CHARLES I OAK CREDENCE TABLE
EARLY 17TH CENTURY
£5,500
Auction: 24 June 2014 at 13:00 BST
Description
the hinged oval drop-leaf top above a strapwork and boss carved frieze, on turned legs above an undertier, with block feet
Dimensions
106cm wide, 80cm high 52cm deep, unextended
Footnote
Provenance:
By family repute, from the home of Sir Francis Drake.
Note:
For a similar example, see Chinnery, Oak Furniture, p302, figure 3:203.
This is an example of the earliest forms of folding tables to be provided with a gate, now called 'gate leg' tables although this term was not in use in the 17th century. These were fitted with a gate and leaf on one side, so that they could be turned to side tables and pushed against a wall. In this example and in the one illustrated in Chinnery, the falling leaf is hung at the back and supported by the gate. In the Chinnery example, the rear leg and stretcher are split to form the gate, while in this example the legs are joined by an undertier. Underneath the top a finely decorated compartment can be found, with very similar carving in both examples.