Featured The Butler did, in fact, Do It

Hey All:

This is a fairly rare form, known as a butler's desk. I date it to ca. 1860. It has many elements in common with the Rococo Revival, including rosewood and curly maple woods, diamond dust mirrors below, hand-made dovetails, an s-curved shelf in the base, and most amazingly, a checkerboard-floored display space in the upper section comprised of squares of rosewood using alternately light and dark staining and done by hand! Wow! the labor and craftsmanship involved in creating this piece, and the perfection of its execution, are just amazing. It was found in New York, and IMO was made in the City.

Not only are the materials exquisite, but as said the craftsmanship is second to none. The fit and finish are as tight and true as they were 160 years ago. And the condition.....wow! It is a continuing mystery to me that pieces such as this still have little demand while flat pack sells.

If any of you can spy a piece of this type and appearance anywhere else, please let us know the particulars.

Cheers!!

Oh and BTW, the pocket watch belonged to a Grand Ghopper. It's of little monetary value, I'm afraid, but the sentimental value is high.

 

Very nice!!!

 

Have not seen the checkerboard pattern used like this in American furniture .... Exceptional!

 

Gorgeous piece, Hopps

 

Sweet, an' Magnificent...Thanks!

 

That is fabulous!
Does it have a pull-out or drop-down writing surface? The marble area doesn't look deep enough for such use and I thought anything called a "desk" should have a writing surface... and room for the writer's legs when sitting at it to write. But WDIK.
THIS looks like it's twin, complete with the same checkerboard! (Or were you the buyer?)

 

That's not sitting in Ghopperville, but if the watch is family the piece must be too. Never seen anything like that, but it's beautiful. (flat pack my a**!)

 

She's a beauty !!

 

No knee hole...'cause Butlers didn't sit. As Majordomo, him-fella was fairly omnipotent within the house, perhaps including as paymaster for other domestics, budget coordinator, interface with grocery, seafood, coal, ice, livery & feed for livestock & horses, tableware & crystal vendors, etc, etc...his need for the necessary paperwork to be available an' organized was essential. He may have had a chair in his personal cubbyhole...but it could have been a bed-sit.

 

Well done @bluumz !

That is not the one I bought, but it does indeed look like it’s twin.

The drawer pulls out from the front of the piece, then the drawer front folds down and voila! A large-ish writing surface. Most ingenious.

 

That's what I figured was going on. I've seen similar pull-outs on other pieces.

 

That is stunning. Now only if I had a butler!

 

How cool is that? The checkerboard feature is the cherry on top!

 

That does it, I need a butler. Also a Rhett Butler.