MAPLE & CO. Rolling cabinet with glass display case - 19th century

Height x width x depth: 177 x 100 x 52 cm.

roller secretary desk with glass display case, featuring neoclassical gilt bronze details. The upper section has two glass doors with bevelled edges and interior shelves, topped with a molded frame and gilt friezes. The lower section consists of a writing desk concealed by a roller shutter, decorated with floral motifs and Greek frets in gilt bronze. Below are five drawers with brass knobs. The central drawer opens with a secret button located under the lower upright of the central drawer. Fluted truncated pyramid legs with gilded bronze terminals and capitals. Signed Maple&Co with original “Maple's Depositary” label applied to the back of the lining.


Maple & Co. was founded in London around 1841 by John Maple (1815–1900), initially as a small carpentry workshop in the Tottenham Court Road neighborhood—an area that became the heart of English furniture manufacturing in the 19th century.
Thanks to the quality of its production and an innovative commercial strategy, the company grew rapidly and became one of the largest furniture manufacturers in the United Kingdom, under the name Maple & Co., Ltd.
At the end of the 19th century, under the leadership of John Blundell Maple (1845–1903), son of the founder, the company achieved international fame. Maple introduced a highly modern business model.


Christopher Payne, British Furniture 1820 to 1920: The Antique Collector's Guide, Antique Collectors Club, Woodbridge, 1985.
Megan Aldrich, British Furniture Makers 1850-1914, The Furniture History Society, 1996.
Clive Edwards, Furniture-Making in London: The Development of Traders, 1700-1914, Routledge, 2011.
"The Cabinet Maker and Art Furnisher", trade magazine published in London (late 19th century).
Jonathan Woodham, Twentieh Century Design, Oxford University press, 1997.

Item condition grading: **** good.