Elaborate 1685 Chest of Drawers and New Exhibit

Unveiled at the Brick Store Museum March 30, 2001

Kennebunkport Maine: The Brick Store Museum has unveiled an all new Permanent Exhibit - Shaped by the Sea - Celebrating the History of the Kennebunks and a priceless collection piece - The Capen Perkins Chest on Friday March 30th at a Press Conference.

This significant Chest of Drawers dates back to 1685 during the early colonial days. The chest has already elicited tremendous interest among scholars of American decorative arts.

This historical Chest was the gift of Mrs. William Goedecke, Mrs. William Lamborn, and Mrs. Edwin Hooker, direct descendants of the original owners. On the basis of their initials and the date carved on the drawer fronts, as well as genealogical data, the chest has been traced back to the Reverend Joseph Capen (1658 - 1725) and his wife Priscilla Appleton Capen (1657 - 1743) of Topsfield , Massachusetts. The Capens are celebrated historically because their house built in 1683, still stands in Topsfield, where it is owned and maintained by the Topsfield Historical Society.

The Capen Perkins Chest is one of six attributed to an unidentified but prolific joinery shop located in either Ipswich or Newbury, Massachusetts. Thirteen cupboards and numerous other treasured case pieces created at this shop are now in museum collections across the nation.

What makes the Capen Chest so important is its superb condition and its elaborate carved and applied ornament. The only chest with this much ornament is the famous Staniford-Heard chest of drawers in the Henry Francis du Pont Winterhur Museum in Winterhur, Delaware.

The elaborate carvings lead one to believe the chest was carved as a wedding gift. The piece itself is rare, but what is equally rare is that this significant piece can be traced back through 25 generations of lineage.

This priceless chest traveled to the Kennebunks from Topsfield, Massachussets in 1801 where it resided in the Eliphlet Perkins House in Kennebunkport. This extremely rare survival of a 17th century dower chest represents the high level of craftsmanship found in colonial New England soon after the arrival of English settlers.

In the fall of 1999, the three remarkable sisters stepped forward and graciously donated this extremely rare chest to the Museum for generations to enjoy. Now it is the Brick Store Museum's most prized possession.

It went on display for the first time at the Brick Store at the official Press/Invitation only Unveiling Ceremony on Friday, March 30, 2001.

The chest is now available for public viewing.

From May 4th to July 29th, the Capen Chest will travel to the Milwaukee Art Museum to be showcased in the "Puritan Classicism - 17th Century Cupboards of Massachusetts" exhibit before returning to the Brick Store in August to be on permanent display. The Chest will be featured in a major article in the journal of American Furniture in December.

Speakers at unveiling:

Greg Burke - IMS-21. Integrated Marketing & Sales for the 21st Century

Joan Cook VP Trust at Biddeford Savings Bank and President and President of Board of Directors Brick Store Museum.

Marcene L. Molinaro, Executive Director, Brick Store Museum

Norman Isler - President of Topsfield Historical Society who owns the Parson Capen House.

Three sisters whom donated Chest to Brick Store.

Janet Gooedecke of New York, Joan Lamborn of Maine, and Anne Hooker of Maryland (not present at March 30 Ceremony).

Left to right: Director, Brick Store Museum, Marcene J. Molinaro, Donors: Janet Goedecke and Joan Lamborn

Left to right: Jean Busch, VP Topsfield Historical; Norm Isler, Pres. Topsfield Historical; Janet Goedecke and Joan Lamborn

Some email addresses of interest: greg@ims21.net , jcook@biddefordsavings.com , director@brickstoremuseum.org , nisler@aol.com , topshist@tiac.net .

Web Sites: www.brickstoremuseum.org , http://home.tiac.net/~topshist

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