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ID #SA1168065
FOR SALE
£2,600
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17th Century Oak & Inlaid Marquetry Coffer / Mule Chest
For sale by Dickinsons Antiques
for sale €3,042     $3,302
£2,600
Dickinsons Antiques

Dickinsons Antiques

Sellingantiques Verified Since Oct 2020
Browse dealers 75 items
  • About Us
    Dealing in early oak and country furniture since 1958.
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Id #SA1168065
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17th Century Oak & Inlaid Marquetry Coffer / Mule Chest

17th century
Description

A 17th Century Oak & Inlaid Leeds Coffer in fabulous clean original condition.

The piece is of solid construction with a good two-piece top. The whole front is carved with stylized foliage and mythical beasts, the inlaid marquetry panels in contrasting bog oak and holly depicting courting swans and flowers.

It retains the original ring hinges, clean drawer linings, interior, and back. Almost all of the original marquetry and inlaid banding are still in place.

Elizabethan in character, a style that continued within the prosperous 17th-century cities of Leeds and Halifax. For similar examples of mid-17th-century inlaid furniture attributed to Yorkshire, see the Shibden Hall Collection, Halifax, West Yorkshire.

Date of Manufacture

Dickinsons Antiques has dated this Inlaid Oak Mule Chest to the 17th Century.

Independent Date Check ID 09176455
Dealer's Item Date17th Century
Sellingantiques Date17th Century
Sellingantiques agingItem 335-390 years old
Test ResultsPassed dating check
Why Sellingantiques dated this piece to THE 17TH CENTURY:
Iron staple ring hinges: early joining method used before brass butt hinges.
Contrasting bog oak and holly inlays: regional West Riding work of the period.
Pegged mortise and tenon joints: traditional seventeenth-century timber frame construction.
Wide gaps between unglued base boards: centuries of natural timber shrinkage.

This is an independent date report produced by Sellingantiques using its own proprietary system. The process uses the photographs shown on this page. The system is never told the date the dealer has declared. This report shows that the two dates corroborate.

Physical Dimensions
Height
76cm (29.92")
Width
144cm (56.69")
Depth
56cm (22.05")
Reference Numbers
Sellingantiques Reference
SA1168065
Dealers Notes

Please don't hesitate to contact us with any queries or to request additional photos.

All items can be viewed in our showrooms in Gargrave. Normally open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday or any other time by appointment. Always best to phone or email just to check we are going to be in.

Most items include free mainland UK delivery.

Worldwide delivery available please contact for price.

Description
A 17th Century Oak & Inlaid Leeds Coffer in fabulous clean original condition.

The piece is of solid construction with a good two-piece top.

“
The whole front is carved with stylized foliage and mythical beasts, the inlaid marquetry panels in contrasting bog oak and holly depicting courting swans and flowers.
Dickinsons Antiques
fig 1. A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles.
fig 1. 17th Century Oak & Inlaid Marquetry Coffer / Mule Chest

It retains the original ring hinges, clean drawer linings, interior, and back. Almost all of the original marquetry and inlaid banding are still in place.

Elizabethan in character, a style that continued within the prosperous 17th-century cities of Leeds and Halifax. For similar examples of mid-17th-century inlaid furniture attributed to Yorkshire, see the Shibden Hall Collection, Halifax, West Yorkshire.

Date of Manufacture

Dickinsons Antiques has dated this Inlaid Oak Mule Chest to the 17th Century.

Independent Date Report ID 09176455
Dealer's Item Date17th Century
Sellingantiques dating17th Century
Sellingantiques agingItem 335-390 years old
Test ResultsPassed dating check
Why Sellingantiques dated this piece to the 17th Century:
Iron staple ring hinges: early joining method used before brass butt hinges.
Contrasting bog oak and holly inlays: regional West Riding work of the period.
Pegged mortise and tenon joints: traditional seventeenth-century timber frame construction.
Wide gaps between unglued base boards: centuries of natural timber shrinkage.

This is an independent date report produced by Sellingantiques using its own proprietary system. The process uses the photographs shown on this page. The system is never told the date the dealer has declared. This report shows that the two dates corroborate.

Height
76cm (29.92")
Width
144cm (56.69")
Depth
56cm (22.05")
Reference Numbers
Sellingantiques Ref
SA1168065
Dickinsons Antiques
Dickinsons Antiques
Sellingantiques verified Since Oct 2020

Dealing in early oak and country furniture since 1958.

Dealer Profile

You can view the stock and full dealer information on the Dickinsons Antiques Profile Page

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A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles.
1 / 12
Archive I A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles.

17th Century Oak & Inlaid Marquetry Coffer / Mule Chest

Archive II A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View II
Archive III A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View III
Archive IV Scale Reference for A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles.
Archive V A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View V
Archive VI A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View VI
Archive VII A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View VII
Archive VIII A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View VIII
Archive IX A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View IX
Archive X A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View X
Archive XI A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View XI
Archive XII A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles. View XII
Enlarged Archival View
Dickinsons Antiques

Dickinsons Antiques
Telephone 01756 748257 or 07971 958303
Location
The Estate Yard
West Street
Gargrave
North Yorkshire
BD23 3RD
United Kingdom
Dealer Profile Page sellingantiques.co.uk/dickinsons
Verified Since Oct 2020
Items For Sale 75
Items Sold 250
Dickinsons Antiques
Dickinsons Antiques
Verified Since Oct 2020
View Dealer Info
Location: The Estate Yard, West Street, Gargrave, North Yorkshire, BD23 3RD, United Kingdom
Profile: sellingantiques.co.uk/dickinsons
Verified
Oct 2020
For Sale
75
Sold
250
A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles.
17th Century Oak & Inlaid Marquetry Coffer / Mule Chest
Ref: SA1168065
A 17th-century dark oak mule chest featuring carved friezes, three inlaid marquetry front panels with bird motifs, and two lower drawers with brass drop handles.
Detail View 1
Detail View 2
Detail View 3
Detail View 4
Detail View 5
Detail View 6
Detail View 7
Detail View 8
Detail View 9
Detail View 10
Scale Reference
Archival Detail

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Cataloguer’s note

Written by Sellingantiques from the dealer’s photographs and listing
  • ObjectCoffers & Trunks
  • Period17th century
  • StyleJacobean
  • MaterialOak, Wood Inlay, Brass
  • ColourDark Brown
  • MotifsMarquetry inlay, Carved frieze, Panelled front, Brass drop handles
  • SizeH 76 cm (30 in) x W 144 cm (57 in) x D 56 cm (22 in)

This seventeenth-century Jacobean oak coffer displays a dark brown timber tone with contrasting marquetry inlay in light and dark woods. The rectangular two-piece top sits above a carved foliate frieze and three front panels showing bird motifs flanked by vertical stiles with carved patterns. Below the main compartment, two lower drawers run across the base, fitted with small brass drop handles. The entire structure stands on straightforward corner feet, showing panelled framing and inlaid banding down the outer edges. Measuring 76 cm high, 144 cm wide, and 56 cm deep, this practical storage chest serves as a traditional trunk for blankets or linens in a bedroom, hallway, or living space. The piece functions well as an accent surface in an English country house interior, offering both enclosed compartment storage and accessible lower drawer space for everyday items.

FAQs

A mule chest is a traditional wooden storage chest featuring a hinged top coffer section above one or two drawers at the base, originating in the seventeenth century as an evolution of the standard blanket chest.

These pieces were constructed from solid oak using mortise and tenon joinery, featuring hand-carved friezes, inlaid marquetry using contrasting woods, and hand-forged metal fittings.

Authentic period furniture features pegged joinery without modern screws, hand-sawn timber marks, natural patination inside and out, and hand-carved drawer runners.

Position an oak coffer in an entryway, hallway, or at the foot of a bed to serve as functional storage, pairing dark timber tones with neutral linen upholstery for modern contrast.

Dust regularly with a soft, lint-free cloth and apply beeswax polish once or twice a year, avoiding aerosol sprays, excess moisture, and placement near direct heat sources.
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