Desk
about 1600 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Oak writing box of boarded construction (using hand-made nails), the front with geometrical chip carving with guilloche (three circles either side of the lock plate, fastened on hand-made nails and apparently original)
The lid formed of two boards (flat sawn but probably replacement), with moulded edges and cleats (probably replacement) held on original hinges (one repaired);
The bottom formed of two boards (sawn) joined in a 'bird's mouth' joint, and nailed up with hand-made nails. A gap has opened between the two boards, without however causing significant splitting, suggesting that the bottom may be replaced.
The lid and sides noticeably fresher and cleaner than the front and back. A shadow line around the front and sides of the bottom indicates a nailed moulding, now missing.
The PL side and front of quartered oak, the PR side and back flat sawn.
Possibly created using a 17th century box front and lock, hinges.
The guilloche is a popular renaissance motif and very widely used. See A.J. Conybeare, A discourse on boxes of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries (Hanley Swan, Worcestershire 1993), p.49f.
The lid formed of two boards (flat sawn but probably replacement), with moulded edges and cleats (probably replacement) held on original hinges (one repaired);
The bottom formed of two boards (sawn) joined in a 'bird's mouth' joint, and nailed up with hand-made nails. A gap has opened between the two boards, without however causing significant splitting, suggesting that the bottom may be replaced.
The lid and sides noticeably fresher and cleaner than the front and back. A shadow line around the front and sides of the bottom indicates a nailed moulding, now missing.
The PL side and front of quartered oak, the PR side and back flat sawn.
Possibly created using a 17th century box front and lock, hinges.
The guilloche is a popular renaissance motif and very widely used. See A.J. Conybeare, A discourse on boxes of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries (Hanley Swan, Worcestershire 1993), p.49f.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | oak |
| Brief description | English 1600-1640 |
| Physical description | Oak writing box of boarded construction (using hand-made nails), the front with geometrical chip carving with guilloche (three circles either side of the lock plate, fastened on hand-made nails and apparently original) The lid formed of two boards (flat sawn but probably replacement), with moulded edges and cleats (probably replacement) held on original hinges (one repaired); The bottom formed of two boards (sawn) joined in a 'bird's mouth' joint, and nailed up with hand-made nails. A gap has opened between the two boards, without however causing significant splitting, suggesting that the bottom may be replaced. The lid and sides noticeably fresher and cleaner than the front and back. A shadow line around the front and sides of the bottom indicates a nailed moulding, now missing. The PL side and front of quartered oak, the PR side and back flat sawn. Possibly created using a 17th century box front and lock, hinges. The guilloche is a popular renaissance motif and very widely used. See A.J. Conybeare, A discourse on boxes of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries (Hanley Swan, Worcestershire 1993), p.49f. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Given by H. Clifford Smith |
| Object history | Given by H. Clifford Smith. 'Bought by the donor at Felixtowe, Suffolk about 1900'...'from a dealer who said that he had got it from a cottage in the neighbourhood. The carving on the front seems to me above average in quality...' RP: 19/48 This piece was put forward for consideration by a Board of Survey in 1939 (Registered Papers 39/446 on VA Policy Files 200-1) for de-accessioning on the grounds that it was 'Made up' but no action seems to have been taken. |
| Production | Possibly Eastern Counties; restored probably 1850-1900 |
| Bibliographic reference | Writing Desk, with sloping lid, the front carved with rosettes within guilloches.
Purchased by donor at Felixstowe, Suffolk. Early 17th century.
From catalogue H. 10 ½ in., W. 2 ft., D. 1 ft. 3 ½ in.
(H. 26.7 cm, W. 61 cm, D. 39.4 cm)
Given by H. Clifford Smith, Esq.
From: H. Clifford Smith, Catalogue of English Furniture & Woodwork
(London 1930), 585.
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.4-1919 |
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| Record created | May 25, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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