Since the 17th century, looking glasses have been prominent fixtures in affluent domestic interiors. Early American glassmakers were unable to produce glass sheets with the smoothness and clarity required for silvering. For this reason, most looking glasses in colonial American homes were English imports.

This looking glass contains elements that create a complex and exciting facade. Its vertical  proportions and elaborately shaped silhouette are consistent with the Chippendale style. A gilt scrolled pediment ornaments the crest while framing a beaded oval that references the neoclassical idiom. Gilded leaves of laurel provide a perch for a rococo phoenix, or perhaps it was meant to suggest a Federal eagle. It is constructed from spruce and Scots pine, species of wood that have been identified in numbers of mirror frames from England and the Continent.

Related example: Winterthur Museum.