Sewing Table Sells For Nearly $100,000

A simple Shaker wooden sewing table from 1840 sold for an amazing $98,400 recently at Morphy Auctions of Pennsylvania. The seven-drawer, drop-leaf table is made with butternut, cherry, pine and basswood. It came from the Shaker community at Hancock, Massachusetts, and was attributed to Elder David Terry, who is known to have crafted similar tables. However, there was some speculation among experts that it might have come from the boys’ workshop at Hancock. Prices for Shaker furniture have fluctuated in the last 60 years. Pieces of furniture used by the Shaker communities sell for the most money. This sewing table was estimated to sell between $5,000 and $10,000.

 

 

Shaker Furniture

The Shakers are a religious group that came to America from England in 1774 led by Mother Ann Lee. The group grew until there were 18 Shaker communities in the eastern part of the country. Some of the communities made furniture that was sold to outsiders. The Shakers’ religious beliefs required that their designs be […]