, Delaware Cabinetmaker” appears on the underside of this chest of drawers. It is a local variation of a furniture form popularly constructed throughout the Mid-Atlantic since the 1750s. The senior John Janvier died in 1801, and his namesake took over his cabinetmaking shop in Cantwell’s Bridge, now Odessa, Delaware, that same year.