Object Description
This is a fine antique George III flame mahogany inlaid and crossbanded pedestal partners desk, circa 1810 in date.
The desk is made from beautiful flame mahogany with highly decorative boxwood, ebony, satinwood and goncalo alves crossbanding and features a stunning gilt tooled green leather writing surface. It is fitted with three frieze drawers on either side with three further drawers in each pedestal, so this stupendous desk has a total of eighteen drawers, all fitted with decorative gilded brass handles.
The drawer linings are of solid mahogany, the desk is raised on a plinth base and is complete with the original working locks and keys.
Install the elegance of a bygone era to a special place in your home with this fabulous antique partners pedestal desk.
Condition:
In excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned, polished waxed and releathered in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation.
Dimensions in cm:
Height 75.5 x Width 182 x Depth 114
Dimensions in inches:
Height 2 foot, 6 inches x Width 6 feet x Depth 3 foot, 9 inches
A partners desk
is an antique desk form, which is basically two pedestal desks constructed from the start as one large desk joined at the front, for two users working while facing each other.
This piece of furniture was first conceived in the United Kingdom to accommodate the work of banking partners. These gentlemen were usually senior bank officials who wished to work together while keeping the convenience and the prestige of a pedestal desk.
Flame Mahogany
Thomas Sheraton – 18th century furniture designer, once characterized mahogany as “best suited to furniture where strength is demanded as well as a wood that works up easily, has a beautiful figure and polishes so well that it is an ornament to any room in which it may be placed.” Matching his words to his work, Sheraton designed much mahogany furniture. The qualities that impressed Sheraton are particularly evident in a distinctive pattern of wood called “flame mahogany.”
The flame figure in the wood is revealed by slicing through the face of the branch at the point where it joins another element of the tree.Gonçalo Alves is a hardwood (from the Portuguese name, Gonçalo Alves). It is sometimes referred to as tigerwood — a name that underscore the wood’s often dramatic, contrasting color scheme.
While the sapwood is very light in color, the heartwood is a sombre brown, with dark streaks that give it a unique look. The wood’s color deepens with exposure and age and even the plainer-looking wood has a natural luster.
Two species are usually listed as sources for gonçalo alves: Astronium fraxinifolium and Astronium graveolens, although other species in the genus may yield similar wood; the amount of striping that is present may vary.
In the high tropical forests of Central and South America, well-drained soils furnish nutrients for a variety of dense, durable hardwoods sought for maritime use, heavyconstruction, and furniture. The Spanish began harvesting in Latin American forests in the early 1500s to provide timber for boatbuilding and repair. By the early 1900s, however, steel ships had replaced wooden ones, and the interest in tropical forests by both Europeans and Americans shifted to appearance-grade woods for furniture.
Although history fails to provide us with a shopping list of species from either harvest period, it’s probable that the wood we know today as goncalo alves has always been sought. That’s because goncalo alves, considered one of the most beautiful of tropical woods, has a tough reputation, too. Strong and durable, it’s used for construction in its homeland and secondarily for fine furniture. Woodworkers elsewhere treasure the wood for decorative items and veneer accents.
Our reference: A2561