A centre table from c.1910-20, offered for £22,000 at Lorfords.
Little is known about the origin of this huge ebonised and ivory inlaid centre table c.1910-20.
Measuring 6ft 7in (2m) wide, it features a pattern of floral marquetry in ivory and retains its original ebonized surface.
The platform base and central column are inspired by Georgian furniture but the design of the surface seems to come from further afield.
It was almost certainly inspired by Indian designs in ebony inlaid with ivory which engaged British imaginations at the Great Exhibition of 1851. Such designs were further popularised by Owen Jones’ Grammar of Ornament published in 1856, and the table here seems to be in that taste. No paperwork is known relating to the production of the table, though it could have been made in India either for the English market or a colonial home.
There is no printed design source for the piece and it was therefore possibly bespoke and, given the craftsmanship and the size, would have been for a grand interior.
It is now at Lorfords, the decorative antiques collection in Gloucestershire, where it is offered for £22,000.
Separately, Lorfords is having a summer sale which can also be found online and runs until August 31.
