Peter J. Martin and Son Antiques

Description

A handsome and super quality Victorian figured and burr walnut chest of two short and three long oak lined drawers, with brass oval back-plate handles and raised on a plinth base. Bears stamp to the locks and to the back (faint) of the esteemed Glasgow makers ‘Wylie & Lochhead’.

Width 42” (107cm) Depth 20” (51cm) Height 41” (104cm)

About Wylie & Lochhead
Robert Wylie and William Lochhead formed their successful cabinet making firm in 1829. By the 1880’s they employed over 1,700 people with workshops, showrooms and warehouses throughout Glasgow. By the turn of the century they had become a household name throughout Scotland for furnishing, artistic design and high quality craftsmanship. They also had branches in London and Manchester and numerous agents and buyers across Europe and the Empire.

This strong position allowed the firm in 1900 to move quickly to supply the emerging demand created by the designs of George Walton, the Glasgow Four (Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Herbert MacNair, Margaret and Frances MacDonald) and the success of Miss Cranston’s famous tea rooms. Indeed the sheer size of the firm with its huge marketing and manufacturing skills allowed it to make the ‘Glasgow Style’ truly popular and available to a large market.

Condition & Details of Restoration
This item is in original structural condition. The polish has been refinished, by our own craftsmen, by hand in the traditional manner. There are some minor old marks under the polish. The handles are later replacements, but there is no ‘handle problem’, i.e. unsightly marks to the drawer fronts left by previous handles. There are two repairs to the veneer to the rear right of the top, and one small patch to the centre of one of the drawer fronts (see detail photographs).