Green Leather Inset Table
A green leather inset table brings a practical writing surface and classic colour to a room.
Green Leather Inset Table
A green leather inset table covers several forms designed for writing and study, including writing desks, library tables, and drum tables. These pieces appear most frequently from the Victorian period through the Edwardian era, alongside examples from the Regency and William IV periods.
The dominant forms are writing desks and writing tables fitted with drawers, often supported by twin pedestals or turned legs. Library tables and drum tables also feature prominently, offering circular or oval tops designed for central placement in a room.
Timbers vary across these pieces, with mahogany appearing most frequently alongside walnut, burr walnut, oak, and rosewood. Makers utilised these dense hardwoods to build sturdy writing furniture intended for daily study and correspondence.
Construction and Materials
Cabinet makers constructed these tables using solid hardwoods such as mahogany, oak, and walnut, often applying matched veneers like burr walnut onto secondary woods. Drawer linings typically utilise oak or mahogany, joined with hand-cut dovetails that show the work of nineteenth-century joinery.
The writing surfaces feature dyed leather inset into the timber top, frequently finished with gold-tooled borders around the perimeter. Brass handles, castors, and escutcheons complete the fittings, providing functional movement and hardware detail.
Some nineteenth-century writers kept their inkwells heavy so they would not spill when the carriage stopped.
Standards of Manufacture
The refinement of the timber and the depth of the carving separate standard examples from finer pieces. Select pieces display figured mahogany or burr walnut veneers with careful grain matching across the drawer fronts and top.
Hardware and secondary details indicate the standard of the workshop. Finely cast brass handles, smooth drawer actions, and crisp blind-tooled borders on the leather surface distinguish superior items from more plain utility desks.
Shapland and Petter of Barnstaple
The Green Leather Inset Table Glossary
- Drum table
- A circular library table with a deep top containing a ring of drawers, supported by a central pillar and tripod base.
- Partners desk
- A large double-sided desk designed for two people to work opposite each other, featuring drawers and cupboards on both faces.
- Pedestal desk
- A heavy desk with two supporting columns of drawers flanking a central kneehole space.
- Tooled leather
- Leather decorated with pressed gold leaf patterns or blind impressions around the inset edge of a writing surface.
- Dovetail
- A traditional wood joint formed by interlocking wedge-shaped fingers, used primarily in drawer construction.
Green Leather Inset Table: Frequently Asked Questions
What is a drum table?
A drum table is a circular library table featuring a deep top that incorporates multiple drawers around its circumference. It usually stands on a central column with spreading legs.
These tables were designed to sit in the centre of a library or study rather than against a wall, allowing access to the drawers from any side.
How do I date a writing table?
Dating a writing table involves examining the timber, construction methods, and overall style. Pieces from the Georgian and Regency periods tend to show lighter proportions and specific inlay patterns, while Victorian and Edwardian examples often employ heavier pedestals and darker hardwoods.
Interior drawer construction also helps determine age, as hand-cut dovetails typically precede machine-made joints found in later twentieth-century furniture.
What is a partners desk?
A partners desk is a large pedestal desk built with drawers and cupboards on both sides, allowing two people to sit and work opposite each other. These desks were traditionally used in offices, banks, and large libraries.
They appear in robust timbers such as mahogany and oak, often featuring large green leather writing surfaces across the top.
Where should I place a library table?
A library table is designed to stand freestanding in the middle of a room rather than pushed against a wall. Because the timber and finish extend around all sides, it functions well as a central desk or display surface.
Ensure there is adequate space to walk around the piece and pull out any accompanying chairs or desk seats.