What is a duchess dressing table?

It's a low table with drawers, carrying a mirror mounted on the back between scroll or column supports. On Sellingantiques the word appears in about a fifth of listings, most often paired with mahogany or walnut. Dealers spell it duchess and duchesse, and once Dutchess.

Which timbers turn up most?

Mahogany leads, named in 168 of 380 titles, more than walnut, pine and oak combined. Walnut is next in 88 titles, with burr walnut making up a good part of that. Pine appears in 31 titles and oak in a handful. Pale timbers run underneath as a quiet undercurrent: satinwood in 12 titles, plus satin birch, satin walnut, bird's-eye maple, Hungarian ash and pitch pine.

Why are shaving stands listed here?

Dealers put free-standing shaving stands and telescopic shaving mirrors in the same category as dressing tables, since both belong to Victorian bedroom grooming. The word shaving appears in 30 titles, with pole, tripod and brass forms among them. Adjustable and gentleman are the words that tend to travel with them.

How precisely are these pieces dated?

Loosely, for the most part. Of 380 listings, 191 simply say Victorian and another 33 say 19th Century, so over half carry no decade at all. Where a decade is given the weight falls mid-to-late: the 1860s lead, followed by the 1880s, 1850s and 1870s. Only 137 listings carry a clean year, and the field stretches from 1850 to 1930.

What separates a dressing chest from a dressing table?

A dressing chest is a full chest of drawers with a mirror above it. A dressing table proper has a lower base, whether on legs, pedestals or around a kneehole. The word chest appears in 44 titles and mirror in 48, which shows how often a piece under this heading is really a mirrored chest.

How many come up for sale?

Ninety-nine different dealers have listed Victorian dressing tables on Sellingantiques, with roughly forty-four coming to market in a year. That spread means the category covers everything from painted pine to exhibition-grade burr walnut and complete bedroom suites.