Cellarette

Object Name:

Cellarette

Object ID:

1907.016.01

Place of Origin:

England

Date:

1750-1780

Description:

Cellarette, said to have been Joseph Cilley's "camp chest" that he used during the Revolutionary War. It is made of mahogany and probably done in England. The construction of the sides are dovetailed, while the top is pegged construction. The interior is lined with painted (finger swirl pattern) paper which is mostly deteriorated. The exterior is edged with handwrought iron corners and straps which are attached with tacks. There are iron strap hinges on the rear. The lock on the front of the case is sheet iron with a crowned-shaped top and vase-shaped bottom; the lock mechanism is an iron strap spring. "X1X' is crudely incised on the lid. Hand-wrought bail handles on each end, attached with splayed hand-wrought pins; the bails have a twist in the center; diamond-shaped hand-wrought pin covers. The interior of the top has a padded wool section in the center, to protect the glassware. Fragments of woven tape attached to both lid and body of the case (partly original, partly replacement).
The interior has a wooden tray for small objects which lifts out. It is made of mahogany with a beveled edge with the number "14" written in pencil on the bottom. This tray is lined with wool burlap (probably originally red, faded to yellow) and has spaces for 2 cordial glasses, etched and gilded in a floral design, 1 shot glass also etched and gilded in a floral design, and 2 plain, small glass vials. There is space for a tumbler in the center, but the tumbler is missing. The glasses are all free blown. Under this lift-out tray there is space for 6 small case bottles. The interior of this space is lined with paper which is yellow with a red painted design.The bottles range in height from 4.25" to 4.75", etched in a floral design on all four sides. Some of the small bottles have cork stoppers with brass tops. There are 7 large bottles which range in height from 8.625" to 9.25". They have etched floral designs with the front design in the form of a pineapple. They do not have stoppers.
Box bottom is made of a secondary wood, possibly pine.

Material:

Glass
Wood
Iron
Paper
Wool

Dimensions:

H-11 W-17 D-11 inches

Provenance:

Camp chest (cellarette), for holding cordials and liquor, belonging to Major General Joseph Cilley (1734-1799). Cilley was a colonel in the Continental Army, a Major General in the local militia. Said by donor, a descendant, to have been used by Cilley during the Revolutionary War.

Credit Line:

Loaned by Mary Shirley Griffin

People:

Cilley, Joseph (1734-1799), Griffin, Mary (c. 1864- ), Shirley, Mary (c. 1864- )