The glass in Illustration [392] is owned by Dwight M. Prouty, Esq. The frame is gilt, and the heavy drapery is carved in wood and gilded.
The richest and largest form of the looking-glass with a projecting cornice is shown in Illustration [393]. It is nearly the height of the room as it rests upon a low shelf. The plain surface of the columns at the side is broken by ornaments, and there are no capitals, but the same round moulding with ornaments extends across the frame between the heavy overhanging cornice and the top section, which is very large, with scrolls and a basket of flowers in high relief, in gilt. This fine looking-glass belongs to George W. Holmes, Esq., of Charleston, South Carolina.
Illus. 393.—Looking-glass, 1810-1820.
Illus. 394—Looking-glass,
1810-1825.
The glass with a heavy frame in Illustration [394] belongs to the writer. Looking-glasses were made in this style of mahogany also, with pillars twisted, fluted, or carved with the acanthus leaf.
The glass was sometimes divided in two sections, separated by a narrow moulding, and the upper section was often filled by a gilded panel, as in Illustration [390]. The frame at the head of Chapter II shows a looking-glass owned by Mr. Bigelow. The panel above the glass is gilded, and its design, of a cornucopia, was extremely popular at this period. The upper section was frequently filled with a picture painted upon glass. A looking-glass with such a picture is shown in Illustration [31], and another, owned by Mrs. H. H. Bigelow of Worcester, heads Chapter I.