Duncan Phyfe Style

   One enterprising cabinetmaker contributed significantly to the design of early American furniture. This furniture designer was Duncan Phyfe (1768-1854), Scottish born and an emigre to the United States when only fifteen years old. He was apprenticed to a cabinetmaker in Albany, but nine years later moved to Manhattan and opened his own shop. Then he changed his name from Fife to the more glamorous Phyfe. The style of this master craftsman became known throughout the Western world, a style greatly desired among leading decorators, many of whom considered him the best American furniture maker of his time. Duncan Phyfe furniture was admired for its exact proportions, graceful curving lines, and carved brass ornamentation.

   Some pieces were reeded or covered with raised molding. Phyfe's style incorporated the best of the designs of Sheraton, Hepplewhite, and Adam Brothers, with original touches here and there. Further, Phyfe invented certain mechanical devices that made some pieces of furniture more serviceable. His dining room tables, for example, were expandable, and his card tables and sewing cabinets were more functional than others. His later designs were influenced by the Empire style.