c. 1760s Newport Tea Tables

[Joel Ficke]

Here's my rendition of the famed Goddard Tea Table sold at Sotheby's in 2005.

It's made from mahogany and finished with shellac. The surfaces are shaped and carved by hand. The Newport foot and knees were challenging, but after a few legs it became as comfortable as the more common Philadelphia legs.

The finish was yet another (partially successful) attempt at adding patina and slight distressing to give the piece a well-cared for antique look. I'll be curious to hear feedback on your initial impression of the finish. I still have a long way to go to make this look authentic from any observer's perspective but each piece gets a little closer.


Thanks for looking.

[Mike Henderson]

Wow, that's magnificent! You're a very accomplished craftsman.

Mike

[Patrick McCarthy]

Very, very nice. Thank you for posting. Patrick

[Bruce Page]

GASP! That is incredible craftsmanship!
Larger pictures would give us a better look at the patina.

[Joel Ficke]

Thanks Patrick, Bruce and Mike. I feel fortunate to have had some great teachers. Bruce I enlarged the photos for better viewing.

[Kevin Bourque]

Wow !!! My projects look like they came from IKEA compared to this table.

[Andrew Hughes]

Thanks for sharing your work,the table is beautiful the finish looks great.
Some nice woodwork posted this month.

[Mark Valsi]

Wow, great work !! top shelf !

[Bruce Page]

Joel, the larger pictures invoke a larger GASP!

[Ryan Mooney]

Wow overall wow! I think the finish is really well done, the highlights on the raised pieces and the darker lows would probably fool me anyway (not that that's saying a lot), the "wear" on the legs is particularly convincing. They look just about spot on.

The ball and claw very interesting, is the lack of webbing period? I really quite like the look and was curious as I don't know enough of the history to know what was en-vogue in the different eras.

[Marty Gulseth]

Outstanding!

[Joel Ficke]

Ryan, this style of foot (with pierced talons and lack of webbing) is to my knowledge specific to Newport, RI in the 18th century. Some also refer to it as Townsend and Goddard as those two families are the ones most of this carving is attributed to. It certainly has a unique look compared to Philadelphia, New York and Boston carvings of the same time. Some like it better, others don't. The jury is still out for me, but they were fun to carve and seem a little more life-like than most feet.

Thanks for the nice feedback everyone....the piece goes in a show this week, so I'm in that hyper-critical and nervous stage.

[Ryan Mooney]

Ryan, this style of foot (with pierced talons and lack of webbing) is to my knowledge specific to Newport, RI in the 18th century. Some also refer to it as Townsend and Goddard as those two families are the ones most of this carving is attributed to. It certainly has a unique look compared to Philadelphia, New York and Boston carvings of the same time. Some like it better, others don't. The jury is still out for me, but they were fun to carve and seem a little more life-like than most feet.

Thanks Joel,

I'm kind of digging them personally from seeing your rendition. They add an interesting texture and depth, the piercing especially above the ball adds a sense of airiness that I think is quite attractive and sort of "elevates" (in both senses of the word) the piece some.

[Mel Fulks]

Wonderful job on one of the finest designs . Since you asked ,I think a piece with that much integrity should not have any artificial ageing in the finish. A generation or three from now some expert will inflate his own value by declaring the table "a fake" . It is not a fake .It is beautiful table of the highest quality. Sign it boldly.

[Bill Wyko]

IMHO you've done a remarkable job. In addition to a signature, be sure to date it too. You may even tell the story in a small note stashed somewhere in it. Extraordinary!!