1920s Mahogany Tambour Filing Cabinet

• Circa - A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.
• Plinth - The square or rectangular base of a piece of cabinet furniture, often ornamented with moulding. The plinth may be separate, as in some wardrobes or presses, and act as the support for the carcase. In a false plinth, the moulded boards may be attached directly to the piece. Furniture with a plinth base usually does not have separate feet. The term derives from architecture where it denotes the base of a column or statue.
• Stile - A cabinetmaker's term that refers to the vertical end members of the framework in a panelled item of furniture. The vertical mid-members are known as muntins.
• Mahogany - Mahogany is a dense, close grained red-coloured timber from the West Indies and Central America. It was first imported into Europe in the the early 18th century and its use continued through the 19th century. It was popular for furniture making because of its strength, the wide boards available, the distinctive grain on some boards, termed flame mahogany and the rich warm colour of the timber when it was polished.. The "flame" was produced where a limb grew out from the trunk of the tree, and this timber was usually sliced into veneers for feature panels on doors, backs and cornices.
  
  Some terms used to describe mahogany relate to the country from which it originally came, such as "Cuban" mahogany, "Honduras" mahogany etc. However unless the wood has been tested the names assigned are more a selling feature, rather than a true indication of the timber's origin.
• Tambour - A form of folding shutter formed by narrow widths of wood with the flat side glued to canvas, and used on some writing desks, sideboards and other cabinets.
  
  The tambours may run vertically and enclose some stationery compartments, such as in a lady's writing desk. Or the tambours may run horizontally, such as in a Cutler desk, and form an enclosure for the whole of the writing surface.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• filing cabinets 33