Appendix?D? Overview?of?Drawer? Construction? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE?IN?ENGLAND?AND?FRANCE? DURING?THE?AGE?OF?ELEGANCE? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?525? ? On?the?cover:?? ? o Chippendales?Director?as?from?Gilbert,?C.,?The?Life?and?Works?of?Thomas? Chippendale,?Studio?Vista/Christies,?London,?1978,?p.?228.? o ? o Roubo,?A.,?Trait??Th?orique?et?Pratique?de?L'?b?nistes?D'apr?s?Roubo,?Ch?Juliot??? Librairie?Artistique,?Paris,?1884,?Plate?276.??? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?526? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction?? ? The?purpose?of?this?section?is?to?report?the?detailed?drawer?constructions?of?the?pieces?that?were? explored?for?this?thesis.??The?objective?being?to?demonstrate?the?approach?that?each?of?these?two? cabinetmakers?took?toward?making?the?drawers?for?these?examples?of?case?furniture.??It?will?be?shown? that?each?of?these?furniture?makers?took?a?very?distinctive?approach?to?making?the?drawers?and?thus? their?approach?becomes?an?approach?to?identifying?each?workshop?s?furniture.??Each?piece?of?furniture? will?have?a?section?in?which?its?drawers?are?discussed?and?shown.??For?each?piece,?the?number?and? location?of?the?drawers?will?be?shown?and?at?least?three?pictures?will?usually?be?presented?for?each? drawer.??The?first?will?show?the?location?of?the?drawer.??This?is?usually?a?picture?of?the?piece?of?furniture? focusing?in?on?the?area?where?the?drawer?emanates.??The?second?picture?will?be?the?front?dovetails,? while?the?next?picture?will?be?of?the?back?dovetails.???The?following?pictures?will?either?be?of?the?back?or? the?bottom?of?the?drawer,?however?in?both?cases?it?is?to?present?how?the?bottom?is?attached?to?the? drawer?and?to?show?any?additions?that?are?made?to?the?bottom?of?the?drawer.??? ? In?support?of?this?section?are?two?follow?up?documents.??The?first?is?an?overview?of?other?drawer? related?construction?reports?showing?how?the?drawer?cavities?were?constructed,?the?locks?that?were? used?to?close?the?drawers,?etc.??This?is?labelled?as?Appendix?E.??The?other?document?is?a?database,? which?provides?the?detailed?measurements?for?the?pieces?of?furniture?as?well?as?the?drawers.??This?is?in? Appendix?F?starting?on?p.?600.????? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?527? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Picture/Brief?Description?of?Chippendale?Ladies?Secretaire ? ????This?piece?has?a?total?of?12?drawers.??One?is?a?large?drawer?located?at?the? top,?just?underneath?the?crown?of?this?secr?taire.??The?remaining?11? drawers?are?all?located?within?the?working?area?behind?the?fall?front.??The? lower?section?does?not?have?any?drawers,?currently?it?only?three?shelves.?? As?will?be?shown?in?a?later?section,?this?piece?did?originally?have?drawers,? but?they?have?been?removed.??? ? ?????Counter?to?Chippendale?s?Library?tables,?these?drawers?are?not?always? made?of?oak?with?mahogany?fronts.??In?fact?the?top?drawer?has?sides,? front,?back?and?bottom?is?made?of?mahogany?while?the?strip?of?wood?used? as?runners?on?the?bottom?of?the?drawer?is?still?made?of?oak.???? ? ?????There?used?to?be?three?drawers?in?the?lower?section,?however,?at?this?time? they?have?been?removed?leaving?three?shelves.?? Location:??Top?Drawer? ? ?????As?noted?above?the?wood?that?was?used?for?this?drawer?is?primarily? mahogany?with?only?oak?used?for?the?runners?at?the?bottom?of?the?drawer.?? The?front?is?a?lapped?dovetail?while?those?on?the?back?are?through? dovetails.??Furthermore,?the?front?dovetails?are?very?long?and?slender??(See? the?picture?in?the?lower?left?panel)?while?the?back?dovetails?are?short?and? thick?(See?the?pictures?in?centre???below.??Note:??the?exact?measurements? for?the?dovetails?are?given?in?the?detailed?tables???Also?at?the?back?is?a? small?angular?cut?in?the?wood?at?the?bottom?of?each?side.??? ? ????The?bottom?is?laid?into?a?rebate?on?the?sides?and?held?in?place?with?a?strip? of?wood,?which?also?serves?as?a?runner?for?the?drawer?(See?the?pictures?on? the?lower?right).??? ? ????The?front?of?the?drawer?is?covered?with?a?veneer?of?satinwood,?boxwood? and?other?dyed?woods?in?marquetry?patterns?that?is?consistent?with?the? rest?of?the?secr?taire.?? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?528? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Location:??Behind?the?Drop?Front? ? ????As?with?the?top?drawer,?the?main?components?of?these?11?drawers?are? made?with?mahogany.??In?this?case,?however,?the?runners?are?also?made?of? mahogany.??? ? ????Although?it?is?difficult?to?see,?the?front?and?back?dovetails?are?consistent? with?the?larger?drawer?as?well?as?the?drawers?seen?on?other?Chippendale? pieces.??? ? ????The?front?dovetails?are?long?slender?lapped?dovetail?(See?the?picture?in?the? lower?left?hand?picture)?and?the?back?is?short,?relatively?thick?through? dovetail??(See?the?picture?in?the?centre???below).??Also?consistent?with? other?pieces,?the?bottom?is?inserted?into?a?rebate?and?small?strips?of?wood? are?attached?to?the?bottom?with?small?steel?pins?(See?the?picture?on?the? lower?right).??? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?529? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Picture/Brief?Description?of?Wallace?Collection?Secr?taire???Abattant ? ????This?piece?is?very?similar?to?the?piece?that?is?currently?in?Waddesdon?Manor? in?the?number?and?allocation?of?drawers???but?are?not?exactly?the?same.??In? this?pieces?there?are?a?total?there?are?11?drawers.??Like?the?Waddesdon? Manor?secr?taire,?there?is?one?in?the?top?that?extends?all?the?way?across?the? front?of?the?piece;?the?next?6?are?in?the?work?area,?behind?the?abattant,?and? 2?secret?drawers,?also?behind?the?fall?front.??In?the?lower?section,?both?The? Wallace?Collection?and?Waddesdon?Manor?secr?taire?have?two?drawers?and? the?safe?that?looks?like?two?additional?drawers.??? ? ????The?difference?between?the?two?is?in?the?three?drawers?that?are?at?the?top? of?this?lower?section?in?the?piece?at?Waddesdon?Manor.??Instead,?this?piece? has?additional?shelf?space.?? Location:??Top?Drawer?? ? ???This?drawer?is?typical?of?the?top?drawer?in?other?Riesener?secr?taires,?It? extents?all?the?way?across?the?piece?of?furniture.?It?was?decorated?with?a? circular?acanthus?leaf?design?in?ormolu;?The?centre?was?decorated?with?a? man?s?face,?which?is?described?as?Hercules?in?the?garde?meuble?listings.?? Handles?for?opening?the?drawer?are?hidden?in?the?ormolu.??This?is?a?frequent? device?used?by?Riesener?s?workshops.??It?is?interesting?to?note?that?on? Chippendale?s?secr?taire?he?used?the?key?to?open?this?drawer.??On? Riesener?s?secretaries?the?top?draw?was?locked?using?the?same?lock?as? located?on?the?fall?front.?(This?is?discussed?and?shown?in?more?detail?later? ? ????These?drawers?were?constructed?out?of?oak?on?the?sides,?back,?and?bottom.?? The?front?was?made?of?mahogany?and?was?veneered?with?tulipwood.? ? ????The?top?drawer,?in?this?case,?did?not?have?exposed?dovetails?in?the?front.?? This?was?because?the?edge?of?the?front?drawer?extended?beyond?the?body?of? the?drawer?and?was?veneered?on?all?four?sides?(See?the?picture?in?the?left? panel?on?the?next?page).??This?particular?attribute?is?not?consistent?across?all? Riesener?pieces.????As?a?result,?the?sides?connected?to?the?front?(probably)? with?the?use?of?a?tenon?joint.? ? ????The?back?dovetails?were,?as?seen?on?other?drawers,?through?dovetails?and? were?short?and?wide?(See?the?centre?picture???shown?below).? ? ????The?bottom?was?attached?using?the?same?approach?as?described?before?(See? the?picture?in?the?right?panel???shown?next).?? ? ? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?530? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Wallace?Collection?Secr?taire???Abattant?(Con?t)?? Location:??Behind?the?Drop?Front? ? ????There?are?6?drawers?that?are?visible?in?the?upper?section?of?this?desk?(behind?the? fall?front).??These?drawers?are?located?on?the?lower?part?of?this?section,?and?on? each?side?(3?to?the?right?and?3?to?the?left?of?the?centre?pigeonhole).?There?are? however,?two?smaller?drawers?under?a?secret?compartment?that?lies?under?the? large?pigeonhole?in?the?lower?centre?part?of?this?opening.? ? ????Each?drawer?is?veneered?on?the?front?with?a?type?of?burl?wood?surrounded?by?a? band?of?tulipwood.??The?centre?of?each?drawer?is?a?drop?ring?handle,?which?is? made?of?ormolu.?? ? ???These?drawers?have?lapped?dovetails;?typical?for?Riesener?to?use?on?the?drawer? fronts.??Furthermore,?the?dovetails?are?wide?and?they?are?very?straight?(almost? perpendicular?to?the?front?of?the?drawer.)???The?front?of?the?drawer?is? approximately?5?mm?of?wood?(hiding?the?dovetail?from?the?front?of?the?drawer),? which?is?in?turn?covered?with?a?1?mm?veneer.??The?shape?of?the?dovetail?is? unusual?for?Riesener?as?his?front?dovetails?tends?to?have?narrow?bases?and?wide? ends?to?the?dovetails?(See?the?picture?presented?below?and?to?the?left).??? ? ???The?back?dovetails?are?very?typical?of?the?dovetails?that?Riesener?typically?uses?on? the?backs?of?drawers.??They?are?thru?dovetails,?they?are?thick?and?with?a?very? slight?angle?(See?picture?that?is?presented?below?and?to?the?right).?? ? ??The?bottom?is?attached?in?a?very?typical?Riesener?manner.??The?bottom?is?fitted?in?a? rebate?that?runs?along?the?sides?and?the?front?of?the?drawer.??While?the?bottom?is? wider?than?the?rebate,?it?is?cut?with?a?curved?cut?around?the?edge,?which?allows?it? to?slide?in?the?rebate.??(See?the?picture?on?the?right?and?the?picture?of?the?next?set? of?drawers).?? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?531? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Location:??Secret?Drawer?(Behind?Drop?Front,?in?Secret?Compartment)? ? ???This?is?the?drawer?referred?to?in?the?prior?paragraph.??Again,?this?drawer?(as? shown)?is?underneath?a?door?that?lies?at?the?bottom?of?the?large?middle? pigeonhole.??Shown?in?this?picture?(on?the?left)?is?the?door?open?and?the?two? drawers?partially?opened.??? ? ????Following?are?photos?of?the?front?and?back?dovetail?joints?for?these?drawers.??? Note?that?the?secret?compartment?is?opened?by?turning?the?key?to?the? abattant?one?half?of?a?turn?while?the?abattant?is?in?the?down?(horizontal)? position?(This?is?shown?in?more?detail?later?section.? ? ????These?drawers?are?typical?of?Riesener?s?drawers.??The?front?dovetails?are? lapped?dovetails?narrow?at?the?end?close?to?the?front?of?the?drawer,?and? wide?at?the?back,?thus?the?angle?used?is?quite?high?(See?lower?left?picture).?? While?the?back?dovetails?are?through?dovetails?with?very?slight?angle?and? therefore?they?are?wide?at?both?the?start?and?the?end?of?the?dovetail?(See? lower?centre?picture?shown?below).?? ? ????These?two?drawers?are?made?of?solid?oak?and?have?very?small,?brass?handle.?? ? ????The?bottom?of?the?drawer?is?fit?in?the?same?manner?as?the?prior?drawers.?? The?bottom?is?slide?into?a?rebate?that?runs?along?both?sides?and?the?front?of? the?drawer.???The?last?picture?on?this?section,?below?and?to?the?right,?shows? how?the?bottom?is?fit?into?the?rebate?on?the?sides.??As?with?the?former? drawer,?the?edge?of?the?bottom?is?cut?with?a?curved?rebate,?which?makes? the?edge?thinner?and?thus?able?to?fit?into?the?rebate.??? Location:??Lower?Section? ? ?????There?are?two?drawers?located?behind?the?double?doors?in?the?lower? section?of?the?Secr?taire???Abattant.??These?are?located?on?the?lower?left? hand?side?of?this?section.??On?the?right?is?a?safe?that?is?made?to?look?like? two?drawers.?However,?this?safe,?as?most?in?Riesener?s?secr?taires?is? locked?with?a?special?key?and?consists?of?a?door?that?opens?from?the? bottom?of?the?panel.??Above?the?two?drawers?and?the?safe?are?two?large? filing?compartments.?? ? ?????As?shown?in?the?picture?in?the?lower?left,?Riesener?once?again?used?lapped? dovetails,?again,?the?dovetails?were?much?wider?and?at?a?much?greater? angle?than?those?seen?in?the?Chippendale?s?pictures.??? ? ?????The?rear?dovetails?were?once?again?short?and?wide?through?dovetails???See? the?pictures?on?the?lower?centre?panel.?? ? ? (Same?back?design?as?for?the?prior? drawers.)? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?532? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Picture/Brief?Description?of?Wallace?Collection?Thuya?Secr?taire???Abattant? (F303) ? ???This?Secr?taire???Abattant?has?only?9?drawers?in?it.??One?is?located?at?the? top,?behind?the?frieze?and?other?8?are?located?behind?the?drop?front.??Six?are? the?small?drawers?that?are?clearly?visible?once?the?drop?front?is?lowered?and? the?remaining?two?are?located?in?a?secret?section?below?a?moveable?floor?of? the?lower,?centre?filing?compartment.?? ? ???In?the?lower?section,?where?there?are?frequently?located?drawers,?is?a?single? safe?that?uses?a?custom?key?(in?other?words?this?key?is?different?from?the? one?used?for?the?rest?of?the?piece?of?furniture???the?safe?is?described?in? greater?detail?later? Location:??Top?Drawer ? ???As?with?all?other?examples?of?the?Riesener?secr?taire???abattants?there?is?a? drawer?below?the?marble?top?and?decorated?with?ormolu.??It?is?a?large? drawer?that?stretches?across?the?entire?front?of?the?piece?of?furniture?(See? the?far?left?picture?on?the?next?page).??? ? ???The?handles?for?this?particular?piece?have?been,?as?seen?before,?integral? parts?of?the?designs?in?the?ormolu.??At?the?centre?of?the?design?is?a?plaque,? which?depicts?a?number?of?infants?one?of?which?is?Mercury?(See?the?picture? below?on?the?left).? ? ??This?drawer?is?also?made?of?oak?on?the?sides,?back?and?bottom.??The?front?is? made?of?mahogany?with?a?rosewood?veneer.??Also?note?that?the?rose?wood? is?used?on?the?bottom?edge?of?the?drawer?as?(perhaps)?a?type?of?glide.??? ? The?construction?of?the?drawer?is?similar?to?the?prior?examples?of?the?top? drawer?by?Riesener.??The?front?does?not?have?exposed?dovetails,?the?back? has?short,?wide?through?dovetails?and?the?bottom?has?curved?cuts?on?the? edge?which?enables?it?to?slide?into?the?rebate?that?runs?along?the?sides?and? the?front?(See?the?pictures?that?follow).? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?533? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Thuya?Secr?taire???Abattant?(F303???Con?t)? Location:?Behind?the?Drop?Front ? ???There?are?6?drawers?that?are?visable?behind?the?fall?front.??Three?are? located?on?each?side?of?the?lowest?centre?pigeonhole.?Each?drawer?is? decorated?on?the?front?with?tulip?wood?(at?the?centre?of?each?drawer?with? the?grain?runing?up?and?down)?surrounded?by?a?border?of?boxwood?and? ebony?stringing?and?a?banding?of?purple?wood.??Each?drawer?also?has?a?drop? ring?handle?that?is?made?of?ormolu.?? ? ???The?front?dovetails?are?very?wide?and?at?a?fairly?sharp?angle???going?from? very?thick?to?very?thin.??There?is?also?a?substantial?thickness?of?timber?on?the? front?of?the?drawer?in?addition?to?fairly?thick?(1.5?mm)?veneer.? ? ???The?back?dovetails?are,?like?other?Riesener?pices,?small,?relatively?thick?and? almost?square?in?shape.??? ? ???The?bottom?has?been?put?into?place?by?sliding?into?a?rebate?that?runs?up?? each?side?and?across?the?front?of??the?drawer.??The?bottom?also?has?a?curved? rebate?cut?into?it?to?enable?it?to?fit?into?the?rebate?on?the?sides?and?front.? Location:??Secret?Drawer?Behind?the?Drop?Front ?? ? ???These?two?solid?oak?drawers?are?located? beneath?the?bottom?shelf?in?the?lower?centred? filling?compartment.?Both?the?front?and?the?back? dovetails?are?similar?to?other?dovetails?seen?with? other?Riesner?pieces.??These,?probably?out?of? necessity?(the?front?and?back?of?each?drawer?can? be?thinner?than?other?drawers?because?of?the? overall?drawer?size),?are?shorter?and?thicker? than?most?other?dovetails.?? ? ????Also?the?bottom?(See?picture?on?lower?right? panel)?is?thinner?and?the?bottom?of?the?drawer? does?not?have?the?characteristic?curve?that? Riesner?usually?has?on?the?edge?near?where?the? drawer?bottom?slips?into?the?rebate?on?the?edge? (See?pictures?below).??? Location?of?secret?drawer? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?534? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Picture/Brief?Description?of?Wallace?Collection?Secr?taire???Abattant?with? Floral?Trellis?Marquetry?(F302) ? ???????This?secr?taire?contains?just?7?drawers,?as?there?are?no?drawers?in?the? lower?section,?and?no?secret?compartments.???The?drawers?that?are? included?are?the?one?at?the?top,?behind?the?frenzy,?the?6?that?are?located? behind?the?abattant?or?in?the?upper?work?section.??? Location:??Top?Drawer ? ??The?front?of?this?large?drawer?does?not?have?the?same?type?of?dovetails?as? seen?on?other?Riesener?pieces?because?this?drawer?has?a?lip?on?each?side?of? the?drawer.??In?the?picture?in?the?lower?left?panel,?the?dovetails?are?barely? visible?at?the?base?of?this??lip?.??Like?other?Riesener?pieces,?these?are?cut?to? be?fairly?wide?dovetails?(See?the?picture?on?the?lower?left).? ? ??The?back?are?actually?more?like?what?Riesner?usually?puts?on?the?front?of? drawers.??They?are?fairly?wide?at?the?end?and?narrow?at?the?beginning? (usually?on?the?back,?his?dovetails?are?almost?straight???See?picture?in?the? lower?centre.)? ? ??The?bottom?of?the?drawer?is?like?the?prior?drawers:??a?rebate?cut?into?the? sides?and?the?front?then?the?bottom?slides?into?place?by?cutting?a?curved? rebate?on?the?edge?of?the?bottom.??In?this?case?there?are?screws?in?the?back? but?these?may?have?been?added?later?(See?the?picture?on?the?lower?right).?? ? This?drawer?was?made?of?solid?oak?(sides,?back,?bottom?and?front)?with? purplewood?veneer?on?the?front.?Like?other?top?drawers?the?front?is?covered? with?a?gold?plated?acanthus?leaf?design?with?a?plaque?of?infants?playing?with? an?infant?Mercury.??The?handles?on?this?drawer?are?part?of?the?ormolu?(See? the?pictures?below?and?to?the?left.).?? MAKING?FASHIONABLE?FURNITURE???APPENDIX?D:??DRAWER?CONSTRUCTION?????????????????????????????????????PAGE?535? ? Over?View?of?Drawer?Construction Location:?Behind?the?Drop?Front ? ??This?section?has?six?small?drawers?in?it,?three?on?each?side?of?a?large? pigeonhole.??Each?drawer?is?made?of?oak,?and?the?front?is?covered?with?a? thick?veneers?made?of?tulip?wood,?rosewood?surrounded?by?stringing?of? ebony?and?boxwood.??? ? ??The?front?dovetails?(See?the?picture?in?the?far?left?panel)?are?like?most?of? examples;?they?have?a?sharp?angle?and?a?wide?tail?to?them.??They?are? complimented?with?a?relatively?thick?section?of?wood?in?front?of?the? dovetails.?? ? ??The?back?dovetails?are?through?dovetails?and?they?are?shorter?than?the?front? dovetails?and?have?similar?wide?angles?with?large?heads?on?them.??? ? ??The?bottom?is?attached?the?same?way?as?other?drawers?by?Riesener,?with?a? rebate?on?the?sides?and?front,?and?the?bottom?itself?cut?with?a?curved?rebate? to?enable?it?to?slide?into?position.??