Australian Arts and Crafts Oak Pedestal, Early 20th Century

• Art and Crafts Movement - The Arts and Crafts movement began in Britain around 1880 and quickly spread across America and Europe. The Movement took its name from the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society, founded in London 1887. One of the most influential figures behind the Arts and Crafts movements was the designer and writer William Morris. The movement continued until about 1920 and was followed by the Art Deco movement.
• Oak - Native to Europe and England, oak has been used for joinery, furniture and building since the beginning of the medieval civilisation. It is a pale yellow in colour when freshly cut and darkens with age to a mid brown colour.
  
  Oak as a furniture timber was superceded by walnut in the 17th century, and in the 18th century by mahogany,
  
  Semi-fossilised bog oak is black in colour, and is found in peat bogs where the trees have fallen and been preserved from decay by the bog. It is used for jewellery and small carved trinkets.
  
  Pollard oak is taken from an oak that has been regularly pollarded, that is the upper branches have been removed at the top of the trunk, result that new branches would appear, and over time the top would become ball-like. . When harvested and sawn, the timber displays a continuous surface of knotty circles. The timber was scarce and expensive and was used in more expensive pieces of furniture in the Regency and Victorian periods.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• Griffin, Walter Burley (Australia) - furniture, designers and makers 20
• pedestals and columns, material - oak 46
• pedestals and columns, period or style - Arts & Crafts 13