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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: November 21, 2017, 08:28:16 pm »

Thank you for everyone's input..  I'm still uncertain about it's original use but you guys have provided some great ideas.

I think I'll remove the castors before I put this up for sale.  I kind of don't think they are original, but I base that only on general appearance and that the legs taper to so thin at the bottom.  It's a heavy piece and if the legs had been meant to have castors/rollers I would imagine that it would have been built with legs that didn't taper so much.

I hope that there is a niche market for such a bench, more than one person has suggested I either cut it down to a smaller size or split the bench top and use it for a table.  But I just couldn't bear cutting down such a unique piece of furniture.

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: November 19, 2017, 11:25:41 pm »

Thank you for having a look..

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: November 19, 2017, 10:05:44 pm »

You guys have provided a few good Ideas but I would really love to be pointed to something similar.

Thanks for any help

bump

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: October 17, 2014, 12:37:38 pm »

Maybe from a police station where detainees could be handcuffed to the handles and together. 

Good guess but no telltale signs of handcuff marks on the ends. 

Also, I'm no expert on jails but I would bet that a piece of wood furniture doesn't have to be used in a jail for long before it has "MEJ wuz hear" or "!@#$% the polise" written all over it.. 

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: October 17, 2014, 09:35:02 am »

Rauville -  "My first thought was that maybe it would have looked in place in an early "opium den"."

That would be a very cool provenance...

I have wondered if it was meant as a piece of furniture that could be used to lay down on partially because of the depth of the piece, perhaps originally having a cushion.

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: October 17, 2014, 07:22:17 am »

wow-that is huge...if it came from a house it had to be a very large one...really makes a statement

is it oak?  is it on casters?

Yes it is oak.. sorry I should've specified that in the original post.

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Antique Questions Forum / Re: Great but unknown Bench

« on: October 17, 2014, 07:18:41 am »

Thank you all for your input!

I'm not sure the casters are original.  They definitely look old and could be but sitting on it it feels about an inch or so high.

The only purpose I can dream up for it is perhaps in a large waiting area like in a railroad or bus station..

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Antique Questions Forum / Great but unknown Bench

« on: October 16, 2014, 05:26:45 am »

I am by no stretch of the imagination a pro at either buying and selling or refinishing antiques.  But, I do have a great love for it and try to pick up projects here and there that for whatever reason jump out at me.  So, I was at a flea market last week and came across this great bench and bought it without what many would argue the requisite thought.. But who cares I like it. 

Anyway, I have no info on provenance, the dealer bought it in a lot at an abandoned old house with many antiques.  Most notable is the size of the bench, it is 8'3.5" wide and two feet deep.  It looks to have been well made but I cannot for the life of me discern it's original purpose.  I've scoured Google for anything similar and come up empty every time so I was hoping that maybe someone here could help.

Please let me know if you have any questions, I've attached a photo if that helps anyone.

Thank you in advance for your time,
David