A Fine and Rare Mahogany George III Period Table Wine or Bottle Cooler, c.1790Of coopered construction, this fine piece is made of mahogany bound together with brass bands, having extremely rare brass Grecian scroll handles. The top, having a useful inset handle, lifts off to allow the section below to be easily emptied and cleaned. That section has copper lined sections to hold the bottles and a lead lined section designed to be filled with ice to chill their contents.Wooden table coolers are much rarer than their silver or porcelain equivalents and far rarer than standalone wine coolers or cellarets. A virtually identical piece, quite possibly the pair to the present example, was sold by Christie''s in the Apter-Fredericks stock sale on the 19th of January 2021, making £17,500. Like the Apter-Fredericks piece, another aspect of the present example which makes it so unusual are the curving handles set into the side of the cooler. Usually table coolers have much simpler ring h...