Pics posted at APBW.
I've already been agble to narrow the age of the item to between 1835 and
1880This beats the rough cut white oak 2" x 3" x 4' board I found in an alley behind a construction site last week.
Driving home from work. It's trash day. Someone's throwing away a large piece of furniture.
Check it out, it's solid wood. VERY messed up. Broken doors, scratches, bubble gum on the finish, chunks missing here and there, lots of dried yellow glue on the thing where some well intentioned but clueless person tried to repair it. I load it in the back of the Explorer and drive the 3 blocks home with the liftgate up.
Here's the scoop. A very old cabinet / chest about 4 1/2 feet high by 3 feet wide (Was too wide to go in the Explorer - had to lay it down) 100% hand cut dovetails and mortise and tenon. All the wood is solid and thick, most of it appears to be black walnut!
Bottom and back of drawer and the TNG back panels show sawmill marks from what was a huge blade, perhaps 4 feet or so in diameter. Doors have Raised panels with the flat front to the outside, the panels are raised with hand cut plane marks still apparent.
Structurally it's not too bad, but the doors are really messed up and there's chunks of wood missing here and there - I think it's a lost cause. It's a shame to break it up for lumber, but there's a lot of very nice wood. If I made new doors for it and bought a gallon tub of wood putty it might be doable.
Any guesses on age? No makers marks at all. Perhaps it's a homemade job some turn of the century wudwurker put together. The nails holding on the back panels are some sort of cut nails with handmade heads? (see picture) I'll have to take a closer look at the hinges. for clues.
yitah