Two bookcases, circa 1870

These bookcases, together with an en suite cabinet, were exhibited at the seminal exhibition ‘Victorian and Edwardian Decorative Art’ which showcased the collection of Charles and Lavinia Handley-Read, held at the Royal Academy 4th March to 30th April 1972. The cabinet is carved with the same decorative moldings with flowering branches, and stylized inlaid leaves along the borders. These designs are closely related to the those illustrated in Bruce J. Talbert's Gothic Forms Applied to Furniture, published 1867, notably plates 2 and 3 which depict a cabinet of nearly identical form.