Article: The Jordan family of Georgia and their Belter parlor furniture.

An itemized bill of sale from the New York City furniture maker John Henry Belter to a wealthy extended Georgia family has proved to be a window into their antebellum life that would otherwise have become lost over time. The bill, along with the parlor set it documents, descended through four successive generations of daughters named Martha. While there are individual labeled or stamped pieces of furniture by Belter, primarily center tables, beds, and bureaus, this bill firmly documents the entire parlor set as the product of Belter's shop - the only such documentation known today [ILLUSTRATION FOR PLATES III-VIII OMITTED].

Belter's bill [ILLUSTRATION FOR FIGURES ...

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