A C19th oak low press cupboard or ‘Carmarthen Coffer’.
Cupboard section with twin ogee arched panels to the doors, flanked by decorative reel turned pilasters, and single shelves interior.
Drawer section below with a configuration of three larger and two smaller drawers, raised on bracket feet (rudimentary but functional repair to one foot).
Bone escutcheons, turned knob handles and complete with its original working key.
As Richard Bebb notes in his work ‘Welsh Furniture, 1250-1950’ this distinctive type of press or ‘coffer’ was first produced in the Teifi Valley from about 1770 as an alternative to the traditional lidded coffer.
Adapted over time as taller, two section pieces, the design proved extremely popular in the Carmarthen locality but doesn’t seem to have spread much beyond, despite their continued production well into the C19th.
Welsh, Teifi Valley, c1820.
For similar examples see ‘Welsh Furniture 1250-1950’ by Richard Bebb, figs 1183 and 1185.
Measurements: H: 57.5” (146cm); W: 54” (137cm); D: 20.5” (52cm).