Walnut Partners Pedestal Desk by Maple & Co

A very good Edwardian period walnut partners pedestal desk by Maple and Co. of London. Of good construction in solid walnut and attractive walnut veneers, the top fitted with a sumptuous leather writing surface with gilt tooled decoration. One side with a series of 9 drawers , the reverse with a series of 3 drawers over a pair of cupboard doors. All fitted with their original solid brass hardware. The cupboard doors are lockable (key supplied). Offered for sale in very good condition, ready to go straight into the home or office. It splits into 3 sections for ease of installation. Maple & Co was established by John Maple, a shopkeeper from Horley, Surrey, who later opened a furniture shop in Tottenham Court Road. However it was his son, John Blundell Maple , who made Maples & Co a success. With exceptional business skills, John B. Maple took over the company while still a young man. By the 1880s they were the largest furniture store in the world, exported their fine furniture to every continent. Maples manufactured their luxury furniture entirely in-house, at a huge modern complex. A timber importer and furniture exporter, they landed prestigious contracts furnishing fine houses, hotels, embassies and palaces in Europe; among them Tsar Nicholas’s Winter Palace and the Hofburg Imperial Palace in Vienna . With his own empire established, John Blundell Maple achieved further fame in politics and horseracing – some lines, such as the Atherstoke antique cabinet, having racing connections in the titles. Never compromising on quality, Maples produced a huge catalogue of fine furniture, covering every avenue of interior design. A Maples & Co sale today would cover everything from Chippendale Revival antique dining chairs , to Aesthetic style carved oak dressers, to Art Nouveau tulip carved antique dining tables – all from the same catalogue. The exclusivity and high quality of craftsmanship of Maples’ antique cabinets, dining suites and bedroom furniture made them highly popular with Britain’s social elite. Today, they appeal to anyone who appreciates fine craftsmanship.