misdiagnosed case of woodworm!!

[KC]

Beautiful old Medicine or liquor cabinet.

Are there any stain marks on the lower inside? (If this hasn't been restored)

Pics of the joints/sides/back sides/hardware will help in determining if in fact it is this old.

Thank the Lord for people who know just a little to be dangerous!!!  Their loss....your gain!

[mariok54]

Hi KC... Thank the Lord Indeedy!
I'll try to take some more pics tomorrow and post them.

Interesting piece of research by Oceans, more than I could find when I Googled

[mariok54]

Sorry about the pics, they were taken with a flash. The hardware looks all very original, very flush and expertly recessed. The photo is of the back of the door which is also very attractively, though plainly, carved , possibly another sign of reasonable quality.
Other than the replacement shelves (2 not 1) there is no sign of any restoration, and although in the flashlight the shelves look bright spankers I would say that they do have some age to them, at least 40 - 50 years. I've mounted it temporarily, hence the new screws.
I'm fairly confident, as I can be, about its age, it's just the decoration on the door that puzzles me. I've seen a lot of corner cupboards over the years, both Victorian and Edwardian, but nothing as ornate as this. It's ornateness is reminiscent of something from the East (Near, Middle, Far) but the design certainly isn't.

[Oceans64]

I think adding a date so prominantly would be significant. The American Bicentential comes to mind. It seems as if everything had a date displayed on it.  Even Y2K to some extent. I looked at a timeline of British history in 1899 but didn't see anything of significance (although you would know better).  Was having a date carved into a piece of furniture popular?

My next thought was a wedding gift.

[waywardangler]

I would look at different fraternal groups in England to see if the carving has any similarities.  I think the staff the two opposing hippocampi (?) are holding may have some meaning.  1899 may have been the year the owner joined, was elected, or something and this cabinet held whatever ritual items were used in meetings?  Oak leaves and acorns are a pretty standard design for carvings but the hippocampus and staff are not.

[talesofthesevenseas]

I would guess some maritime significance.

[mariok54]

Hi Wayward ... You're not wrong when you say that Hippocampi (?) aren't standard ... I can find virtually nothing ...

The nearest that I've come to anything looking like it is here...

http://www.sellingantiques.co.uk/antiquedetail.asp?autonumber=78827

The profusion of detail and similar style, although the subject is different  

and

http://cgi.ebay.com/Antique-Furniture-Victorian-Oak-Hanging-Corner-Cupboard-/370289318139#ht_3279wt_932

If our's is worth anywhere near that second one!!!!!!!   

[Oceans64]

Is the carving underneath the "1899" an anchor? That would synch the Maritime meaning...  As for the oak leaves, acorns, and grapes/grape vines, they have shown up as groupings in early Ireland - one reference to "Down Abbey" that I found.   Google Heraldry and you can find some interesting meanings as individual elements.  I suppose it's a matter of how much thought went into the carving - makes a nice story though.  Even the woodworm  could mean something...

Not really a coat of arms but symbolism doesn't change drastically...

[mariok54]

Hi Oceans,
I see what you mean, it does look like an anchor in the photo, but it is in fact a bud or a leaf (I think). The Heraldry tip took me on a magical tour, you find them embracing all sorts of things including serpents, but nothing quite like that staff/standard.. Ah well.

[KC]

From face on pic it looks like flat mount...but it appears that it is a corner mount cabinet?

[mariok54]

Morning KC, yes, it is a corner cabinet.

[KC]

These were also called curio cabinets....but I tend to believe yours was more for, say for instance, a parlor.

Notice the round stain in the bottom.  Bottle size?  In the older days....there were lots of concoctions good for the body (or so they say) that wasn't liquor....

Notice the screws on the hinge.  The grooves on the bottom seem centered....but the top they are off.  So, appear older.  

I really like this piece.

Where are you located?  Country?  State?  That may have some significance.

[mariok54]

Hi KC,
I didn't spot the round stain, most definitely bottle sized.. maybe a 25 year old single malt... ? So useful having a key to the cabinet!