A late 19th century mahogany campaign folding desk the…
click the photo to enlarge
A late 19th century mahogany campaign folding desk the rectangular body of compact proportions, opening in to two sections enclosing leather stationery compartments, a writing surface, an ivory letter opener and a brass ink well holder (inkwell missing), above folding, bowed supports, 55.5 x 77 x 58 cm (open)

You must be a subscriber, and be logged in to view price and dealer details.

Subscribe Now to view actual auction price for this item

When you subscribe, you have the option of setting the currency in which to display prices to $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

This item has been sold, and the description, image and price are for reference purposes only.
  • 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.
  • Campaign Furniture - Most of the campaign furniture on the market is associated with the time of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries when there was a high demand from military officers, administrators and colonists.

    Campaign furniture is demountable, through clever use of wooden screws and sometimes metal hinges, so that it can disassembled and then packed into lots of manageable size for ease of movement by ship or animal between postings or camps.
  • Ivory - Ivory is a hard white material that comes from the tusks of elephants, mammoth, walrus and boar, or from the teeth of hippopotamus and whales. The ivory from the African elephant is the most prized source of ivory. Although the mammoth is extinct, tusks are still being unearthed in Russia and offered for sale.

    Ivory has been used since the earliest times as a material for sculpture of small items, both in Europe and the east, principally China and Japan.

    In Asia ivory has been carved for netsuke, seals, okimono, card cases, fan supports, animals and other figures and even as carved tusks.

    In the last 200 years in Europe ivory has been used to carve figures, for elaborate tankards, snuff boxes, cane handles, embroidery and sewing accessories, in jewellery and as inlay on furniture. Its more practical uses include being used for billiard balls, buttons, and a veneers on the top of piano keys.

    The use and trade of elephant ivory have become controversial because they have contributed to Due to the decline in elephant populations because of the trade in ivory, the Asian elephant was placed on Appendix One of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), in 1975, and in January 1990, the African elephant was similarly listed. Under Appendix One, international trade in Asian or African elephant ivory between member countries is forbidden. Unlike trade in elephant tusks, trade in mammoth tusks is legal.

    Since the invention of plastics, there have been many attempts to create an artificial ivory
  • Proportions - Essentially, the size of the various parts of a piece of furniture in relation to the whole. Ideally, the proportions should be pleasing to the eye appearing neither top-heavy nor unbalanced and convenient for ordinary use.

This item has been included into following indexes:

Visually similar items

Coaching table: English walnut early to mid 19th century. Height 73 cm, width 76 cm, depth 36 cm

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

A fine swan pattern retangular cast iron and zinc top conservatory table, French, circa 1900, 70 cm high, 200 cm long, 80 cm deep

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

Kipp Stewart bedside by Drexel. C. 1960s walnut bedside table with single drawer and bottom shelf

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

A Victorian duet stool, the top upholstered with gros point trellis patterned tapestry, raised on X-frame legs joined by turned stretchers. Old repairs. 82 cm x 56 cm x 51 cm

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.