A carpenter's bench is a heavy wooden workbench used by carpenters, joiners and cabinetmakers to hold timber steady while it is sawn, planed, chiselled and assembled. It usually has a thick top of beech, elm, oak or pine, sturdy legs braced by stretchers, and one or more vices, with holes for bench dogs and holdfasts that grip the work.
Workbenches of this kind were made in every joinery and estate workshop from the eighteenth century onwards, often by the craftsmen who used them, so they vary widely in size and design. Long benches from cabinet workshops, coachworks and schools survive in reasonable numbers, along with smaller benches with storage cupboards or drawers beneath. Collectors and decorators prize a top with deep patina, saw marks, old repairs and the scars of long use, together with original wooden vice screws. Condition should still be checked for woodworm, rot in the feet and instability. Old carpenter's benches have become popular as kitchen islands, serving tables in dining rooms and display tables in shops, where their robust construction and evidence of honest work give a strong sense of character.
