Antique Cupboard

ENGLISH CORNER CUPBOARDS
About 1690-1800
Mahogany corner cabinet with swan- neck cresting, chamfered sides and typical brass H-hinges
Thought to have been introduced from Holland, coinciding with the fashion for painted pine-panelled rooms, corner cupboards were used to store and display fine china, silver or other valuables in the drawing-room, Some could be hanging, above dado level, others are of double height. They generally disappeared from main reception rooms around 1750 (when the fashion for wallpaper replaced panelling) but were still made for other rooms and for country parlours until the end of the century, and have been popular reproduction pieces ever since.
STYLE AND APPEARANCE
Considerable variation throughout the century. Can be:
Simple mahogany bow-fronted corner (cupboard.
Hanging, with bow front: Mostly in japanned pine or walnut veneer. A pair of doors, their curve continuing on the side framing. Simple moulding above and below. Doors generally rebate together (to form continuous smooth curve) but sometimes narrow moulding conceals join.
Hanging, with flat front: Usually a single panelled door with chamfered framing at sides (this sometimes decorated with fluting or carved columns). Simple base, but bolder cor-
MATERIALS
Walnut and mahogany veneer on a pine (occasionally oak) base. Pine if painted or japanned. Country versions mostly in solid oak.
CONSTRUCTION
Right 18thC pine corner cupboard; left, reproduction Georgian-style mahogany corner cupboard.
nice; moulding, sometimes with frieze below. Occasionally a broken pediment. Door can have a shaped, and on country versions, fielded, panel, sometimes glazed, with or without glazing bars. Earliest versions evidently had a panel of mirror glass, seldom still in place.
Double-height: Mainly straight-fronted; occasionally bow-fronted. Initially made to match (and sometimes actually fitted into) wall panelling, with a join at dado level. Many therefore made of pine (once painted, now often stripped and waxed) with two panelled doors below, and two glazed or even open shelves above. The most desirable have a rounded barrel back, the half-domed top occasionally carved as a shell. The grandest have architectural mouldings (often with doors forming an arch bordered by broad carved pilasters).
Continuous plinth or bracket feet; the plainest (oak) country versions have plinth or stile feet.
Later veneered versions have bracket or, after 1780, ’swept’ feet, below plain, panelled base door(s). Upper door(s) panelled or glazed, the latter with decorative arrangements of glazing bars. Bolder, deeper moulded cornice than hanging types, sometimes frieze too. (If seen on a single hanging cupboard, this probably indicates there was once a base.)
On all types, interior shelves are nearly always curved and shaped. Both they and the backboards were fashionably painted, mostly blue or green, sometimes red or yellow.
LATER REPRODUCTIONS
This type of corner cabinet was popularly reproduced by the Edwardians, often with a dentil frieze (a feature of only some 18thC examples) on top of a glazed cabinet, and rather bright, yellow inlay or green-stained stringing, fans and conch shells. Also widely reproduced today –often veneered in yew or cheap mahogany – but frequently too narrow overall, with a tall, lower cupboard.
Framed construction with glued mortise-andtenon joints. Mitred joints and veneer on better quality. Many veneered all over. Tops rough, but under-side of hanging cabinets finished. Always locks, but generally no (or very simple wooden) catches. Invariably backed with unfinished planking.
Curved doors on bow fronts coopered (i.e. large number of verticals cut at slight angle and glued (or grooved and glued) together before being planed to a smooth surface.
Cornice and base mouldings similarly constructed.
Watch for marriages on double-height pieces; check for matching colour and grain of timber (both back and front); also for shape of interior shelves and matching lockplates and escutcheons. Blind doors may now be glued.
DECORATION
Principally figuring of timber. Occasionally simple inlay and stringing in late 18thC (and on Edwardian reproductions). Mahogany cross-banding and occasionally inlay (often star shapes) on country-made oak pieces.
japanning popular for early pieces, with chinoiserie decoration on a mainly black ground.
Hinges: Exterior H- or butterfly hinges until about 1760 (later on country versions). Decorative lock escutcheons.
FINISH
Varnish, followed by wax polish. japanning, paint (many now stripped and waxed).
RELATIVE VALUES
Popular, but seldom immensely valuable, items. Many hanging cupboards (especially country versions) priced in three figures. Good walnut veneer, a broken pediment or fine inlay will increase value considerably.
japanned examples –even when early – may seem surprisingly cheap unless in red, blue or yellow (cream) rather than the normal black. These are rare and may fetch five-figures.
Double-height cupboards are approximately double the value, but much more if early and architectural with a barrel back.

COURT CUPBOARDS WITH ENCLOSED SHELVES

About 1610-1800
Aprestigious item in the HOC, much less so in the 18thC, when it was only country-made. Used for displaying and storing food and plates, cups, in the hall (later in the parlour) where meals were taken. Originally made without locks, therefore not intended to contain valuable items. Earliest surviving examples date mostly from about 1650.
In Wales, called a deuddarn; a tridarn when a third stage is present.
STYLE AND APPEARANCE
Generally in two cupboarded sections, the upper cupboard shallower than the lower (providing a display shelf), with a projecting cornice and frieze. Until about 1630-1640 this was linked to the base by turned baluster supports (until approximately 1610 bulbous and carved, then plain and elongated); thereafter replaced by small pendant turnings. Frieze carved and sometimes surmounted by shallow moulding (often a later addition).
Upper section with two cupboards, typically enclosing a decorative central panel, behind which may be a secret shelved compartment. Lower section with ornamental frieze above variously panelled doors and, in the 18thC, a frieze of two (or three) short drawers. Plain panels at sides. Stile feet.
In the 17thC stiles, rails and muntins usually 18thC Welsh Oak tridarn fielded panels.
moulded; in the 18thC plain, with fielded and sometimes arched panels.
MATERIALS
Principally oak; sometimes walnut, elm, beech etc. (though survivals are rare). Holly, bog oak, boxwood, bone used for inlay; sometimes ebony and ivory.
OTHER CUPBOARDS
Various other joined and decoratively carved cupboards were made for- purposes. Some have areas of pierced carving to allow air to circulate inside. Often-mentioned types include: aumbries, hutches, livery, game or bacon cupboards.
Conformation and value vary considerably. Check construction, finishes and use of timbers to determine authenticity and date.
CONSTRUCTION
Framed and panelled with pegged mortiseand-tenon joints. Chamfered edges to panels. Turned supports and pendant dowelled into place. Backboards and top nailed on. Applied
A 17thC oak court cupboard with carved panels and fumed pendant.

COURT CUPBOARDS WITH OPEN SHELVES (BUFFETS)

About 1570-1680
Apiece of furniture derived from medieval prototypes, comprising a set of three open shelves, which in grand houses was draped with fabric or carpet and used to display plate, but in lesser homes could be used as a side-table. The names buffet, court cupboard, sideboard and dresser were seemingly inter-changeable.
STYLE AND APPEARANCE
Three shelves of equal size, each with a deep frieze; the top and middle shelf frieze are generally deeper than the lowest and often contain a drawer. Turned front supports, either continuous from top to bottom, form the corner framing, or are dowelled into separate framed shelves. Continuous rectangular stiles at the back, sometimes with simple carved mouldings. Feet formed as the square base of the continuous uprights or as the stiles of the lowest shelf framing; can be concealed by mitred base moulding. Sometimes panelled cupboard with central door and angled sides in the upper half.
Decoration of the shelf friezes seldom matches; the turnings of the supports may or may not be identical on the different layers.
MATERIALS
Principally oak; sometimes walnut, elm, beech etc. (though survivals rare). Holly, bog oak, boxwood, bone and imported ebony and ivory used for inlay.
CONSTRUCTION
Framed, with pegged mortise-and-tenon joints. Drawers (where present) rebated and nailed; grain running mostly back to front; run on side bearers. Supports may dowel into shelves above and below. Mouldings are usually carved out of solid wood, though on late examples may be glued on. Many buffets were originally made without a cornice moulding, with a planked top merely nailed to the frieze; cornice mouldings are often therefore a later ‘improvement’.
DECORATION
Principally carving; often elaborate, with guilloche, strapwork, gadrooning, S-scrolls and other repetitive motifs.
Occasionally grotesque figures and heraldic emblems. Heavy bulbous cup-and-cover turnings on supports, sometimes fantastic animals.
Some have additional inlay, particularly on cupboard doors, of floral designs (sometimes with birds) and black and white chequer patterns. The latter are common on bottom-shelf friezes.
FINISH
Originally varnish and/or wax polish. Should now have good patination (see p. 8).
RELATIVE VALUES
Early examples in original condition rare; fine, extensive carving and presence of inlay may push price into five figures; certainly in four.
VICTORIAN ALTERATIONS
Watch for Victorian carve-ups, which are quite common. Look for dark all-over stain (particularly seepage around joints), regular saw marks (made by machine saw), regularly shaped machine-cut pegs (or no pegs at all), the presence of round-headed nails or- screws, and discrepancies in quality and execution of carving between the various parts.
Cowl cupboard with carved cup-and-cover supports.

CORNER CUPBOARDS  hanging, straight-fronted
In plain Cuban mahogany, with decoration in the straight broken pediment with dentil moulding. c.1750
A simple glazed oak corner cupboard. The moulding has been brought forward at top and bottom to give a balanced finish. c.1780-1810
This well veneered walnut example with arched broken pediment and shaped top to the door is ideally suited for focusing attention on its contents. Note the clever use of the half-round beading line for this purpose.
c.1730
Typical of the little oak cupboards with a moulding round the edge which were set into walls.
Early 19th century
A simple country cherrywood example with a boldly executed fielded panel. Here colour and patination are all important to the price. 1740-1770
Inlays of white wood make this an impressive example, fine figure in the centre oval. c. 1880
With the frieze veneered in mahogany and three small drawers beneath, this is a little above the run of country pieces. Note wide price bracket. c. 1780-1810

CORNER CUPBOARDS free standing
This type of corner cupboard is much in demand and the supply of the better quality examples has never been plentiful. Prices are therefore constantly increasing. Beware of ‘marriages’ like 431.
A fine large architectural corner cupboard of a type that would have been built into the corners of large panelled rooms, often in pairs. The heavy moulding, pilasters and glazed windows make it a desirable piece. A shell carved in the back would help the price considerably. It happens to be American in tulipwood and is thus more expensive than the British equivalent. c.1780
A poor photograph of a deeply patinated built-in corner cupboard in oak with a large number of fielded panels cross-banded in yew. The candle slide in fact supports a triangular fold out section. Removed from Tideswell, Derbyshire. c.1750
Being much the same idea as the previous example but later and less well designed. The oak has been cut to produce decorative grain and the sides are reeded. c. 1780
A satinwood and marquetry corner cupboard typical of the well reproduced Victorian copies of earlier designs. The type of elegant furniture now much sought after for decorative effect. 1860s
Pine is often seen at its best in corner cupboards. Perhaps this is because pine panelling was extensively used in the early eighteenth century in even the best houses and corner cupboards were built-in. This has the attractive feature of the rounded barrel back coming forward at the top. Sometimes this is carved into a shell, a most desirable feature. Fine fretwork adds to the overall effect of quality. Well-waxed eighteenth century pine has a fine faded patination. This is a good example. c. 1760
A good quality mahogany example, it is relatively thin and elegant. The matched mahogany panels in the two base doors and the bracket feet with the outward kick all indicate quality. c.1790
A more typical mahogany example of the late eighteenth century, decorated with very refined dentil moulding and thin layer of yellow stringing lines in unimaginative geometric patterns. Note the stringing line on the edge of the top half: there is no decoration at all on the bottom half, which looks cruder. Examination of the back boards would probably prove the misalliance conclusively. Was the top originally a hanging corner cupboard c. 1780
Plain oak with mahogany cross-banding and undersize shell decorations inset into the doors which have conventional corner pieces as well. If it has an attractive inside, which is unlikely in view of its plain exterior, the doors might be removed. c. 1810
This quite exceptional piece was rightly described by the auctioneer who sold it as a ‘parlour cupboard’ but court cupboard suits it admirably. Noble heraldic lions support the superbly decorated top. The whole piece is so finely and crisply carved that the often misused word ‘important’ could fairly be applied. The melons with their cotton reels at the top and bottom, even the decorated shapes below, are precisely spaced and exactly executed. c.1570

CORNER CUPBOARDS hanging, bow-fronted
The hanging corner cupboard remained in favour throughout the eighteenth century, but as it was not so suitable as the large free standing example for the display of china, it was not in demand by the wealthy, and hence prices have been fairly modest but are now rising as they come into fashion. The bow-fronted are normally preferred and are especially desirable when they have drawers fitted.
Modest quality lacquered example with the butterfly hinges typical of the period. As with most examples painted dull red (sometimes blue) inside.
A plain mahogany example enlivened by a stronger than usual moulding with dentil decoration. The matched veneers have been carefully chosen to the maximum effect of the grain. Typical H hinges and matching keyplates, one false.
c. 1770-1780. But with fine matching grain and say a decorative top

Corner cupboard

Corner cupboards would appear to be of Dutch origin, made by cabinet-makers who, until the eighteenth century, were far more skilled than their English counterparts. The earliest corner cupboards made in England would seem to be early eighteenth century, when the difficulty of making bow-fronts was made simpler with the use of pine for ‘lacquering’ or `japanning’. Pine is far more amenable to shaping than a hard wood.
Queen Anne walnut hanging corner cupboards were triangular, and usually blockfronted, with prettily shaped shelves inside, although some were made with Vauxhall mirrored glass. It is unlikely that many of this period were made with glass doors and glazing bars. Small, bow-fronted, walnut veneer hanging corner cupboards with very simple moulding were made almost throughout the eighteenth century  a neat, space-saving cabinet to hold treasured pieces, opened proudly to show the elegantly shaped shelves.
During the Georgian period, corner cupboards were designed as part of panelled rooms, of double height with the break on a line with the dado panelling and decorated with simple Greek key or dentil moulding to accord with the architecture.
By the end of the eighteenth century, corner cupboards hadbeen relegated to libraries, or were made as storage cupboards for many corners in the house, usually of double-height with glass doors in the top half and block-fronted panelled doors in the base. The most likely reason for their swift departure from important reception rooms was the use of wallpaper and the end of panelling from the mid-eighteenth century onwards.
Signs of authenticity
1. On bow-fronted corner cupboards, the curve continues to the side frame in matching wood or veneer.
2. H-hinges, cockshead hinges or butterfly hinges on outsides of doors until c.1760 and much later in many country pieces.
3. Mitred corners to finest flat-fronted doors with chamfered panels.
4. Bow-fronted doors made up of narrow (4 in) planks, joined with tongue and groove, as with match-boarding.
5. Shelves with serpentine or curving shapes.
6. Signs of original paint eighteenth-century red, green, yellow or blue  in the graining of the back planking and on the edges of back planks where they have shrunk with age.
7. Underside of base in genuine hanging corner cupboards polished, well-finished, visible from below.
8. Tops of both double height and hanging corner cupboards unfinished behind raised moulding.
9. Double-doored bow-fronted veneered cupboards from c.1720  no English single bow-fronted doors except occasional rare japanned ones on pine.
10. Escutcheons placed exactly halfway from top and bottom on hanging corner cupboards with double doors  half-round or reeded astragal moulding on the join.
Likely restoration and repair
11. Underside of bases
unfinished or recently planed and stained, indicates it was originally the top of a double-height piece.
12. Heavy rim moulding without outward flare to top of hanging corner cupboard, often on double-doored bow-fronts: indicates it was originally the base of a double-height piece.
13. Glazing bars or plain glass doors on walnut veneered piece means the original blockfront or Vauxhall mirrored glass has probably been replaced.
14. Back planking of even width, rough and identical in thickness: backs added to originally built in piece, or made at much later date.
Construction and materials
To all intents and purposes, corner cupboards consisted of a facade and a frame. There are exceptions, and some double-height corner cupboards were built with barrel backs from c.1740. But in the main, corner cupboards were built as an integral part of a room, at least until panelling at first sunk to a dado and was then completely ousted by wallpaper around 1750 the beginning of the Chippendale period. From that date the height of tall corner cupboards was no longer dictated by the height of the panelling or the dado and, for a short period, elegant mahogany corner cupboards were raised on bracket feet. Bow-fronted designs curved to the wall, the frames continuing the curve. Flat-fronted corner cupboards had chamfered sides, often decorated in the same manner as tallboys, bureau-bookcases and secretaires of the same period, with fluted columns often running up to an arched or broken pediment, with airy glazed doors displaying ‘cabinet pieces’ of fine porcelain.
Even by splitting the door into two, the curved surfaces could not be cut, as with serpentine-fronted
chests of drawers, from a single piece of timber. They were built up from narrow planks joined with tongue and groove, and then veneered in finely matched mahogany. Smaller hanging corner cupboards made earlier in the century on the same principle were quarter-veneered to prevent lifting and surrounded with featherbanding or cross-cut veneer inlay. Oak hanging corner cupboards remained traditional in design, harking back a century to fielded panels.
There is one common denominator in this multiplicity of design: corner cupboards were always backed with unfinished wood, even when made as freestanding pieces. It is rare to find a corner cupboard of any age without shaped shelves, and almost without exception the interiors, and often the exteriors too, were originally painted. Many early hanging corner cupboards were difficult to secure firmly to walls because of their weight. This is because they were originally made to be partially supported by the jutting top edge of
panelled dadoes.
Variations
H-hinges, butterfly hinges and cockshead hinges were used in country pieces long after they had been replaced by less visible ones in grander pieces. Corner cupboards were made in a variety of country woods: walnut, fruitwood, and occasionally yew wood, but mainly in oak. Few double-height pieces were made, and bow-fronted country hanging corner cupboards are rare because of the difficult construction. The most traditional shape is flat-fronted with a plain, arched or cupid’s bow fielded, chamfered panel, showing
some good figuring or grain where the wood was split or quarter-sawn. Few country pieces have bolts or slides to hold the left-hand door closed  these date from the nineteenth century, before which there was often no catch at all, or only a clumsy wooden one.
Above: Georgian pine corner cupboard which, originally, was probably painted.
Reproductions
Nineteenth century
The most common reproductions of hanging country oak corner cupboards were made during the Victorian period, from artificially seasoned or partly seasoned timber, more coarsely grained and showing dark lines on the grain where the half-seasoned wood has discoloured. Both double-height and hanging corner cupboards were made, flat fronted, often with straight rather than mitred joins to door frames, and machine-cut chamfering of even width and depth to central fielded panels. Bow-fronted hanging cupboards were also made in reddish-coloured nineteenth-century walnut which darkens with age to a mahogany colour, with well-reproduced copies of original hinges and escutcheons.
Reproductions of ‘lacquered’ bow-fronted cupboards were also made in the second half of the nineteenth century, rather brightly painted in imitation of Angelica Kaufmann’s style, on carcases of soft American pine, often the victims of stripping in recent years. Most common in the last 50 years are ‘Georgian’, arched, double-height corner cupboards in pine, with glazed doors and applied glazing bars, good copies of the original except for the proportions which usually have higher base cupboards.
Price bands
Queen Anne walnut veneer of the highest quality, $2,000.
Georgian pine, double height, of excellent quality, $800-1,200.
Georgian pine, lesser quality, 1500 750.
Georgian oak, double height, $1,000-1,500,
Early Georgian, bow front, double height, $1,200-1,500.
Hanging corner cupboard, eighteenth century,
350-650.