Rooms specially designated for dining did not exist in the United States until after the American Revolution. Even then, only the wealthy could afford the rooms since they required new, extravagant furniture forms such as the sideboard, which was used for displaying and storing tableware. The Dining Room’s shimmering, gold-leaf canvas wall covering, designed in 1927–28 by New York artist William MacKay, is hand painted with peonies, Texas dogwood branches, and garden creatures such as field mice and butterflies.