During the colonial era, Americans copied English art and architecture in their clothing, belongings and even their homes. Many wealthy Americans were Tories, or supporters of the English crown; their homes reflected their loyalties. Soft pastel colors, elaborate trims and an obsession with symmetry characterized Georgian design. It was, in a word, elegant.
This roombox would work equally well as a dining room, formal parlor or ballroom. It features many classic hallmarks of wealth: the genuine parquet floor, the generous use of paint and the wallpaper panels. Before power tools, parquet was extremely labor intensive to produce. While hardwood was abundant and easy to come by, paint was not; artisans had to collect natural pigments and grind them by hand. Paint often took several months, and several hundred dollars, to produce. And, in 1775, wallpaper was a relatively new innovation. Trading ships imported it from China, where artisans painted each panel by hand. Not only was wallpaper expensive, but also the homeowner had to replace it every few months. Grease and soot from candles and kerosene lamps blackened it very quickly.
