Fireplace Mantels & Surrounds · Georgian & Colonial Revival
Federal Overmantel with Composition Ornament (c. 1811)
An American overmantel of about 1811 in wood with applied composition ornament, designed to sit above a fireplace and frame a mirror or painting.
Design characteristics
Federal-period rooms often extended the fireplace with an overmantel, a framed panel above the shelf that held a mirror or painting. This example, about 43 by 52 inches, uses a classical frame enriched with molded composition ornament. Adding an overmantel is one of the most effective ways to give a plain fireplace real presence, and it can be built to fit an existing mantel.
Classification
- Category
- Fireplace Mantels & Surrounds
- Material
- Painted wood
- Motifs
- Overmantel
- Date
- ca. 1811
- Recorded medium
- Wood, composition ornament
- Dimensions
- 43 1/4 x 52 in. (109.9 x 132.1 cm)
- Evidence
- Documented historical object
Architectural context
Symmetry, classical proportions and refined raised-panel woodwork. Britain and colonial America · original c. 1714–1830; revival c. 1876–1955.
