As its contemporary name “pillar looking glass” implies, glasses of this type with their pilastered sides and deep cornice evoke an architectural presence. During the 1790s this configuration was introduced in England, one of its earliest appearances being in Sheraton’s The Cabinet-Maker and Upholster’s Drawing Book and in America shortly thereafter. They were available in either gilt or mahogany frames, the latter being considerably less expensive. This style of looking glass, with incised, carved decoration, conforms to a type preferred in New York. The design persisted ad with the Grecian period assumed a heavier and less delicate appearance.

Related examples: Wood 1996, pp. 120−123, nos. 50A−B; Sotheby’s, sale 7010, June 17−18, 1997.