Maple & Co. Inlaid Mahogany Tambour Cylinder Desk

A fine quality late Victorian period inlaid mahogany cylinder desk by Maple and Co of London. Of excellent construction in solid mahogany with attractive mahogany veneers. Decorated with inlaid stringing throughout. The super-structure with a series of 3 drawers. Sitting over a tambour , roll top which opens to reveal a fitted interior. With a pull-out writing surface fitted with a sumptuous green leather and a series of pigeon holes and stationary drawers fronted in attractive satinwood veneers. Beneath is an arrangement of 2 deep drawers flanking one long central drawer. All standing on elegant turned and reeded legs. This desk is finished to the rear so could be free standing within a room if desired. Offered for sale in excellent original condition.

Dimensions:

Width 93cms

Depth 57cms

Overall height 114cms

Height of writing surface 76cms

Maple & Co was established by John Maple, a shopkeeper from Horley, Surrey, who later opened a furniture shop in Tottenham Court Road. However it was his son, John Blundell Maple , who made Maples & Co a success. With exceptional business skills, John B. Maple took over the company while still a young man. By the 1880s they were the largest furniture store in the world, exported their fine furniture to every continent.

Maples manufactured their luxury furniture entirely in-house, at a huge modern complex. A timber importer and furniture exporter, they landed prestigious contracts furnishing fine houses, hotels, embassies and palaces in Europe; among them Tsar Nicholass Winter Palace and the Hofburg Imperial Palace in Vienna . With his own empire established, John Blundell Maple achieved further fame in politics and horseracing some lines, such as the Atherstoke antique cabinet, having racing connections in the titles.

Never compromising on quality, Maples produced a huge catalogue of fine furniture, covering every avenue of interior design. A Maples & Co sale today would cover everything from Chippendale Revival antique dining chairs , to Aesthetic style carved oak dressers, to Art Nouveau tulip carved antique dining tables all from the same catalogue.

The exclusivity and high quality of craftsmanship of Maples antique cabinets, dining suites and bedroom furniture made them highly popular with Britains social elite. Today, they appeal to anyone who appreciates fine craftsmanship.

Internal Ref:

18082

Date of manufacture : 1900