Side Table

The elegantly proportioned lines, gracefully curving cabriole legs and ball and claw feet of this side table are characteristic of Rococo or Chippendale design, which was very popular in 18th-century America and named for the English cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale. Side tables were used in halls, parlors and dining rooms. This table's marble top suggests that it was most likely used for serving food and beverages. The particular marble type, Breccia di Seravezza, was imported from the Tuscan region of Italy and would have been costly and considered very exotic in Colonial America. The refined carving of the acanthus leaves on the top of the legs, as well as the style of ball and claw feet identify this side table as a fine example of Philadelphia woodworking.