A beautifully presented solid wood antique sideboard, golden toned patina and carved solid wood antique sideboard, golden toned patina and carved ornately overall, with mirrored galleried and decorated upstand, dating to around 1900 – the “Vicwardian” era. Ornately carved all over, a quality piece of excellent English craftsmanship. Believed to be made from oak. This gorgeous item of genuine antique furniture has been lovingly fed with natural products including Balds Balm and natural beeswax for the past 15+ years to give a lovely surface sheen and patina. The mirror glass surfaces on the detachable upstand are all in excellent original condition with beautifully bevelled edges. The silvering is mainly in good condition with a couple of minor marks and a small amount of foxing on one corner which do not notice in normal use and are part of this item’s 120-year old life story! On the lower section, 2 wide useful upper cabinet drawers have nicely worked original ornate brass handles in an Arts & Crafts style. These would be ideal for keeping cutlery and other dinnerware as they are very spacious. They sit above a very roomy lockable lower cabinet complete with sunburst carved double doors, cleverly hidden inner bolts and key. Inside the cabinet is a full width upper shelf of approximately half the cabinet height and underneath is a capacious half width built in bottle/wine storage section, very handy for use as a drinks cabinet. The mirrors look amazing with candles and crystal glasses reflected in them, perfectly festive and sparkly, with lots of room on the cabinet surface for placing multiple sets of glasses. Overall the piece sits on neatly turned bun feet with a scroll plinth to the bottom edge, with enough space to hoover through the front gap. This item represents an interesting period of evolution in English furniture and interior design. Around the turn of the 20th century, Victorian interior style had started to be seen as fussy, dark, and dreary design schemes which were being superceded in favour of clean lines and finer materials. Socialist reformer and artist William Morris and his Art and Crafts movement promoted hand crafted-pieces that were simple and useful in design – “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful”. The firm’s medieval-inspired aesthetic and respect for hand-craftsmanship and traditional textile arts had a profound influence on the decoration of churches and houses into the early 20th century. Although its most influential period was during the flourishing of the Arts and Crafts Movement in the 1880s and 1890s, Morris & Co. Remained in operation in a limited fashion from World War I until its closure in 1940. Brand, and to Liberty of London. British architect and writer Charles Eastlake, who strongly objected to the prevailing Victorian aesthetic, published several editions of the influential’Hints on Household Taste in Furniture and other Details’, which countered with the suggestion of simpler lines, geometric shapes, and Far East-inspired designs. As the 20th century dawned, a general shift toward cleaner, more geometric lines prevailed through movements like Art Deco Style and Architectural Modernism that would follow. The move towards these clean geometric lines can be clearly seen in the design influence of this fine piece of antique furniture, in the linear reeding to the front of the cabinet drawers and around the lower doors, as well as the simple but refined panelling to the cabinet sides. The sunburst floral circular design to the cabinet doors is easily recognisable as a Mandala, also reflecting the newer Far Eastern inspired design ethos. When it comes to the mirrored upstand, we see stronger echoes of the Victorian influence in the ornately galleried top rails, the turned decorative finials and the elaborate smaller shelved side mirrors. If a simpler overall style is preferred, the upstand can be separately completely from the cabinet and as a stand-alone piece would make an unusual and lovely fireplace mantel or even a stylish bedhead with very little adaptation. Fresh to the market, this is a fabulouse and rare item of antique furniture that can only increase and value and rarity in years to come, reflecting in its design a pivotal turning point in the evolution of interior design and stylistic taste, at the turn of the 20th century. Top section easily removes for transport. We can also recommend a reliable careful courier we have used previously. We are located very conveniently for the A13 and A12 which are 5 minutes drive away, also for the M25, the North Circular A 205 and the M11. The sideboard once separated into 2 pieces is not too heavy, but does need 2 people to manoeuvre through our doorway, ground floor so no problem, we can help by arrangement. Approx 135cm wide, 50cm deep, 186 cm high overall. Cabinet top 92cm from floor. Reasonable offers will be considered, so please message us, bearing in mind that this is a rare genuine antique craftsman made furniture.
