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Fern Stand

Fern Stand, ca. 1870

Attributed to Kilian Brothers, New York City, New York

Walnut with gilding and polychrome

Gift of Elaine Anderson Mathews A2021-0035.2

In response to the Victorians’ love of collecting and
eclectic display, furniture firms also produced smaller, shorter stands to
display all manner of items, such as plants, vases, and candleholders. Such
stands might grace drawing rooms, hallways, or parlors. Kilian Brothers, a
furniture firm based in New York that competed with cabinet makers such as
Herter Brothers and Pottier and Stymus, produced a variety of plant stands with
lively decorative details. This stand is missing its central piece which would
have been shaped like an urn, supporting the top.