Posted 6 years ago
AnythingOb…
(1778 items)
This table is sorta a 'family piece', having first belonged to one of my Aunts/Uncles, which my Mom/Dad then ended up with, such that I could in turn rescue it from their 'big downsize' last summer. Mom had used it mostly as a 'plant stand' during the years she had it, so its top was indeed looking pretty shabby with scratches and water damage to its finish. When I brought it home, it got rather unceremoniously dropped in front of my stereo shelf in the living room, then piled full of lots of the rest of the assorted 'smalls' which came home along with it (many of those now shown here already) until today, when I had a burst of motivation to reclaim some of my floorspace ;-) and so, after otherwise moving a bunch more other crap around/away, I found it a spot to sit next to the stereo shelf instead of in front of it. :-) ALSO took the opportunity to see what'd happen if I tried a quick application of "Old English Scratch Cover" [that's somebody's registered trademark, no doubt] to it which quite frankly ended up working MUCH better than I would have guessed it might -- certainly not 'restored to brand new' condition, but looking a *whole lot better* than I expected -- even, daresay, "presentable" again...?? (and considering how much work it'd be to take this thing apart to "refinish" it properly...I think I'm very happy with that??!! <lol>)
It stands 16" high on its 4 tapered legs w/brass tipped feet, and is 18" across. Both ends of its top consist of sections of slats which can be pulled 6" outwards from the center of the table, such that its overall width can be anywhere between 48" and 60".
There are no manufacturer's marks on it that I've been able to find, nor do I have any exact knowledge of how old it is -- but by its style there seems little doubt that it is a product of the 1950's-60's. Its wood is most likely mahogany, very typical of the period.
If anybody recognizes anything about it that'd help further date or ID it, please speak up! :-) :-) :-)
It's such a clever design, and lovely timber. Good job, such a handsome piece!
I've had a few of these in the past - here's what I know. For Knoll Furniture, George Nelson designed a slatted bench that was introduced in two sizes in 1946. It didn't take long for someone to figure out they could mesh together. By my understanding, that someone was John Keal of Brown-Saltman Furniture. By the early 1960s the design was being copied and sold by less high-end providers. There were probably Danish imports.
Your bench is not Knoll and probably not Brown-Saltman (they used mostly maple and their products were marked with a surprisingly durable decal). Beyond that, it may be difficult to determine a manufacurer, but a good example of a successful mid-century design.
THANK YOU so very much for your gracious comment racer4four -- and even moreso for sharing your very informative one artfoot!! <applause> I've gotta admit I would have doubts that this particular piece was actually intended to be a "bench" (though I have seen similarly designed ones) as it isn't really 'heavy duty' enough for that, but there's probably little doubt that's what its design is based on. My kind thanks also to:
racer4four
jscott0363
TassieDevil
Brunswick
fortapache
Anik
Ben
and
iggy
for stopping by and taking a moment to tap the <love it> button for me! :-) :-) :-) I'm pleased y'all like this table too, which also gives me a little boost of 'I knew I shouldn't let it go to the auction' confidence... <lol>