Hollow, screw-on pendant earrings. Roughly oval with scalloped outline, two-sided, beaded inside edge. Tapers in thickness. Thickest at bottom. Inscription: 'S' inside a small heart. 10K gold.
Oval center table with marble top, rounded on top edge. Elaborate pedestal / leg support. Four arms descend from double layered skirt in curving, flattish, jagged shape to central turned pedestal with top and pendant finial in turnip shape. Four legs des
American Empire chair; back top rail is a wide concave veneer with gilded decoration surmounting downward sloping arm rests and an urn shaped vertical splat back. The arms are supported by curved uprights surmounting a plain curved apron with an upholstered slip seat. The front legs are flat and shaped in reverse ogee curves with front edges rounded. The rear legs are square and have a backward saber curve.
Provenance
Buchanan, James
To - Buchanan, Edward Young
To - Ewing, Alice C. Buchanan
To - Ewing, Alice B.
To - Niece, Marshall, Cornelia Lausdale Brooke (Mrs. Donnel)
James Buchanan to Edward Y. Buchanan to Alice Cunningham Buchanan to Alice Buchanan Ewing, her daughter. Alice B. Ewing her niece, Mrs. Donnell Marshall / Cornelia Lausdale Brooke, daughter to Cornelia Lausdale Ewing and Robert E. Brooke.
American Empire chair; back top rail is a wide concave veneer with gilded decoration surmounting downward sloping arm rests and an urn shaped vertical splat back. The arms are supported by curved uprights surmounting a plain curved apron with an upholstered slip seat. The front legs are flat and shaped in reverse ogee curves with front edges rounded. The rear legs are square and have a backward saber curve.
Provenance
Buchanan, James
To - Buchanan, Edward Young
To - Ewing, Alice C. Buchanan
To - Ewing, Alice B.
To - Niece, Marshall, Cornelia Lausdale Brooke (Mrs. Donnel)
James Buchanan to Edward Y. Buchanan to Alice Cunningham Buchanan to Alice Buchanan Ewing, her daughter. Alice B. Ewing her niece, Mrs. Donnell Marshall / Cornelia Lausdale Brooke, daughter to Cornelia Lausdale Ewing and Robert E. Brooke.
American Empire chair; the back top rail is a wide concave veneer with gilded decoration surmounting downward sloping arm rests and an urn shaped vertical splat back. The arms are supported by curved uprights surmounting a plain curved apron with an upholstered slip seat. The front legs are flat and shaped in reverse ogee curves with front edges rounded. The rear legs are square and have a backward saber curve.
Provenance
Buchanan, James
To - Buchanan, Edward Young
To - Ewing, Alice C. Buchanan
To - Ewing, Alice B.
To - Niece, Marshall, Cornelia Lausdale Brooke (Mrs. Donnel)
James Buchanan to Edward Y. Buchanan to Alice Cunningham Buchanan to Alice Buchanan Ewing, her daughter. Alice B. Ewing her niece, Mrs. Donnell Marshall / Cornelia Lausdale Brooke, daughter to Cornelia Lausdale Ewing and Robert E. Brooke.
Blue cobalt toilet bottles. Opaque glass ball-topped stopper with gold dot on top. Flattish lip, long neck with foliate / berry painted design in white and orange. White wreath painted around shoulder with gold line band below.
Part of a four-piece dress. Jacket: Short sleeves with cuffs. Dark blue velvet fully-lined in cream-colored silk with batting between two fabrics. 2 small leather-lined pockets on left inside. Hand-stiched strip on linging at lower edge right front. 3 hooks and thread-covered eyes at waist front. Parallel lines of sticthing on body at sleeve openings and at waist and on 3 bands around neck as well as front and silk at opening. Blue velvet strips have buttons in back and at tabbed ends on front. 4 tabbed front closure peices have buttons. Machine and hand-stitching.
Shaving mug. White with brown band at lip. Brown line on handle. Brown print picture of four boys playing 'shuttlecock.' Hand coloring in blue, green, yellow, and mauve.
Figurine of a family; a bearded father wearing blue robe seated on upholstered arm chair with scroll carved arm rests. Father holding the hand of infant held by mother wearing bustled bodice and skirt.
One of six glass tiebacks. Pressed glass rosettes, basically flat on back, excepting a hexagonal indentation at center and flower. Flower has six double petals, beaded, with 3-D front and round center. Tiebacks are light blue and vary in opaqueness.
Letter from Kirk J. Nelson, Curator of the Sandwich Glass Historical Society and Museum (dated 25 October 1988) says that fragments of this pattern have been found at the site of the Boston and Sandwich Glass Company.
White cotton bedspread. Fringe on three sides. Worked in candlewicking, eight-pointed star in bottom two corners. Design of swagged garlands in layered rows around piece, squarish shape overall. In center, large presidential eagle with outspread wings, s
Two-piece silk dress with bodice and overskirt. Gray-green fabric with olive trim, yoke, and fringe. Colonial revival style. Bodice has fake jacket with ruching along edge. Thread-covered button closure down front. No collar. Braid and knotted fringe.
beautifully detailed heavy satin top with long sleeves, exquisitly crafted buttons and fringed from short front all along the longer portion in the back. Bulk appear greyish with drab green trim. Fringe is light green and some threads on buttons appear aqua. Sleeves (19.5in long) flare at cuffs that are decorated 5 layers of raduated ruffles on upper portion of cuff. The top of this triangle of ruffles sports a fabric bow. All trim is made of main fabric with drab green trim also used for the triangle faux tab wiht a button at the point that extends from the ruffles to the inside of the sleeve.
Ruffles run the length of the front beneath a band of fabric trim. A front right section of drab green silk from neck to waist contains 12 1in buttonholes. On the left 6 buttons remain (a 7th is pinned to acard) and 1 buttoncover that shows the fine stitching. Two triangular pieces ith trim are seamed at the front armholes with the mitered tip of the handsewn triangles pointing toward the center front. Two bust darts on both sides are stiffened with stays. BOth straight and chain stitch on seams that are hand overcast. Double construction with tan polished cotton on inside of entire garment. Commercially made cord fringe, 3.5in long, are sewn into lower edge around entire top.
Back: Olive green silk piece from neck tapers to a point at center back. Along inside edge, pointing to top, are trimmed ruffles with a 1in wide trimmed border band of main fabric. In addition to side seams there are 2 curved seam fromarm seams to the center back waist where a large bow is attached. The back 13in below the bow is trimmed with sides folded to a center pleat. Outer edges of pleat are trimmed with fringe. Inside of back pane; is lined with drab green silk.
Cotton dress. Wide, open neck and plain, bloused front. Hook-and-eye closure down back to waist. Gathered slightly at waist which is straight. Bodice lined in lightweight white fabric. Boning in lining. Slightly dropped shoulders with double-puffed style
Shaving stand has a shield-shaped bullnose-framed mirror on a support that allows the height to be adjusted and is anchored to the marble-topped table. The table's serpentine skirt has a shallow drawer with a molded glass knob in the center. The skirt has a single bead trim at the base and the table rests on a round pillar that terminates with a ring and urn-shaped turning. The table and pillar are all supported by a four-footed raised plinth.
Wearing of wood, crack in base, scratches. Loosened joinings in base.
Object ID
W.1989.341.001
Notes
Donor bought stand in December 1965 from an unnamed individual who purchased it at the Wheatland Willson/Rettew sale in 1936.
Old accession card in file includes the following information: 'Pedestal shaving stand with marble top and drawer. Form not too often seen in American furniture. Top swivels to face the best light.
It is identical to one in the Empire Guest Room at the White House.'
Mahogany sleigh bed. Sleigh-shaped bed with a headboard higher than footboard. Outcurved top rails. Cyma curved footboard. Headboard has side pieces with cyma curves. Low to ground. Side rails have curved top edge. Feet are rounded blocks that are caster
Provenance
Buchanan, James
to Johnston, Harriet Lane (niece)
to Kennedy, May (cousin)
to Taylor, Mrs. Edmund R. (Julia) (May's sister)
to Taylor, Mr. Edmund R. Taylor Jr. (Julia's grandson)
Walnut bed finish bleached by sun exposure, especially on back & headboard and footboard. Minor scratches on the wood througout.
Object ID
W.1989.344.001
Notes
Belonged to James Buchanan and Harriet Lane Johnston. According to letter from donor's wife, 'there is no written authentication of its origin, but my husband received the bed from his grandmother, Mrs. E.R. Taylor of Charles Town, Jefferson County, W. V
Mr. and Mrs. Edmund R. Taylor, Jr. donated a set of 8 linen handtowels marked with Harriet Lane Johnston's monogram and a letter from Francis Scott Key to James Buchanan at the same time of the bed donation. A campaign card was also donated at this time.
The matching sleigh bed is currently (2022) owned by Evelyn Byrd Hutton (evelynbyrdhutton@gmail.com), a sister of Betsy Henry Lehman & daughter to Reginald Buchanan Henry, Jr.
Large trunk (a) with two large shelves (b, c) that lift out, and one smaller shelf (d). Exterior of the trunk has brown-striped canvas with three horizontal wood straps on the front, back, and hinged lid. There are wrought iron straps riveted at the corners of the trunk to reinforce the construction. Iron handles, one each side. Two sides covered with shipping labels.
One of twelve linen napkins. White damask with hunting scenes on outside. Stag hunting with horses and dogs. Scene on inner side of napkin is duck hunting. At one corner, embroidered in white is 'HLJ' with the Johnston crest of an arm and dagger.
One of two clear leaded glass nut dishes. Octagonal and oblong clear glass dishes with flared sides. Laurel wreath border etched 0.50" below the lip around all eight sides. Monogram 'HE' (for Henry Elliott Johnston) etched at the center base.
Glass is 0.125" thick. All 8 sides angle inward to the base at approximately a 45 degree angle. The base measures 4.125" long by 2.50" wide.
Condition
Fair
Condition Date
2022-11-09
Condition Notes
A small chip is missing from the lip one of the short octagonal corners. Some light scatches are visible on the base around the monogram initials 'HE.'
Rectangular top, green baize-covered (thick, felt-like cloth) writing surface. Ogee-molded edge overhangs crotch-grain skirt with sectioned drawer opening on one long side with two wooden turned knobs. Brackets on top of two legs have rounded medallions,
Urn-shaped wood candlestick cup and stem screws onto shallow bowl base. Incised line around outside lip. Outside bottom is flat, slightly concave. On the base is a circular image of a man and woman on a donkey comprised of varied colors of inlaid wood. Background of the image is dark brown.
