Upon opening, the interior is decorated with fine Boulle marquetry brass, pewter, and an extraordinarily rare green tortoiseshell. It is a strikingly beautiful piece on its own, with tulipwood and rosewood veneering. This one-of-a-kind French secrétaire was crafted by Daubet & Dumarest for presentation at the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London's Crystal Palace. This is one of the most secret secret compartments we have seen in our gallery.įrench Exhibition Mechanical Secrétaire by Daubet & Dumarest To reach it, one would have to remove the bottom left-hand drawer and pull on the oak fillet, which is tucked flush with the side. The secrétaire already has several pigeonholes and drawers for storage, but this piece also features an impressively well-hidden false back concealed compartment that would have been entirely invisible to the eye. This Queen Anne-era walnut secrétaire would likely have been used often by its owners and thus served as the perfect spot for a “hidden in plain sight” plot twist. They soon became the focal point of the manor, serving as statements of culture and education. For the wealthiest households, it proved to be the preferred type of writing furniture design. The secretary bookcase, or secrétaire, was an innovative piece of writing furniture introduced in the early 18th century. No one would guess it was really secret compartment furniture that had extra storage space. This secretaire, from the front, appears to be a high-end, but typical piece that would have been owned by a wealthy family. Read on to learn more about these fascinating pieces. Our gallery houses several high-quality pieces of antique furniture that offer a lovely statement to a room at first glance - but some of them also feature exceptionally clever secret hiding spots and hidden storage space. A secrétaire could be hiding one secret a sideboard could be hiding a score! Secret compartment storage in furniture plans could be incredibly complicated and require a highly skilled craftsman to execute. A seemingly average piece of antique furniture could be sitting in its owner's home for years, only for secret compartments to be found when it is sent to a restorer or cabinetmaker for reconditioning. The Chief obviously knew little about these ingenious demonstrations of the cabinetmaker's skill. There is a certain amount of bulk of space to be accounted for in every cabinet.” Frustrated, he states, “Any man is a dolt who permits a 'secret' to escape him in a search of this kind. In the mystery, The Purloined Letter by Edgar Allen Poe, the French Chief of Police searches the apartments of a royal minister for a letter stolen from royalty, but in vain. And rightly so - the possibility of discovering a long-forgotten treasure or solving a mystery is almost universally alluring. There is something timeless in the drama of finding hidden treasures such as large sums of money, heirloom jewels, silver, a missing will, or a written confession of a crime committed many years ago. Secret compartments in furniture design have been the subject of literary plot twists for centuries. Having furniture with hidden compartments was one method of protecting one's most valuable possessions against thieves - secret safes, false bottom drawers, hidden cabinets, and cleverly placed hidden door panels were all used to baffle outsiders. These days most people opt to store their cash and most prized valuables in banks or safety deposit boxes, but before the turn of the 19th century, neither of these services existed. Above: A rare 19th century Italian desk, also known as King Carlo Alberto's desk, with several secret compartments.
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