Dining table - Walnut - Round turn with a clove hitch

Round Table with a Sail - Walnut - original England, late 19th century - with a keyed mechanism to position it "sail"-like and wheels under the foot, allowing easy storage.
Top veneered in walnut burl like the under-top band.
Central turned leg resting on three cabriole feet intricately carved with volutes and scrolls culminating in shells.

Product condition: excellent thanks to the owner’s meticulous care, periodically finished with shellac and alcohol.
NO damage, NO restoration, NO alterations.
Dimensions (cm):
Height: 77
Diameter: 135
Pickup in northern Rome, ground floor, vehicle access possible.

The discreet — and unsustainable — charm of the "sail" table. From the late 18th century, the first models of this dining table appeared, whose top could be reclined vertically, hence the name "Sail". The aim was to take up less space and store it in a corner when not in use. The need arose in bourgeois city homes, which, though well-off, did not enjoy the unlimited spaces of aristocratic country residences. The new luxury of this social class had to contend with space in Dickens’s crowded London. The sail table thus became a fashion, even in homes not suffering from a lack of space, and it spread to the rest of Europe. The grain of ancient woods, in this case walnut, continues to enchant, enhanced by the vertical position.

The need harmonizes with today’s living and balances practicality with a touch of class, then as now.