This magnificent bed from the early 1800s dominated the bedroom of Julian Wood Glass Jr. at Glen Burnie. Then, as now, beds (often called bedsteads) were overwhelmingly the visual focal point of every bedchamber. Receipts dating to the time this bed was made document the extraordinary cost of the yards and yards of fabric (usually imported) required to drape a four-poster bed such as this one and envelop its occupant. Complex pulleys and lines pulled the fabric up and down around the bed’s sides. Elaborate tassels and fringes softened the sewn edges of the draped fabric. Inventory takers evaluating an estate assigned the most value to the upholstered elements of the bed, which they often referred to as bed furniture. The bedstead itself seemingly served as an elegant armature for the upholstery. The more important the person, the more ornate were his or her bed furnishings.

The headboard and two headposts of any well-wrought bed were hidden behind fabric. Therefore, the artistry of designing a bedstead such as this one lay principally in the two footposts. The profiles of the turned posts and the carved waterleafs, wheat sheaths, and rope on the urns follow popular patterns both made and published in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Here, at the rails and below, the plinths and feet are block shaped and taper to the ground, ending with a familiar spade. Boston furniture makers’ interpretation of the neoclassical style is most evident in the carved ornaments that are at eye level on the footposts. The turning and carved decoration would have balanced the sophistication of the upholstery.

The peculiar sizes of antique bedsteads have led people to imagine that the original users of the beds were shorter than modern-day Americans; this, however, was generally untrue. In comparison to today’s standard sizes, most beds of the late 1700s and early 1800s were wider, which makes them only appear to be shorter. On those beds that actually are shorter than today’s models, it is often the case that the occupants slept on wedge-shaped pillows to encourage good breathing. Mattresses were always custom made, so the dimensions of antique beds can vary.