Who is Duncan Phyfe?

(1768-1854)

New York City became extremely important after the Revolution as an arbiter of American taste. Several cabinetmakers who had emigrated from Europe settled in New York and had a considerable impact.

Phyfe was the most prominent and one of the most famous names in American cabinetmaking. Born in Scotland, Phyfe came to New York City in about 1794 and established a cabinet shop. His firm continued under the name Duncan Phyfe & Sons until 1847, when he retired, having accumulated a sizable fortune.

Phyfe's work at the turn of the 19th century reflected the designs of Sheraton, although slightly after 1800, he came under the influence of French Directoire design (named after the Directory, the group of five leaders who ruled France in 1795-1799). He preferred the rich mahogany from Cuba and Santo Domingo and combined these with carefully cut veneered panels for dramatic effects. After 1830, though, Phyfe tended to favor the more fashionable rosewood.

Phyfe was one of the first American cabinetmakers to successfully incorporate the factory method into the cabinet workshop. He employed master craftsmen, journeymen, and apprentices, as well as carvers, turners, and upholsterers; each craftsman performed the operation for which he was best trained. Because of this division of labor, it is more correct to refer to the "school" or "workshop" of Duncan Phyfe, rather than to attribute the furniture directly to him.

Phyfe's early work comprised virtually every category of furniture, combining delicate Greco-Roman motifs in an entirely original manner. In the Federal furniture produced in his workshop, favorite decorative motifs include the lyre, acanthus leaf, plume, cornucopia, drapery, laurel, sheaf of wheat, thunderbolt, bow knot, trumpet, harp, and rosette. Reeding was a universal ingredient of this furniture, and brass and ormolu pulls and feet were frequently used.

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