Scriban de Port - Mahogany & Lemon tree - 18th Century

Rare scriban de port, marine furniture or marine furniture whose construction is inspired by the furniture and accessories intended to be embarked on ships, as evidenced by its dimensions.

Our port scriban is in the pure tradition of the furniture made at that time of the 18th century in Bordeaux. It combines the structure of a Bordeaux chest of drawers with a secretary with a violin flap, concealing a desk space composed of 6 drawers and 6 open spaces. Made of mahogany and lemon wood, it has a flared shape on 4 spindle feet with a very narrow frame (30 cm) covered with a pink marble plaque.
The front opens with 7 drawers, has a lock and gilt bronze handles.

Period : 18th century
Dimensions : Height : 129cm x Width : 115,5cm x Depth : 30cm 
 
In the 18th century, Bordeaux was an opulent city with a port open to the sea, which favoured trade with Africa and the West Indies. 
Bordeaux was home to shipowners, slave traders and great merchants who owned beautiful and sumptuously furnished mansions. 

The furniture was rich, exuberant, and made to look good.

It was with the trade in precious woods that solid mahogany furniture appeared in Bordeaux, a wood that came from Cuba and the West Indies. Cabinetmakers used it as well as guaiac, rosewood, rosewood, ebony, lemon wood, etc. 

These woods have the particularity of being solid and rot-proof
As exotic wood was very expensive, cabinetmakers sometimes used different types of wood to make a piece of furniture, exotic woods that they combined with more common woods such as walnut and cherry. 

The furniture was not stamped and it was sometimes difficult to differentiate it from that of other Atlantic ports which also used exotic woods.

The art of ironwork flourished in Bordeaux in the 18th century, and Bordeaux furniture features superb ironwork, polished steel locks that can be toggle, espagnolette or espagnolette.