Fireplace Mantels & Surrounds · Georgian & Colonial Revival
Samuel McIntire Mantel from the Elias Hasket Derby House, Salem (1798)
A Federal-style wood mantel with applied composition ornament, made in 1798 for the Salem, Massachusetts, house of merchant Elias Hasket Derby and associated with carver Samuel McIntire.
Design characteristics
Samuel McIntire was Salem's leading architect-carver, and the Derby house was among the grandest Federal-era houses in New England. This mantel shows the delicate Federal style that replaced heavier Georgian work: slim pilasters, a frieze with small applied ornaments such as urns and swags, and finely reeded mouldings. Composition ornament, a moulded paste, allowed this detail to be applied to wood. Today the same delicacy is achievable with CNC-carved appliqués on a paint-grade mantel.
Classification
- Category
- Fireplace Mantels & Surrounds
- Material
- Painted pine
- Date
- 1798
- Maker or designer
- Samuel McIntire
- Recorded medium
- Wood, composition ornament
- Dimensions
- 54 3/4 x 77 x 9 in. (139.1 x 195.6 x 22.9 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.
