What timber are they usually made from?

Mahogany, and by a wide margin. It's named in 274 of the 409 titles on Sellingantiques, and no other timber reaches a tenth of the total. Walnut is the next most common, including burr walnut. Oak, satinwood and painted examples make up a small remainder.

Which period turns up most often?

George III is the single most-invoked monarch, named in 62 titles. Georgian as a broad label appears in more again, and Regency close behind. George II, George IV and William IV each show up only a handful of times, and George I once. Victorian pieces are well represented and sit lower in the range.

How many come up for sale each year?

About 39 a year are listed on Sellingantiques. Across the archive, 137 different dealers have handled one. That works out at roughly a single example each, so almost nobody carries the form in depth.

Are breakfront examples common?

No. Breakfront appears in around 22 titles, roughly one in twenty, and library-scale pieces are scarcer still. Where they do appear they cluster hard toward the top of the range, and titles pairing both words are among the highest asks.

Do small or narrow ones exist?

They do, and they're commoner than the breakfront forms. Titles read small, narrow, slim, tall and narrow, diminutive, or of small proportions. Scale on its own doesn't decide the range. Small Regency examples sit low, small George III examples high.

Were any made outside Britain?

Very few. Single titles name French, American, Eastern European and Channel Island work, against a British archive of over four hundred. Regional British attribution is thin too. Scottish appears in three titles and nowhere else.

Home > Bookcases > Secretaire Bookcases > Page 2

Antique Secretaire Bookcases

95 items · page 2 of 6

← Page 2 of 6 →

A two-part case piece: a bookcase or cabinet top set over a chest or cupboard base, with one deep drawer whose front falls forward to give a writing surface over a fitted interior.