Large Edwardian Mahogany Chest By Jas Shoolbred

A very good Edwardian period mahogany chest of drawers by Jas Shoolbred & Co of London. Whilst not bearing the makers retail label we are sure that is made by Shoolbred and it also bears appropriate registration marks. Of very good construction in solid mahogany , with mahogany drawer linings. With a useful arrangement of 8 drawers, all fitted with their original solid brass handles. The bottom "deep" drawer extends into the plinth thereby providing maximum storage capacity. Cleaned and waxed in our workshops. Now offered for sale in excellent original condition. A few minor historical marks to the top do not detract from its appearance. It has a good colour and patina, ready to go straight into the home.

Dimensions:
Width 121cms
Depth 55cms
Height 119cms

James Shoolbred & Co
The name of James Shoolbred & Co is highly respected among admirers of Aesthetic Movement furniture. Their antique desks, Victorian dining chairs and antique marquetry furniture were produced for wealthy households up to 1931. A particularly fine example of James Shoolbred antique marquetry furniture – an ornate piano by designer Henry Batley – is on display at the V & A museum, London.

Established in the 1820s, James Shoolbred’s Tottenham Court Road company began life as a drapers. It began supplying textiles to the furniture trade, and expanded into the stores either side, branching into interior design. By the 1870s, the company was designing and manufacturing its own furniture.

A major factor of James Shoolbred’s success was their detailed catalogues, which were published from around 1873. Configured to showcase the company’s designs beyond the confines of London, they made Shoolbred an overnight success. 

In the 1880s the firm moved to larger premises. Imaginatively laid out, with detailed room schemes showing off the company’s latest furniture and textile designs, it became an unmitigated success.

Although James Shoolbred & Co specialised in furniture of the Aesthetic Movement they encompassed all the fashionable trends of the time, from the motifs and patterns of Japanese design in their antique marquetry furniture, to Art Nouveau and gothic influences in their antique desks and Victorian dining chairs.