19th Century Pine Kitchen Dresser

• Rustic - Rustic is defined as "of, relating to, or typical of country life or country people", and the items illustrated in this price guide accord with that definition.
  
  But in the 18th and 19th century "rustic furniture" had a narrower definition. It referred to furniture where the framework was carved or moulded to resemble tree trunks and branches, and was usually for outdoor use. Rustic furniture was made in cast iron, wood, terracootta and concrete. Much of the Coalbrookdale company's cast iron furniture was of rustic design.
• Block Feet - Block feet are usually found on square or sometimes tapered legs. Although the basic block foot is square on all sides, there are variations including a tapered block foot, moulded block foot and carved block foot.
• Cornice - The upper section of a high piece of furniture such as a bookcase, wardrobe or cabinet that sits immediately on the main structure. The cornice is usually decorated with a variety of architectural mouldings, worked either with a moulding plane or, from the later 19th century, by machine. The front and side of the cornice are mitred together, strengthened by glue blocks, and the back is generally a simple dovetailed rail to hold the structure together. Cornices are generally, though not always, fitted separately to the piece and are held in place either by screws sunk into the top board or by wooden corner blocks. A pediment may sit above the cornice, but sometimes the terms cornice and pediment are used interchangeably.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• dressers, style or type
  • kitchen 73
  • rustic and primitive style 10
• dressers, timber - pine 88