Why are presses and wardrobes listed together?

The two forms merged in use. As hanging space became the norm through the nineteenth century, presses were made or adapted with rails, and dealers title the results both ways. On Sellingantiques the category sits inside wardrobes, so listings run from true trayed presses through press/wardrobe hybrids to full-height hanging wardrobes and armoires.

What timber are most of them?

Mahogany appears in 139 of 292 titles, so it is the timber you will meet most often, particularly in the Georgian to Victorian press proper. Pine follows at 41 titles, then walnut at 27 and oak. Satinwood, maple, satin birch, rosewood and golden ash turn up in smaller numbers.

How common are original sliding trays?

Uncommon in the record. Only a handful of titles specify them, and one counts five internal trays. Interiors generally go undescribed in titles, so trays and rails are noted when they are a selling point rather than as a matter of course.

Are French armoires part of this category?

Yes. Armoire appears in 25 titles and French in 24, covering oak and carved walnut Breton examples among others. Continental pieces are the scarcer origins overall, with single Dutch, Hungarian, Burgundian, Grunderzeit and Channel Islands examples against a mostly English field.

How many come up for sale each year?

Around sixteen a year on Sellingantiques, spread very widely. Ninety-nine different dealers have listed one. That pattern says something about the category: almost nobody specialises in linen presses, but most dealers handle one sooner or later.

What sits at the top of the range?

Figured veneer with an elaborate case. Breakfront fronts, swan-neck pediments, marquetry and original painted country-house surfaces cluster at the higher end, as do named London and Lancaster pieces. Pairs are the outlier above that, and one burr walnut wardrobe with castle provenance, sold with its dressing table, stands at the very top.

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Antique Linen Presses

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A linen press is a two-part case piece: panelled cupboard doors above a chest of drawers, the upper section originally fitted with sliding trays for folded household linen.