Chippendale English Ebonized Wood Tea Table with Painted Top, 1930s

This elegant and distinctive Chippendale tea table is made of high-quality sapele wood, later ebonized. The rectangular top is shaped with a delicate and refined scalloped edge; it has a second convenient shelf at the bottom, also rectangular and scalloped, connected to the legs with sophisticatedly shaped stretchers. The legs have the classic soft “cabriole” shape. The tea table is very elegant but also austere; therefore, recently, a skilled painter hand-painted colorful and pleasing flower designs on the top surface. This addition does not detract from the importance and style of the tea table but lightens its seriousness and facilitates its inclusion in various domestic settings. Sapele, a prestigious reddish-colored wood similar to mahogany from equatorial Africa, was used in the construction of this tea table. This sought-after material has a tight texture and interwoven fibers, fine and uniform, with a good natural luster. It is a sturdy, rather flexible, hard, and compact type of wood, usually used for luxury furniture and cabinetry, but also for the interior decoration of yachts, as well as for sophisticated and expensive musical instruments. The tea table was handcrafted in the Chippendale style between 1920 and 1925 in a cabinetmaking workshop in the county of Devon, southeast England, a region also known for its woodworking. Toward the end of the 18th century, an English cabinetmaker named Thomas Chippendale created a series of furnishings characterized by a unique and sophisticated style, now known as Chippendale. It is one of the most famous styles that originated in England but quickly spread throughout Europe. The uniqueness of the Chippendale style mainly lies in its origin and the artistic influences that shaped its design. The maker of these furnishings incorporated the typically French aesthetics of Louis XV furniture and Rococo style, fabricating simplified “English-style” versions of them. Chippendale furniture, whether English or of other nationalities, is manufactured with the highest quality materials and techniques, thus proving durable and long-lasting.
In addition to being hand-painted as mentioned above, the tea table has been hand-restored by our team of craftsmen and is in excellent condition. Measurements: width 68 cm, depth 47 cm, height 73 cm.