Are brass galleries always later replacements?

Not usually. Many cabinetmakers offered cast brass galleries as an original option from the mid-eighteenth century onwards. They were more robust than timber fretwork. Some wooden galleries were replaced with metal when the timber snapped. You need to check the fixing holes under the rim. If there are empty dowel holes beside the brass pins, the metal is later.

I found a table with a solid raised wooden rim carved straight from the main top board, is this still classed as one?

Yes, dealers call these dish-top tables. They serve the same function as pierced gallery tables but rely on a solid carved lip to stop items sliding off. Carving a dish top involves wasting thick mahogany board just to leave the raised edge. It was an expensive technique, showing the original owner had plenty of money to spend on their tea equipage.

Why are the supporting legs so thin?

Thin legs followed the prevailing fashion for lighter drawing room furniture in the 1760s. Cabinetmakers used dense imported mahogany for the carcase. This strong timber bears heavy weights even when turned down to narrow dimensions.

My grandmother has one of these but the top board is warped and bowed, what causes a thick piece of timber to behave like that?

Central heating is the main cause. Solid timber tops dry out unevenly when placed near modern radiators. The wood fibres shrink and pull across the grain. Antique silver tables spent most of their lives in draughty rooms with higher humidity. The sudden shift to dry domestic environments stresses wide mahogany boards. Sometimes a restorer can introduce moisture back into the timber to flatten it. It requires patience and slow clamping.

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Antique Silver Tables

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These are small, elegant freestanding tables fitted with a raised gallery or rim around the top. They were built in the eighteenth century to securely hold and display a wealthy household's expensive silver tea service while protecting the pieces from sliding off.