How many drawers does a Wellington chest have?

Drawer counts named in titles run from four to twelve, and seven is by far the most common. At the upper end, ten- and twelve-drawer chests and the wider double form are among the largest pieces in the archive.

What timber are they usually made from?

Mahogany leads, named in 223 of 590 titles, with walnut second at 131 and oak accounting for about one in nine. Beyond those the archive turns up rosewood, satinwood, satin birch, pollard oak, birds-eye maple, yew, ash, olive wood, teak, pine and deal.

What is a secretaire Wellington chest?

One of the drawers has a hinged front that falls forward to give a writing surface. Sampled titles also describe fall-front, locking flap and cupboard variants. About one in fourteen titles carries the word, and those chests appear repeatedly in the upper part of the range.

Why are so many listed simply as Victorian?

Just over half the archive is dated to a reign or a century rather than a decade: 196 listings say only "Victorian" and 126 only "19th Century". Where decades are given they cluster on the 1860s, 1880s and 1870s. The dated field runs 1800 to 1930 and works better as a rough sort than a precise date.

Are miniature Wellington chests a real form?

Yes. Miniature, table-top, specimen and collectors' chests recur as a small but persistent group, and one sampled piece is described as an apprentice piece outright. They were made to stand on furniture rather than the floor, with many shallow drawers suited to a collection.

How often do they come up for sale?

About sixty Wellington chests come to market on Sellingantiques in a year. They have been listed by 143 different dealers, so the form is spread thinly across the trade rather than being the speciality of a few.

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Antique Wellington Chest

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A tall, narrow chest of graduated drawers with a hinged pilaster down one side that locks the whole stack at once, made in 19th-century Britain for storing papers, coins, minerals and other collections in a small floor space.