Huge Bespoke Handmade 17ft Floral Marquetry Burr Walnut Dining Table
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This is a bespoke handmade large dining table in the style of a Victorian dining table. It is crafted in burr walnut and features superb marquetry. Seating eighteen people in regal comfort, it is an extraordinary piece of furniture which will add splendour to any room.
Burr walnut has been used for centuries by the fine furniture makers due to its beautiful grain. This large dining table has been further embellished with superb inlaid marquetry decoration featuring urns, ribbons, flowers, vases and birds.
The gorgeous hand cut inlaid marquetry decoration is cut from different wood veneers of various colours. To highlight the superb artistry of the marquetry, as well as the natural grain of the wood, this large dining table has been expertly French polished by hand.
This exquisite large dining table has four leaves. The leaves can be added or removed to vary the length of the table using a special double winding mechanism. This gives the table wonderful flexibility enabling it to be adjusted to suit the occasion.
As a large dining table it needs extra stability so it stands on six finely carved legs which terminate with brass cap castors.
The set of chairs shown in the photos are NOT included in the price of the table, but can be ordered separately if required. For your convenience we have paired this table with a choice of suitable matching chairs - please follow this link to see examples.
Condition
As a new bespoke handmade large dining table, this item is in pristine condition.
The Making of this Marquetry Masterpiece
Please view our video showing this process.
Our bespoke marquetry large dining tables are made in our Italian workshop with the greatest care and attention to detail by our third generation master craftspeople.
Making a marquetry large dining table involves many phases and a great deal of skill and craftsmanship as you will discover when reading about the process below.
First the design of the marquetry is drawn on paper and then glued onto a sheet of plywood. The veneers are then attached to the underside with pins. The maximum number of sheets of veneer that can be worked with is sixteen, and in the case of this large dining table we used eight for the burr walnut and eight for the marquetry.
With a fret cutter and using a very fine blade, the marquetry shapes are cut out, using the burr walnut and various coloured veneers to compose the flowers, urns, birds, ribbons and other marquetry decoration. These days we use an electric fret cutter, although in the 18th and 19th centuries the cutters would have been operated by treadles.
The newly cut pieces of veneer are then placed on a large tray and singed by being placed in hot sand heated in a red hot crucible. A different shade is achieved for each veneer piece by varying how deep and how long it is left in the hot sand.
The various pieces of veneer are then hand-inserted into the burr walnut, piece by piece. They are taped in place and then when the full pattern is complete, the whole piece is turned over and a large piece of glued paper is placed over the whole design. The tape is then removed.
The solid mahogany table is then veneered with mahogany, twice on the underside (horizontally and vertically) and once on the top side.
After this, the prepared marquetry and burr walnut sheet is placed on top and the whole table top is put into a hot press, which glues the marquetry and burr walnut sheet to the large dining table top.
The backing paper is then sanded off and the table top is veneered four times to prevent the top from bowing or warping.
Once the assembly is complete, the table is French polished by hand using all-natural products, resulting in a truly wonderful bespoke masterpiece of marquetry.
About Burr Walnut
Nearly all walnut wood, when cut and polished displays a swirling figure. However, true burr is much rarer as it it made from unusual growth on the tree where hundreds of tiny branches have started to grow. Burr walnut produces some of the most beautifully complex wood figures that can be found in any type of wood and is prized in fine furniture making for this complexity. We have made great use of this wonderful wood in this bespoke handmade large dining table.
Marquetry
The technique of using inlaid wood veneers, silver, brass pewter and mother of pearl to create pictures and patterns was developed in the luxury cabinet making workshops of Flanders including Antwerp during the early 16th Century. The craft drew its inspiration from 16th Century Florence where craftsmen inlaid solid marble slabs with designs formed from fitted jaspers, semi-precious stones and other marbles.
Marquetry became all the rage in 17th Century France where the craft was imported to create furniture of unprecedented luxury by manufacturers such as Gobelins. Items of great splendour were created for Louis XIV’s various royal residences including Versailles. Early masters of the craft included the Fleming Pierre Golle who, together with his son-in-law Andre-Charles Boulle founded a dynasty of Parisian cabinet-makers who supplied the royal household and became famous for a type of marquetry that used brass and pewter to create intricate foliage designs.
Marquetry continues to be used in a range of fine furniture using modern designs and patterns. The skills required to produce marquetry designs, particularly those of earlier centuries are rare. We are very lucky to have the benefit of third generation skilled marquetry craftspeople in our Italian workshop enabling us to bring you this exquisite marquetry large dining table.
Winding Mechanism for extending tables
The invention of a screw expander mechanism was patented by Samuel Hawkins in 1861 and his business was taken over by Joseph Fitter in 1864. Based in Birmingham, England, Fitter expanded the use of the screw mechanism for extending tables as well as for piano stools and other applications.
French Polish
French polishing is a process of bringing wood surfaces to an exceptionally high gloss through the application of an alcohol and shellac polish. It requires a lot of patience and hard work, but the resulting finish is regarded as one of the finest available. French polished surfaces are soft and so stain easily (e.g. with a hot coffee cup) but being soft can also be repaired more easily. Stains can be removed and blended back into the French polished surface relatively easily in comparison to other, more modern, wood finishes e.g. varnish.
More Information and To View
You are very welcome to email us or call us using the with any questions you might have about this very large dining table. We would also be delighted to arrange a viewing of this table at our North London warehouse, just email or call for an appointment quoting our reference as shown above so we know which large dining table you are referring to.
Shipping, Delivery and Return
This is a very large dining table and requires careful packing and shipping. We can ship to any destination worldwide and will take care of the packing for you, but please do call or email for a quotation before purchasing the item so that we can fully discuss your requirements. We ship to any mainland UK address free of charge.
If you are not satisfied with the item we offer a 14-day money back guarantee in accordance with the Distance Selling Regulations. You will be responsible for the return shipping fees for this large dining table, unless we have erroneously described the item in some material way and you do not receive what you were expecting. You must return the item in its original packaging and condition.
You are also responsible for any customs duties or local taxes that fall due outside the European Union.
Dimensions in cm:
Height 82 x Width 499 x Depth 150 - when fully extended
Height 82 x Width 180 x Depth 150 - when fully closed
Dimensions in inches:
Height 2 feet, 8 inches x Width 16 feet, 4 inches x Depth 4 feet, 11 inches - when fully extended
Height 2 feet, 8 inches x Width 5 feet, 11 inches x Depth 4 feet, 11 inches - when fully closed
Angelica Kauffman, RA (1741 - 1807)
was a Swiss-born Austrian Neoclassical painter who had a successful career in London and Rome. Though born as "Kauffmann", Kauffman is the preferred spelling of her name in English; it is the form she herself used most in signing her correspondence, documents and paintings.
While Kauffman produced many types of art, she identified herself primarily as a history painter, an unusual designation for a woman artist in the 18th century. History painting, was considered the most elite and lucrative category in academic painting during this time period. Under the direction of Sir Joshua Reynolds, the Royal Academy made a strong effort to promote history painting to a native audience who were more interested in commissioning and buying portraits and landscapes.
Despite the popularity that Kauffman enjoyed in British society and her success as an artist, she was disappointed by the relative apathy that the British had towards history painting. Ultimately she left Britain for the continent, where history painting was better established, held in higher esteem and patronized.
The works of Angelica Kauffman have retained their reputation. By 1911, rooms decorated with her work were still to be seen in various quarters. At Hampton Court was a portrait of the duchess of Brunswick; in the National Portrait Gallery, a self-portrait. There were other pictures by her at Paris, at Dresden, in the Hermitage at St Petersburg, in the Alte Pinakothek atMunich, in Kadriorg Palace, Tallinn (Estonia).
Satinwood
is a hard and durable wood with a satinlike sheen, much used in cabinetmaking, especially in marquetry. It comes from two tropical trees of the family Rutaceae (rue family). East Indian or Ceylon satinwood is the yellowish or dark-brown heartwood of Chloroxylon swietenia.
The lustrous, fine-grained, usually figured wood is used for furniture, cabinetwork, veneers, and backs of brushes. West Indian satinwood, sometimes called yellow wood, is considered superior. It is the golden yellow, lustrous, even-grained wood found in the Florida Keys and the West Indies.
It has long been valued for furniture. It is also used for musical instruments, veneers, and other purposes. Satinwood is classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Sapindales, family Rutaceae.
Our reference: 08529
Please feel free to email or call us (+44 20 8809 9605) to arrange a viewing in our North London warehouse.
