Chest of drawers still bank late 19th-early 20th century

This “Chest of Drawers Still Bank” was made by the Leonard Silver Manufacturing Company. It's essentially a child's toy, but made with skill. The main material is stained wood, assembled with careful joinery, and given a clever, trompe l’oeil effect to mimic a piece of fine furniture. The illusion of a miniature chest is surprisingly convincing, and the stenciled autumn leaves at the top give it a final decorative flourish. The piece speaks to the longstanding tradition of artisanal woodworking – skills that were also essential to the mass production of furniture, toys, and other goods in the industrial era. It also reveals the double valence of design, which is to charm through beauty and to manipulate desires. Saving money becomes a goal. The bank asks us to reconsider the social forces embedded even in apparently simple objects. It is a wonderful example of how categories like “folk art” and “design” overlap and inform one another.