Featured Writing desk – for the bonfire or worth saving?

Hello everyone,

My parents are clearing some stuff out of their house in preparation for some building work. Some of it is going into store while other items are going to be burnt. I took these photos basically before my mum took a sledgehammer to the piece. I asked her to give me a bit of time to at least check if it might be worth anything.

The item is a writing desk (I believe) which has been in our family for 100+ years. I would guess it is roughly 1.20m tall, 0.75m square at the top (sorry, I didn’t measure). It has a secret compartment at the top, and a pull-out writing pad which can be propped up for reading. There are drawers on one side and false drawers on the other.

By the way, that carpet you can see in some of the photos is also going to the bonfire. I’m pretty sure it is 150+ years old and came from the drawing room of quite a grand house. My mum assures me it isn’t worth anything. Any thoughts?

We’re in the UK.

Regards,
Mavota

 

Yes, I have thoughts. Please tell your mother for me, in the nicest possible way, to allow you do your due diligence before she consigns family items to the bonfire.

Debora

 

She's given me a week to get an answer! Unfortunately I live in a small apartment so I can't offer to rescue stuff.

 

Words fail me! Store it yourself until... Or put it in your bathroom, kitchen, behind a chair.

 

Don't overlook the books in piles behind. If you give us a list of titles, we can help you determine if any would have collector interest.

Debora

 

Do you think it might be worth saving then? The problem is they have probably 20+ pieces of antique furniture, several of which have been stored in a shed for the past 10 years. Some of these came from the “quite grand house” I mentioned which was in the family until 1918.

 

Ah, the books I am on to! I collect books myself, so it is the one thing I know a little about. My grandfather was a novelist, and he inherited a library from another writer with about 1500+ books dating from 1700s to 1940s. Many first editions of books published between 1890 and 1940. I’ve spent several weekends going through them and have found some letters from the authors, including the Nobel prize-winning François Mauriac.

 

Good. Glad you're on top of them.

Debora

 

If nothing else give it away but please do not burn it!

 

Welcome, Mavota. What part of the UK are you in? Other members in your area may have ideas for you.

 

Thanks Bakersgma. We're in Northern Ireland.

 

The carpet looks very worn, which hurts the value a lot, but I seriously doubt that it is worth nothing.

 

Your desk is called a davenport desk and certainly has some value. I looked through 25 pages of davenport desks sold at auction and did not find one with carving like yours. I did find this one, described as Italian, that is most similar in form. It sold for $325.00 US.

19th c. Italian Davenport desk, 36"h x 22"w x 22"d - Aug 16, 2016 | Bill Hood & Sons Art & Antique Auctions in FL (liveauctioneers.com)

Here is the link to over 35 pages of auction results if you would like to look further.

Search "davenport desk" (liveauctioneers.com)

 

Maybe offer it to a student. It looks like it might be perfect for a laptop.

 

I think my heart seized up at the word "axe" ! WHY wouldnt you just give the stuff away as opposed to burning it ???

 

Please tell Mom not to cremate the furniture.You say you have 10 or 20 more pieces like the desk ? If nobody buys antique furniture in your area, you might consider shooting some Pics to Dealers in Edinburgh,Glasgow or London.
Remember an antique may be worthless in your region (ask Brad abt this re the Midwest),but could be worth quite a bit several hundred miles away.
You wouldn't want Mum to toss 2 or 3 grand into the wee old bonfire ?

 

From the link above for comparison.

Debora

 

God,I wish Mom would open up a shop down the road from us-damn.

 

@ verybrad, thanks very much, that is perfect! It may not have the carving but the shape of that one is pretty much identical. I think ours did have the top trim too, but I fear it may already have gone to the fire.

I’ve already sent the link to the family WhatsApp, so there may be hope of saving it!

@ others, I don’t think my parents could get this down the stairs, hence the sledgehammer and the bonfire. I believe several carloads of stuff have already gone to the charity shop.

 

The balding patch you can see in the photos next to the desk is the only bad patch. I think that must have been where the door was in the house where it originally lay. The rest is in OK condition, though very faded. The whole carpet is about 8m x 5m.