Georgian Secrétaire Chest with Fitted Interior and Inlay

• Inlay - Decorative patterns inserted into the main body of a piece of furniture, generally in wood of contrasting colour and grain, though brass, ivory, ebony, shell and sometimes horn have been used. Inlay may consist of a panel of well figured timber inset into a cabinet door front, geometric patterns, or complex and stylized designs of flowers, swags of foliage, fruits and other motifs. As a general rule, in pieces where the carcase is constructed in the solid, the inlay is relatively simple such as stringing, cross banding and herringbone banding. Where more elaborate and decorative work was required veneer was used. Inlay has been fashionable from at least the latter half of the 17th century, when a variety of elaborate forms were developed
• Georgian - As an English stylistic period, Georgian is usually taken to cover the period from George I (1714) to the Regency of Prince George (1811-20), although the period from 1800 to 1830 is sometimes designated as the Regency period. During the Georgian period the great English cabinetmakers and designers such as Chippendale, Hepplewhite, Adam Sheraton etc., were all active.
  
  Therefore there isn't a single 'Georgian style' as such and to say something is 'Georgian', usually means it was made between 1714 and 1830. This assumes we discount George V and George VI, both being from the 20th century.
  
  The styles popular at the time of each reign were:
  
  George I (1714-1727) saw out the last years of the Baroque period.
  
  George II (1727-1760) reigned during the Rococo period.
  
  George III (1760-1820) saw the last gasp of the Rococo, all of the early Neo-Classic 'Adam style' and most of the later neo-Classic 'Regency style'.
  
  George IV (Prince Regent 1820-1830)encompassed the last of the 'Regency' style.
  
  William IV's reign (1830-1837) was something of a no man's land (stylistically) and he wasn't a 'George' anyway. He covered the last glimmerings of 'Regency' and the start of the 'Victorian' style.
• Fall Front - Furniture with a hinged flap, usually associated with desks and secretaires, that opens or 'falls' to provide a flat writing surface. The flap may be supported by chains or brass quadrants and rest on wooden supports or runners, known as lopers, that pull out from a recess in either side of the piece. The interior of a fall-front desk is usually fitted with small drawers and pigeonholes.
• Parquetry - Parquetry is inlay laid in geometric patterns, the contrast being achieved by the opposing angles of the grain and veneers. The herringbone pattern is the most commonly used in flooring, but this is almost never seen in furniture - the patterns used are more complex and unlike flooring, can include several different varieties of timber.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• chests of drawers, period - Georgian 763
• chests of drawers, style - secretaire 89