A Small Inlaid Mahogany Federal Secretary Desk, Salem, c.1780-1800

This secretary is of small scale, almost diminutive, at 36 inches wide.  It is a real treasure that has all the bells and whistles.  It has a beautiful inlaid oval in the rather tall pediment and bears its original finals, which are almost always lost.  The glass doors have all the old glass and are interesting, as they differ from those usually found with mullions running through to the corner.  These are diamond shapes and always were this way, with valanced pigeonholes inside defining the bottom shelf of the interior of the upper case.  The drawers are edge inlaid with satinwood, similar to the inlays at the pediment and oval inlay on the skirt.  One almost never sees inlay on the skirt such as this, and that makes this quite a special little gem.  Of note, is the rather high step of the leg.  It gives a beautifully elegant lift to this piece.   While this piece originally shows it had a single knobs on the drawers, it was later embellished with period brass oval handles, of a most sought after style, displaying an eagle clutching arrows and flora.

This is a superlative example of a Hepplewhite secretary desk of a most desirable small size.

We have put new leather on the writing surface.  

Height: 73 1/4 in.  Width: 35 1/2 in. Depth: 17 3/4 in.