Object Description
This is an elegant antique pair of Italian, Lombardy Milanese Ferrarese walnut, burr walnut and ebonized commodes, or bedside chests crafted in Milan, circa 1780 in date.
They are crafted from the most beautiful Ferrarese walnut and burr from Ferrara in Italy, with ebonized moulded edges. Each features three drawers with a golden silk lined interior and ormolu handles. The drawers are flanked by decorative corner columns.
This craftsmanship could serve any purpose, perfect as a pair of bedside chests or as a small pair of commodes in the drawing room.
A truly fine pair, they deserve pride of place in any furniture collection.
Condition:
In really excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned, polished and waxed in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation.
Dimensions in cm:
Height 69 cm x Width 71 cm x Depth 38 cm
Dimensions in inches:
Height 2 foot, 3 inches x Width 2 foot, 4 inches x Depth 1 foot, 3 inches
Ferrarese walnut (or walnut root) is a prized, highly figured, and often burl-veneered wood, historically sourced from pollarded trees in Italy’s Ferrara region. Known for its dramatic, twisted, and contrasting light-and-dark grain patterns, this material was popular in 18th-century,
Walnut & Burr Walnut
Walnut is a hard, dense, tight- grained wood that polishes to a very smooth finish. It is a popular and attractive wood whose colour ranges from near white in the sapwood to a dark hew in the heartwood. When dried in a kiln, walnut wood tends to develop a dull brown colour, but when air-dried can become a rich purplish-brown. Because of its colour, hardness and grain, it is a prized furniture and carving wood. Walnut veneer was highly priced and the cost would reflect the ‘fanciness’ of the veneer – the more decorative, then the more expensive and desirable.
Burr walnut refers to the swirling figure present in nearly all walnut when cut and polished, and especially in the wood taken from the base of the tree where it joins the roots. However the true burr is a rare growth on the tree where hundreds of tiny branches have started to grow. Burr walnut produces some of the most complex and beautiful figuring you can find.
Walnut “burrs” were often used to make fabulous furniture. Veneer sliced from walnut burl is one of the most valuable and highly prized by cabinet makers and prestige car manufacturers and is also a favourite material for shotgun stocks.
Our reference: A5096