French Marquetry Chest with Brass Gallery and Marble Top

• Marquetry - In marquetry inlay, contrasting woods, and other materials such as ivory, shell and metal are inlaid either as panels or in a single continuous sheet over the surface of the piece. The design may be straightforward, such as a shell pattern or a basket of flowers, or it may be infinitely complex, with swirling tendrils of leaves, flowers and foliage, such as one finds, for example, in the "seaweed" patterns on longcase clocks of the William and Mary and Queen Anne periods.
• Gallery - On furniture, a gallery is a small upright section, frequently pierced and decorated, around the tops of small items of furniture, such as davenports, side tables, and so forth. Galleries are made in brass or bronze,and be fretted, pierced or solid timber. A three-quarter gallery is one that surrounds three of the four sides of a table, desk or other top.
• Pierced Decoration - Ornamental woodwork with part of the background cut through and removed to produce an open-work pattern.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• chests of drawers, period - Victorian 1,160
• chests of drawers, style
  • marquetry 212
  • three drawer 302
• commodes and chests, timber - kingwood 149