This style of drop front desk is commonly, and erroneously, called a Gov. Winthrop desk.

A quick reading of selected world history reveals a number of events or artifacts that are identified with a specific time, place or person. Many of these references are historically accurate, such as the Pax Romana (the so-called Roman Peace of the period 27 B.C.-180 A.D.) or the Victorian period of 1837-1901. But other references are a little shaky on accurate details, like the Trojan Horse. Was there really a Trojan Horse? And was it related to the Trojan War?

In the long run, it makes good mythology, so the facts are secondary to the story. But in the antique furniture business, we frequently are looking more for the facts and less for a good story. Unfortunately, there are a number of “good stories” that associate a particular style or type of furniture with a specific individual even though the facts are a little thin for the attribution.

One such famous case is the name commonly ascribed to the ubiquitous slant front desk. That name is the “Gov. Winthrop” desk. The story goes that the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 17th century, John Winthrop, had a desk like this. Winthrop was born in England in 1588 and died in the Colony in 1649. This was at least 50 years before the drop front desk appeared in England and about 100 years before Thomas Chippendale gave it the famous form that commonly bears the governor’s name. In other words, Gov. Winthrop did not have a desk like this. So, who is responsible for the name given to the form of the drop front desk? The Winthrop Furniture Company of Boston has that honor. They introduced a new model of the desk in 1924 and called it the “Gov. Winthrop,” a clever play on words that has polluted the trade vocabulary for more than 80 years.

Is this a Phyfe table? No. It is an 18th century English table made decades before Phyfe’s time.

Another instance of the use, or misuse, of the name of an American historical figure is the case of Duncan Phyfe. Phyfe, whose family name was spelled Fife, was born in Scotland in 1768 and worked first in America in Albany in 1784 before moving to Manhattan around 1790. Phyfe was a talented cabinetmaker, working in the styles of the day, including Sheraton, Federal Neoclassical and Empire. He didn’t retire until 1847, so he saw a lot of styles come and go. But one style that he didn’t see come or go was the “Duncan Phyfe” style. In fact, there is no such style. That little flight of fancy was the result of a show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1922 featuring Phyfe’s work. Furniture manufacturers, looking for inspiration in the burgeoning field of the Colonial Revival, immediately attempted to parlay Phyfe’s fame into their own by referring to their revival reproductions as “Duncan Phyfe” style. Now, every dining table in America with curved legs supporting a central pedestal is referred to as a “Duncan Phyfe” table.

The name Beau Brummel is associated with the French form of the poudreuse, a style of dressing table from the 18th century.

But not every furniture misnomer is from America. A notorious philanderer has his name attached to a form of dressing table. In 18th century, France men were as much attuned to their wigs and make up as were the women and a special piece of furniture evolved just for that purpose. Initially the form was called a “poudreuse,” meaning “powder,” more or less, in French. In the slang version it meant “duster of the man” in reference to the generous use of powder both in the wig and on the face. With its many compartments and drawers, the poudreuse was a very rare example of precious mirror glass actually being attached to a piece of furniture before the beginning of the 19th century. The popularity of the furniture pre-dated its common namesake by several decades, but eventually the name of the English dandy George Bryan (Beau) Brummel (1778-1840) became associated with the form and is the most common name attached to the fancy dressing table today.

This famous style table is called a “Pembroke” table even if we don’t know exactly for whom it was named.

Then, of course, there is the famous drop leaf table with the short sides and a drawer, which according to Thomas Chippendale, is the only thing that distinguishes a Pembroke table from a breakfast table. I have found over the years at least nine separate accounts and attributions for the name given to the table. One gives credit to Mary Herbert, Countess of Pembroke (1561-1621), who allegedly ordered the original design. That’s about 150 years earlier than most other attributions. Another story gives credit to Henry Herbert, the 9th Earl of Pembroke (1693-1751), who was an amateur architect and supposedly designed the table himself. Most commonly the table is ascribed to Chippendale around the middle of the 18th century, who named it for either Lord or Lady Pembroke, who ordered the design. Christie’s states unequivocally that the table is named after the Earl of Pembroke, but gives no dates, while Thomas Sheraton, who was closer to the source, said in his design book that the table was ordered by the Countess of the period. Whatever. At least we know the family from which it derived its name, even if we don’t know exactly which member ordered it or exactly from whom or when. But, at least, that is some improvement.

Knowing the history behind the name of a piece of furniture is like getting more for your money when you buy a piece. It enhances the interest of the piece, a little value added just for the research.

Fred Taylor is a antique furniture Worthologist who specializes in American furniture from the Late Classicism period (1830-1850).

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Send your comments, questions and pictures to me at PO Box 215, Crystal River, FL 34423 or info [at] furnituredetective [dot] com.

Visit Fred’s website at www.furnituredetective.com. His book “How To Be A Furniture Detective” is now available for $18.95 plus $3 shipping. Send check or money order for $21.95 to Fred Taylor, PO Box 215, Crystal River, FL 34423.

Fred and Gail Taylor’s DVD, “Identification of Older & Antique Furniture,” ($17 + $3 S&H) and a bound compilation of the first 60 columns of “Common Sense Antiques,” by Fred Taylor ($25 + $3 S&H) are also available at the same address. For more information call 800-387-6377, fax 352-563-2916, or e-mail info [at] furnituredetective [dot] com.

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The same kind of loose language approach has developed in the language of antique furniture. We have come to use proper names to describe a class or type of furniture and the use of these names have become so commonplace that sometimes the real people behind the generic names no longer exist. But I’m not talking about generally descriptive names that denote a large class or style of furniture, like Georgian or even George III. The Louis XV and Victorian labels fall in that same category. Even Chippendale and Eastlake fit here, but all these terms relate to a particular period or stylistic element.

I am referring to that select group of people for whom a very specific form of furniture has been named and the appellation has become so useful as to be generic. When you use the term no further explanation is necessary. Here are some examples of some generic uses of the names of real people.

Murphy Bed: In today’s market, almost any folding bed is called a “Murphy bed.” It is the Kleenex of beds. However, most folding beds are not Murphy beds at all. Murphy patented his first bed in 1900. Folding cabinet beds were very popular in the last quarter of the 19th century, well before Murphy was old enough to invent things.

This is a folding cabinet bed, not a Murphy bed.

Gov. Winthrop Desk: The story goes that the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 17th century, real man named John Winthrop, had a desk like this. Winthrop was born in England in 1588 and died in the Colony in 1649. This was at least 50 years before the drop front desk appeared in England and about 100 years before Thomas Chippendale gave it the famous form that commonly bears the governor’s name. In other words, Gov. Winthrop did not have a desk like this. So who is responsible for the name given to the form of the drop front desk? The Winthrop Furniture Company of Boston has that honor. The company introduced a new model of the desk in 1924 and called it the “Gov. Winthrop,” a clever play on words that has polluted the trade vocabulary for more than 80 years.

The real name for this form is not “Gov. Winthrop.” It is called a bookcase/secretary.

Breuer (not Brewer) Chair: This is the ubiquitous, bent chrome chair with separate seat and back, usually caned in modern pressed cane or “Viennese weaving,” as Marcel Breuer, the designer called it. Breuer was born in Hungary in 1902 and became an important part of the German Bauhaus school of design in the 1920s, where he helped shift the focus from “Arts & Crafts” to “Arts & Technology.” After stops in Paris and London, Breuer came to America in 1937, where his architectural skill was in the forefront for many years. The most reproduced of his works is the bent chrome chair, design #B32, but his most famous chair is the “Wassily” chair, #B3.

Beau Brummel: This a common name given to a form of dressing table made popular in late 18th century France when men paid as much or more attention to their dress and make up as women did. The form was actually known as a “poudreuse” meaning “powder” in French, or, in French slang, “duster of the man,” referring to the generous use of face powder in make up. It was a very rare example of the combination of an attached mirror and wooden case in the 18th century. Fixed mirrors were not usually a part of the dressing table until the early 19th century. The popularization of the poudreuse predated the heyday of the celebrated English dandy, George Bryan Brummel, 1778-1840, by several decades, but his name became associated with the form merely because of his notoriety.

This is a French poudreuse, commonly called a “Beau Brummel.”

Pembroke Table: The true origin of this form of drop leaf table is rather vague, but most people conveniently attribute it to the Countess of Pembroke, who reportedly ordered the first one in the 1750s or 1760s. Who actually designed it is up for further discussion, but Thomas Sheraton was so impressed he called it the universal table and Chippendale introduced one of the first designs with a drawer in 1766. It has been continuously produced for over 250 years and no matter what the style it is always called a “Pembroke.”

Sutherland Table: This last example is a variation of the Pembroke table. It has a flat middle section so narrow as to be unusable as a table until one or both of its deep drop leaves are opened. It was introduced in 1850, almost exactly100 years after the Pembroke form came to light and, interestingly enough, this form of table was named after Harriet Sutherland, who just coincidentally happened to be the Duchess of Pembroke at the time.

A Sutherland table with a very narrow top is also sometimes called a “tuckaway” table.

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Fred Taylor is a Worthologist who specializes in American furniture from the Late Classicism period (1830-1850).

Visit Fred’s website at www.furnituredetective.com. His book “How To Be A Furniture Detective” is now available for $18.95 plus $3 shipping. Send check or money order for $21.95 to Fred Taylor, PO Box 215, Crystal River, FL 34423.

Fred and Gail Taylor’s DVD, “Identification of Older & Antique Furniture,” ($17 + $3 S&H) and a bound compilation of the first 60 columns of “Common Sense Antiques,” by Fred Taylor ($25 + $3 S&H) are also available at the same address.

For more information call 800-387-6377, fax 352-563-2916, or e-mail info [at] furnituredetective [dot] com.

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Join WorthPoint on Twitter and Facebook.