Library furniture is furniture designed for the private library, a room that became an essential feature of the British country house and town house during the eighteenth century. As collecting books became a mark of learning and status, cabinetmakers produced a wide range of specialised pieces for reading, writing, storing and consulting books.
Typical library furniture includes large breakfront bookcases, library tables, partners' desks, drum tables, reading tables and stands, library chairs and bergères, map and folio cabinets, globes and metamorphic library steps that convert from chairs or tables. Mahogany was the favoured timber, often with tooled leather writing surfaces, brass castors and architectural details such as pediments and pilasters that echoed the room itself. Designers including Chippendale, Gillows and later Regency makers supplied many grand libraries. Library furniture is admired for its quality, practicality and sense of gravitas, and it adapts well to the modern home office, where a fine desk or bookcase brings character and lasting functionality.
