Rare Early 18th Century Irish Walnut Bureau

A George I Irish Bureau with an extraordinary interior, featuring a finely cut marquetry soldier to the central door, flanked by marquetry pilasters. The beautifully shaped stepped interior features twelve drawers in total. We were delighted to find this piece with such a fascinating interior, something we have not seen before on a bureau, nor had we seen a fall front with fielded panel veneered in matched Walnut and with double feather banding decoration. The piece has never been stripped and has good natural colour and patina that has built up over the years; there are historic repairs to the veneer work; feet and handles are replaced. A somewhat later Bureau with very similar marquetry soldier, again fitted to the interior door, is documented in the wonderful book: Irish Furniture by the Knight of Glin and James Peill. See the last image. Very similar marquetry pilasters can also be seen on Lady Louisa Conolly's monumental Bureau Cabinet at Castletown co Kildare, which is documented in the same book. 110cm high, 98cm wide, 56cm deep