Some magnificent pieces of furniture developed out of the humble chest. Today, collectors can chooser from many styles and forms.

No matter how luxurious or humble, a chest of drawers can trace its ancestry back to the simple top-opening chest (also called a coffer) — one of the oldest items of furniture. Other descendants include the chest-on-stand, tallboy (chest-on-chest) and bow-fronted and serpentine chests.

The simplicity and usefulness of the chest has meant almost constant production since its introduction, and the same is true of all types of chests of drawers since they first appeared in the mid-17th century. As a result, the range available — in both style and quality - is huge. But the temptation for a dealer to ‘improve’ a run-of-the-mill piece to get a better price means that buyers should check for signs of adaptation.

CHESTS

Most chests are made from oak, although examples in walnut, chestnut, elm and ash are not unusual. Chests can often be dated by their method of construction: surviving 13th century examples, for instance, are made of planks often simply nailed together and bound with iron. They are sometimes called boarded chests and are very rare.

Antique Collection

Those from the 15th century onwards have panels of wood held in a frame of upright stiles and cross members, with mortise-and-tenon joints held by pegs. Chests such as these were made in huge numbers throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, and can be distinguished from more modern imitations by the pegs used. Early chests have sharp-angled pegs; reproductions usually have circular ones.

Most Victorian Gothic and Elizabethan Revival pieces have the correct, panelled mortise-and-tenon construction but are generally over-carved; they sell for as little as £300-£500, while original 16th and r7th-century examples can cost £1500-£2500.

CHESTS OF DRAWERS

As antique chests of drawers still exist in large numbers, only the most unusual, or those of the highest quality, command high prices at auction. The best are well proportioned, made of quality timber, and still in original condition. Generally, smaller good-quality pieces tend to fetch more than large pieces, and those with a serpentine or bombe front more than plain examples. The most common exotic wood veneers — found only on the best pieces — are satinwood and to a lesser degree partridge wood, calamander and tulipwood.

Many chests of drawers have been adapted from their original form to increase their value, and 18th and early Ioth-century pieces are particularly prone to this. They may be cut down to a more desirable size, and it is not unusual to find a tallboy converted into two chests of drawers, or a chest-on-stand into a chest of drawers and a lowboy.

Pine was used for the construction of chests of drawers from the earliest examples, but it was rarely used in an unfinished state. Pine chests dating from the 18th-century are usually veneered in walnut, while loth- century examples were often painted. From the mid- 18th century onwards, unfinished pine was used only for cheaper pieces which were bought and used by the poorer sections of society. Although they are rare, painted Regency examples can be worth as much as £800-£1200 today, while ’stripped’ 19thcentury chests (found in abundance) usually change hands at auction for less than £300.

EARLY STYLES

Fully enclosed chests of drawers were already being made by the mid- 17th century, their drawer fronts generally decorated with geometric panels, and sometimes veneered in walnut or fruitwood. Rare examples in original condition fetch £1500.12500, while one with some repair or restoration, but still essentially period, would make only £700-£ 1000. Victorian copies from the end of the 19th century can fetch as little as £150-£250.

Late 17th-century chests of drawers, especially those from Holland, are noted for their surface decoration. The best are inlaid with ’seaweed’ and foliate marquetry, or veneered in strongly figured walnut. Walnut veneer is also a feature of early r8th-century Queen Anne chests of drawers, tallboys and chests-on-stands. Good 19th and 20thcentury copies are still desirable.

GEORGIAN TO VICTORIAN

The shape of a chest of drawers became more important than its surface decoration in the mid- 18th century. The creations of leading British cabinet-makers such as Thomas Chippendale, Mayhew & Ince and Vile & Cobb are among the very finest ever made, way beyond the pocket of most collectors at prices in six figures. Even good, late 19th century copies of these beautiful pieces are very expensive, as few were made.

Among the best-value reproduction pieces are those from the 19th-century firms of Maples, Edwards & Roberts, Howard & Son and Hampton, who produced fine chests in a variety of revival styles — including Jacobean, Georgian, Louis XV, Louis XVI, Regency, Empire, Biedermeier, and Arts and Crafts. These are excellent value today, as a plain example in pine may sell for as little as £100-£200 and a fancier piece for £600-£900. A maker’s stamp increases the price, especially that of Gillows, who made some of the finest reproduction chests of drawers.

BOMBE AND SERPENTINE FRONTS

Some of the most elaborate bombe chests of drawers seen today, known as commodes, were made in France during the reigns of Louis XV and XVI (1715-93). The magnificent, bulbous pieces produced by the royal cabinetmakers are now extremely valuable and have been repeatedly copied, mainly in the 19th century. Commodes often have a marble top, inlaid decoration and ormolu mounts.

The ormolu mounts are the most obvious guide to a piece’s quality. Good mounts are very bold, deep and heavy, and are finely chased with sharp details. Cheaper mounts tend to be flatter, more lightweight, blurred and imprecise. Some late 19th-century bombe commodes are themselves valuable, making £6000-£9000 at auction, while lesser examples fetch only £1000-£2000.

The majority of 19th-century bombe chests were made in France, Italy, Spain or Holland. Dutch examples are invariably of solid oak construction, with good-quality figured mahogany or walnut veneers, but many have had over-elaborate marquetry decoration added later. Such marquetry examples are very popular, however, and a good l0th-century marquetry piece can fetch £1500£2500 today. An 18th-century chest with later marquetry can fetch even more.

Some of the most popular serpentine chests drawers, which have a double-curved outline, are German walnut pieces dating Porn the late 18th century. These distinctive chests, often raised on bun feet, usually have a pine carcass covered with highly figured walnut veneer, further enhanced by banding that is often ebonised. They were imported into Britain in large numbers, and a good example will fetch £6000-£9000 today.

OTHER FORMS

The Wellington chest — tall and narrow, with drawers that could be locked— first appeared at the start of the 19th century. Such chests were very popular in the mid- l0th century and today a good one will fetch £2000-£3000. Portable campaign chests emerged around the same time, split into upper and lower sections. The distinctive handles are made of either brass or turned wood, and are inset to allow the chest to be stowed away neatly. Good campaign chests, some fitted with a secretaire drawer, will fetch anything up to £3000, although the many modern reproductions have very little resale value.

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