Atropos Antiques has dated this piece to the 1910s.
Captain vivian hewitt flew single handed in an aircraft constructed by himself, to ireland, in 1912. It is often stated that he made the first such flight but there is some debate over this. He came from a very wealthy background but was a true eccentric and fearless character.
He collected a fine collection of british lepidoptera and was a keen oologist.
This twenty drawer cabinet was almost certainly made especially for him and to his design and requirements. It is fitted with good quality nickel or silver plated furniture and the lock is a very fine product of the chubb company. The lock still retains both of it's original keys.
This cabinet was designed to house either eggs or medals. The drawers are quite shallow (an inch of usable depth) and lend themselves very much to the housing of a medal collection or a multitude of other collectables that can be accommodated in drawers of this type. The drawers could be papered or lined with velvet or baize. There is a useful central slide provided for examining or working on the collection
I am restricted here to five pictures but have taken many more and am happy to send these to interested clients. The transport of cabinets is a speciality of mine and I encourage interested parties to contact me with their requirements.
Dimensions.
Height. 47 inches.
Width. 27 inches,
Front to back. 22 inches.
Drawers.
Width. 23.75 inches.
Front to back. 18.75 inches.
Overall depth. 1.5 inches.
Usable internal depth. 1 inch.
Construction.
Mahogany with nickel or silver plated fittings. Chubb lock with both original keys.
Atropos Antiques has dated this piece to the 1910s.
You can view the stock and full dealer information on the Atropos Antiques Profile Page
Fine Mahogany 20 Drawer Collectors Cabinet with Slide.
