DESCRIPTION: This is a primitive diminutive vinegar grained blanket chest, from New England circa 1700s. The diminutive blanket chest has shiplap boards and detailed vinegar graining. Shiplap is a rough sawn 1-inch thick pine board used for construction of barns, sheds and out buildings. It is used because of its strength and ability to withstand cold and aggressive climates. The shiplap boards are rabbeted to overlap forming a watertight barrier. Vinegar painting has a long history in America. When people were settling this country, most furniture was made from pine or poplar, two woods that do not have interesting grains. These woods also take paint easily. From 1750 to 1870, people started doing vinegar graining to decorate these woods. It was popular from the mid-Atlantic to Boston. Itinerant artists called “limners” decorated the furniture, tavern signs, panels, house moldings and more. The sides are attached with wrought iron nails that were handmade in the 1700s by a blacksmith (see photos). The inside of the diminutive blanket chest retains its original paint. The diminutive blanket chest rests on two pine boards as feet. The top of the diminutive blanket chest has a board attached by original hinges but one of the cotter pins has been replaced.MEASUREMENTS: 28 Inches Long, 17 1/2 Inches High, and 17 1/2 Inches Deep.

Solid, strong and sturdy with age appropriate drying cracks, wear, loss on one of the bottom board used as legs, and patina (see photos).