This cherry chest of drawers with its elaborately scalloped top was probably made in Deerfield, Massachusetts, for resident David Hoyt. He gave the chest to his daughter Persis on her marriage to John Sheldon in 1769. Similar chests have descended in the families of two sisters of Persis. Each is linked to a wedding date. Furniture with shaped tops are an expression of the rococo style. This unique furniture style appeared in the Connecticut River Valley from Wethersfield, Connecticut, to Deerfield, Massachusetts, in the middle years of the 18th century.