Roasting on an Open Fire
Our upcoming January 17th and 18th Americana and International Auction has provided many great things to choose from for our pick of the week. I focused on day one which begins on Friday January 17th at 6:00 PM EST in our Downingtown, Pennsylvania gallery. The showcases are filled to the edges of the shelves, the walls chock full of art and the main gallery floor has pieces of furniture for every room of the house. There are several outstanding China Trade paintings, a terrific collection of historical blue Staffordshire with several very rare pieces, a group of Liverpool pitchers, some very fine, fine art and to end Friday night a group of items from William E. and Anne H. Lewis of Columbus, Ohio. This choice for me was simple as I went with what I like best. This means something country and something with old paint on it. While it also usually means something from Pennsylvania, I strayed a little bit and went with a painted country New England piece. Lot 33 is a terrific painted pine and chestnut sawbuck table. The two-board scrubbed top has just the right wear and patina, the base with the original blue/green painted surface. A very simple form that captures life in the early 19th century. At 54” wide there is enough room for the main course, the side dishes as well as the maple walnut ice cream for dessert! The chestnut wood is one that isn’t seen too often anymore. It brings me back to my childhood with a chestnut tree in the backyard. I learned the hard way not to run through there in bare feet! Those of you who have had chestnut trees no exactly what I am talking about. I used the tweezers many times to pick those spines from my feet. In the late fall, the chestnuts would pay me as I would put a few cups of chestnuts in a brown paper lunch bag and sell them to my teachers at school. If I remember correctly it was 25 cents a bag. Almost all of those quarters financed my trips to the Menges Mills Flea market to buy a coin, baseball card or some other trinket I thought was the best ever! It is interesting to look back and see how my life has evolved and created this big circle. I get to do something as an adult that still makes me feel like it did when I was a kid. I don’t ever want to grow up!
by: Jamie Shearer
