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Built-in closets and kitchen cabinets have not always been a
standard feature of domestic architecture. During the eighteenth
and nineteenth centuries, carpenters, cabinetmakers, as well as
homeowners themselves produced a variety of free-standing and
built-in cupboards to store food, dishes, clothing and other
house-hold goods. The cupboard shown here is a fine example of the
larger type of storage piece. It reflects something of the diverse
cultural roots of Canadian craftsmen of the period. The
Kleiderschrank, or clothes cupboard, has been attributed to John P.
Klempp, a German cabinetmaker who worked in the vicinity of
Hanover, Ontario, from about 1875 to 1914. The bands of intricate
inlaid patterns and the traditional Germanic motifs, such as hearts
and compass-stars, as well as the lively scrolled apron are
characteristic features of Klempp's furniture. German craftsmen
made up a relatively large proportion of nineteenth-century Ontario
cabinetmakers. Some were from Pennsylvania, but Klempp was among
those who arrived directly from the Continent. Similar large
cupboards would have been found in many German-Canadian homes of
the time in southwestern Ontario. Although machine-made furniture
was widely available when this cupboard was made, strong religious
and cultural traditions in many communities supported the continued
use of earlier forms. Unfortunately, much of the earlier furniture
made in Canada has been stripped of its original finish, but this
cupboard is in its original condition.
[Treasures] (German)
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