How many come up for sale each year?

Around ten Duchess dressing tables reach Sellingantiques in a year, drawn from a wide spread of dealers. Fifty-four separate dealers account for the 109 listings in the archive, close to one dealer for every two pieces. Almost nobody carries them in depth.

Which timber is most common?

Mahogany, and by a clear margin. It appears in 59 of the 109 titles, better than two to one against walnut at 25. Where walnut does appear it is usually the figured kind: 18 of those 25 titles say burr walnut. Oak, satinwood, satin birch and pine each show up in small numbers.

Are painted examples part of the category?

Yes, as a small but distinct strand. White painted Duchess tables, stencilled pine dressing chests and a satin birch stencilled chest all appear in the sample. They read low in the range next to the figured walnut and mahogany pieces. Painted pine dressing chests tend to take the chest-of-drawers form with a mirror above rather than the classic Duchess shape.

What does the dating on these listings mean?

Roughly half the category is dated by reign or century rather than to a decade. Forty-seven listings say only "Victorian" and nine only "19th Century". Where a year is given, the dealers' dating runs from 1850 to 1910, with the 1870s the busiest decade. Titles also carry qualifiers like Mid-Victorian, Late Victorian or c1880, which are approximations. The evidence carries nothing earlier than 1850.

Do pedestal and kneehole tables appear under this heading?

They do, occasionally. The sample includes a kneehole pedestal table, a Victorian walnut pedestal, a twin pedestal and a pine pedestal. These are built as two drawer stacks with a recessed centre, so the drawers sit either side of the sitter rather than in one shallow bank.

Is a maker's name usually attached?

Not in this archive. No cabinetmaker or retailer shows up often enough to count as a presence in the category. What does get attached is place. Two satinwood pieces carry a Scottish association, one of them retailed in Edinburgh, and both sit high in the sampled range.

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Antique Duchess Dressing Tables

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A Duchess dressing table is a Victorian bedroom table with a mirror carried on side supports above a low bank of small drawers, made for washing, dressing and keeping brushes and pins to hand.