Corner basin stand

Status

Not on view

Label Text

Each of the ten bedrooms at Mount Vernon were simply, but adequately furnished for the convenience of the family, friends, and admiring guests that came each year to visit George and Martha Washington. A dressing table or a wash stand, outfitted with a water basin, soap cup, and jug, allowed company to maintain a genteel appearance by washing their face and hands on a daily basis.

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Date1790-1800

Geography Possibly made - United StatesPossibly made - United States

Medium/TechniqueMahogany (primary), tulip poplar (secondary)

DimensionsOverall: 38 11/16 in. x 24 3/4 in. x 17 3/8 in. (98.27 cm x 62.87 cm x 44.15 cm) Other (splashboard): 8 1/8 in. (20.65 cm) Other (proper left side): 17 7/16 in. (44.3 cm) Other (proper right side): 17 7/16 in. (44.3 cm) Other (basin opening): 8 5/8 in. (21.92 cm) Other (cup opening): 1 7/8 in. (4.78 cm)

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Mrs. Alexander Mitchell, Vice Regent for Wisconsin, 1924

Object numberW-276

DescriptionCorner basin stand with bowed front and two shelves with drawer below on three straight, square legs with square feet; the top shelf has a large circular cut-out at center for the basin and a smaller circular cut-out at front proper left; a smooth-sided, circular copper basin with flared lip, painted black, is inserted into the central circular cut-out; a short apron extending below the top shelf is ornamented along its lower edge with a border of contrasting veneer or banding; a shaped splashboard with a high, half-round peak, formed of two boards dovetailed together along their tallest side, is nailed to the top of the basin shelf at its back sides; a small, quarter-round shelf is nailed into the corner formed by the sides of the splashboard, halfway between the top of the splashboard and the basin shelf; below the shelf is a short case with a veneered front divided into three rectilinear reserves, each with a flat, disk-headed brass knob handle, the center panel of which forms the front of a drawer; the drawer is composed of two sides dovetailed to the front and back, and a chamfered bottom panel that slides into a dado in the sides and front.
Published ReferencesHelen Maggs Fede, Washington Furniture at Mount Vernon (Mount Vernon, Virginia: Mount Vernon Ladies Association, 1966), 56-57.

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