Tall Chest of Drawers

The Tall Chest of Drawers was designed between 1810 and 1820. It was made in the United States using several different types of materials. The chest was made from cherry, soft maple, and basswood, and adorned with twelve brass handles and five keyholes. It is a Hepplewhite style tall chest with six drawers and decorated with Chippendale style, brass bail handles and escutcheons. Cavetto molding on the upper cornice add a border for the top of the chest and a shaped lower skirt rail outlines the bottom. The chest stands on bracket feet which raises it off the ground by a few inches. The dimensions are 60 inches in height, 39 inches in width, and 20 inches in depth. The Tall Chest of Drawers was acquired by the Nichols family and given to the Nichols House Museum by Rose Standish Nichols in 1960.

The history of chests of drawers has been around since medieval Europe. They have been traditionally made and used for storing clothing, such as, socks and undergarments, and any other items not hung up in a closet. It has also been used as stand-bys in carpenter's workshops. The average chest is rectangular in shape and normally has four short legs for placement on the floor. Most chests of drawers are one of two types; they are either waist-high or bench-high and have a flat surface on top. Most waist high chests of drawers have a mirror and both styles are used to place keepsakes and lighting.

Chests of drawers during the medieval period and up to the 19th centuries were used by the wealthy and noble. These types of chests known as coffers were more simple in design and were a plain wooden box with a hinged lid. Most coffers did not stand on legs but stood directly on the floor. During the later years of the 17th century, designers added a drawer to the bottom of the chests and were made of oak and French walnut wood. The Tall Chest of Drawers comes from a long history of different types of chests and is still used as storage compartments for various objects.