George II Birdcage Tilt-Top Table on a Birdcage Mechanism

The plain circular tilt-top resting on a birdcage mechanism, revolving on the plain turned gun-barrel column with ring-turning at its top and base, raised on sturdy but elegantly shaped cabriole legs ending in pudgy pad feet characteristic of the period c.1710-1750.

The birdcage mechanism – supported on four squat turned and ring-turned columns – was an important structural and functional development in the earlier eighteenth century as new furniture forms were required in the pursuit of refined and elegant living. Tea-drinking became an important symbolic expression in polite society. A table such as this took pride of place in the fashionable multi-purpose parlours in town and country houses, set with blue-and-white tea ware imported from China, and a tea urn, imported enamel urns from Turkey being popular. A revolving top meant the hostess could serve tea with a minimum of fuss.

This table attests to the high standards of British craftsmanship in producing a robust but elegant design evident in subtle details around the feet and at the joints at the top of the sweeping cabriole legs.