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AEDExtremely Rare John Townsend Labeled Newport Chippendale Pembroke Table
About Seller
117 Tunnel Road
Asheville, NC 28805
United States
Based in Asheville, North Carolina, Brunk Auctions has been conducting sales of fine and decorative arts for over 30 years. Auctions are held in our North Carolina sale room but attracts a global audience. Founded by Robert Brunk in 1983, the auctions became well known for their integrity and profes...Read more
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About Auction
LiveOct 29, 2026
Dick & Shirley Roberts assembled a world-class collection of American furniture, paintings, maps, early Catesby prints, silver and porcelain, working with top dealers including Israel Sack, Liverant & Son, Deanne Levison, Arader, Shrubsole and others. Major centers of furniture making are represented: Boston, Portsmouth, Newport, Connecticut, Philadelphia and Charleston, with paintings by Jane Peterson, JC Beckwith, Childe Hassam, Willard Metcalf & Edmund Tarbell, among others. Silver by John Ewan, John Carter, Robert Reading, extensive selection of Francis I pattern; and early Chinese export. Brunk Auctions support@brunkauctions.com
View Full Catalog (273)
- Lot Description
Rhode Island, 1786-1793, bears John Townsend's paper label to the inside of the drawer, stop-fluted legs, Chinoiserie "moongate" stretchers, 26-3/4 x 36-3/4 x 34-1/2 in.
Provenance: A Newport, Rhode Island family; Christie's, New York, NY, "Important American Furniture, Folk Art and Decorative Arts", October 8, 1998, lot 54, for $62,500; Private Virginia Collection; The Levison & Cullen Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia, May 2012 (accompanied by copy of receipt and 2015 appraisal); Estate of Richard and Shirley Roberts, Virginia Beach, Virginia
Literature: Morrison H. Heckscher, John Townsend, Newport Cabinetmaker, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, pp. 148-9, cat. no. 34; this table is included in the Yale University Rhode Island Furniture Archive, where it is listed as RIF 1400.
Exhibited: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, "John Townsend, Newport Cabinetmaker", New York, NY, May 6-September 25, 2005.
Note: Surviving tables from this group are few, with just a handful known, and only six with straight pierced Chinoiserie “moongate” cross stretchers. Just three of these tables bear his label: the table offered here, one at the Winterthur Museum, Library & Garden, and a third in the collection of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts in Boston.
Originally one of a pair, the mate to this table was in the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Lammot du Pont Copeland that sold at Sotheby's New York, January 19, 2002, lot 56, now in a private collection.
The other two tables with "moongate" stretchers are at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Preservation Society of Newport County.
In his catalog for the "John Townsend" exhibition, Morrison Heckscher indicates that the Pembroke table was John Townsend's favorite form in the stop-fluted style.
For related examples, see Ralph E. Carpenter, Jr., The Arts and Crafts of Newport, Rhode Island, 1640-1820 (1954), p. 84, cat. no. 56; Edwin J. Hipkiss, Eighteenth-Century American Arts, The M. and M. Karolik Collection... (1941), pp. 124-5, cat. no. 66; Nancy E. Richards and Nancy Goyne Evans, New England Furniture at Winterthur, Queen Anne and Chippendale Periods (1997), pp. 264-5, cat. no. 138; one in the collection of the Colonial Society of America, illustrated in Michael Moses, Master Craftsmen of Newport, The Townsends and Goddards (1984), p. 80, figs. 2.8 and 2.8a; Clement E. Conger et al, Treasures of State, Fine and Decorative Arts in the Diplomatic Reception Rooms of the U.S. Department of State (1991), pp. 186-7, cat. no., 97; and a table sold at Sotheby's, New York, NY, "The Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Lammot du Pont Copeland", January 19, 2002, lot 56.
- Provenance
A Newport, Rhode Island family; Christie's, New York, NY, "Important American Furniture, Folk Art and Decorative Arts", October 8, 1998, lot 54, for $62,500; Private Virginia Collection; The Levison & Cullen Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia, May 2012 (accompanied by copy of receipt and 2015 appraisal); Estate of Richard and Shirley Roberts, Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Shipping Info
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Purchased items will be available for pick up or shipping from our Asheville, North Carolina auction facility within ten business days of the auction, or will be assessed a storage fee of $5.00 per day, per item. Purchaser agrees that packing and shipping is done at the purchaser's risk and that the purchaser will pay in advance all packing expenses, materials, carrier fees and insurance charges. At our discretion, items will either be packed by an agent such as a packaging store or Brunk Auctions. Please allow two weeks for shipping after payment is received. Shipment of large items is the responsibility of the purchaser. We are happy to provide names of carriers and shippers if a purchaser so requests. Brunk Auctions will have no liability for any loss or damage to shipped items.
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- Condition
this table survives in a very fine state of preservation with its original brasses, top has been lightly cleaned, the rest of the table retains an early and possibly original surface, stretchers and two knee returns have been expertly restored Note - Brunk Auctions makes every effort to offer accurate and thorough information, but encourages prospective bidders to inspect items in person whenever possible. Condition statements are provided as a courtesy for general guidance and should not be considered complete or definitive. They do not represent a warranty or assumption of liability by Brunk Auctions. Certain condition issues may not be specifically noted in the report but may be visible in the accompanying photographs, which are considered part of the overall condition report. Please refer to our Terms of Sale for complete information and contact us for additional photos or information as needed.
