A writing table is a table designed for writing, typically with a flat top, often inset with leather, and one or more frieze drawers beneath, standing on four legs rather than on solid pedestals. It offers a lighter and more elegant alternative to the pedestal desk and can be placed in the centre of a room or against a wall.
Writing tables became fashionable in the eighteenth century, when the French bureau plat, a large flat-topped table with gilt bronze mounts, set the model for elegant writing furniture across Europe. English makers produced mahogany and satinwood writing tables in Georgian and Regency taste, sometimes with a raised superstructure of small drawers and pigeonholes at the back, and library writing tables could be substantial pieces finished on all sides for free-standing use. Victorian and Edwardian examples include ladies' writing tables of delicate proportion, often with inlay or painted decoration. Collectors look for good colour and figure, original leathers or at least well-executed replacements, sound drawer construction and original handles. Writing tables suit modern home offices, studies and bedrooms, combining practical surface space with a light, uncluttered presence.
