Fine American Federal Santo Domingo Mahogany Two-Part Dining Table, early 19th c., Baltimore, top with reeded edge, blocked frieze, heavily reeded legs, toupie feet, incl. two leaves, h. 29 in., l. 82 in.(with both leaves, l. 115in.), d. 47 1/2 in. Provenance: Descended in the family of John Eager Howard; Didier Inc., 2008. Note: The sophisticated and versatile dining table offered here, featuring finely reeded legs associated with Baltimore cabinetmakers of the late Federal period, descended in the family of American politician and soldier John Eager Howard (1752-1827). John Eager Howard was a decorated colonel during the Revolutionary War and went on to hold several congressional positions. He was elected as the fifth governor of Maryland in 1788 and served three consecutive one-year terms as governor.This table was part of the furnishings of Howard’s vast Maryland estate named Belvidere. Completed in 1794, Belvidere was renowned for its Georgian-style architecture and elegant interiors. Thomas Twining, founder of the English tea company, visited the home in 1798 and noted that it “possessed all the elegance of an English villa.” In 1815, Howard donated a parcel of his estate’s land for the construction of Baltimore’s Washington Monument.After Howard’s death in 1827, most of the interior contents of Belvidere were sold, however, the family retained some important pieces, including this table. The mansion was demolished in 1874 to make room for Baltimore’s urban expansion. A hotel of the same namesake was constructed on the former site of the mansion in 1903. In 2019, Neal Auction sold a finely figured and inlaid sideboard from the same family collection of the descendants of John Eager Howard that was also sold through esteemed New Orleans antiquarian Don Didier (see Neal Auction, September 14, 2019, lot 92). Ref.: Alexander, Robert L. et al. The Architecture of Baltimore: An Illustrated History. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004, pp. 33-35; “Margaret ‘Peggy’ Oswald Chew Howard (1760-1824).” Archives of Maryland. MSA SC 3520-2232. Maryland State Archives; Papenfuse, Edward C. “Remembering John Eager Howard and His Vision for Baltimore.” April 24, 2018. www.rememberingbaltimore.net.

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