George III Mahogany Knee Hole Desk with Brushing Slide

• Ogee - A serpentine shape, usually convex at the upper part, concave at the lower. Mostly used to describe the front shapes of parts of carcass furniture, such as cornices, drawer fronts and feet.
• Proportions - Essentially, the size of the various parts of a piece of furniture in relation to the whole. Ideally, the proportions should be pleasing to the eye appearing neither top-heavy nor unbalanced and convenient for ordinary use.
• Pedestal - The columns that support many dining tables and most small occasional tables. They are usually turned, though octagonal-shaped pedestals were fashionable during the 1830s and 1840s.
• Knee - The curved top of a cabriole leg, often carved.
• Apron - A decorative wooden panel that sits underneath the top surface of a table or chair, and unites the top of the piece with the legs, running at right angles to the underside. On carcase furniture such as a chest or wardrobe, the apron sits below the drawers or doors and attaches to the legs.
  
  On carcase furniture without legs the panel under the drawers or doors sits on the floor and is termed a plinth.
  
  An apron can provide a decorative touch to an otherwise unadorned piece of furniture and at the same time provide structural support and strength. They can be carved or pierced and quite elaborate.
• Brushing Slide - A brushing slide is a sliding shelf between the top drawer and the top surface of a chest of drawers or desk, or above the middle drawer of a tallboy. It could be pulled out to provide a surface on which clothes could be laid out for brushing prior to wearing, for folding clothes or for writing, though Sheraton also refers to it as a 'writing slide'.. A brushing slide is found mainly on 18th century chests of drawers, and is regarded as a key indication of period.
• Mahogany - Mahogany is a dense, close grained red-coloured timber from the West Indies and Central America. It was first imported into Europe in the the early 18th century and its use continued through the 19th century. It was popular for furniture making because of its strength, the wide boards available, the distinctive grain on some boards, termed flame mahogany and the rich warm colour of the timber when it was polished.. The "flame" was produced where a limb grew out from the trunk of the tree, and this timber was usually sliced into veneers for feature panels on doors, backs and cornices.
  
  Some terms used to describe mahogany relate to the country from which it originally came, such as "Cuban" mahogany, "Honduras" mahogany etc. However unless the wood has been tested the names assigned are more a selling feature, rather than a true indication of the timber's origin.
• George Iii - George III (1738 - 1820) was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1760 to 1820.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• desks, period or age - Georgian 135
• desks, style or type - kneehole 49