Rolltop desk

Rolltop desk

A rolltop desk is a 19th century reworking of the pedestal desk with, in addition, a series of stacked compartments, shelves, drawers and nooks in front of the user, much like the Bureau a gradin or the Carlton house desk. In contrast to these the compartments and the desktop surface of a rolltop desk can be covered by means of wooden slats that roll or slide through slots in the raised sides of the desk. In that, it is a descendant in function, and partly in form, of the cylinder desk of the 18th century. It is a relative of the tambour desk whose slats retract horizontally rather than vertically.

Unlike the cylinder desk, the rolltop desk could be mass produced rather easily since the simple wooden slats could be turned out very fast in a uniform way. In contrast, the wooden section of a cylinder had to be treated with great pains to keep its form perfectly over time, lest it warp or bend, and make it impossible to retract or extend. The wooden slats of the rolltop were usually joined together by being all attached to a same cloth or leather foundation, and were thus less influenced by the problems which plagued the cylinder desk.

The rolltop desk was the mainstay of the small or medium sized office at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. It gradually fell out of favor with the introduction of the steel desk and the coming of greater quantities of correspondence and other documents, which made the small stacked drawers and small shelves obsolete. There were just too many letters to bother folding them again and placing them in the proper slot and there was too little time to open and close all the small drawers to look for things.

Because it was produced in vast numbers and at varying levels of quality, the rolltop desk is popular in the antique market. It is also popular amongst set decorators who want to recreate the "ambiance" of an office at the turn of the previous two centuries, or during famous eras like prohibition. The rolltop has starred in many plays and movies, the most famous one being probably a movie titled "His Girl Friday" with Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell.

See also the list of desk forms and types.

References

*Baumert, Kenneth. "Building a rolltop desk: Interlocking slats form an all-wood tambour." "Fine Woodworking". Volume 79. December 1989. pp. 48-53.
*Gloag, John. "A Complete Dictionary of Furniture." Woodstock, N.Y. : Overlook Press, 1991.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • rolltop desk — ▪ furniture       desk with a sliding roll top, or tambour, that encloses the working surface of the upper part and can be locked. The portion of the desk that gives the form its name is constructed of narrow slats of wood glued to some flexible… …   Universalium

  • rolltop desk — noun Date: 1887 a writing desk with a sliding cover often of parallel slats fastened to a flexible backing …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • rolltop desk — see roll top desk …   English dictionary

  • rolltop desk — ˈ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷ noun : a writing desk having a sliding cover made of parallel slats fastened to a flexible backing …   Useful english dictionary

  • desk — /desk/, n. 1. an article of furniture having a broad, usually level, writing surface, as well as drawers or compartments for papers, writing materials, etc. 2. a frame for supporting a book from which the service is read in a church. 3. a pulpit …   Universalium

  • Desk — A writing desk. A desk is a furniture form and a class of table often used in a work or office setting for reading or writing on or using a computer. Desks often have one or more drawers to store office supplies and papers. Unlike a regular table …   Wikipedia

  • desk — [n] table counter, davenport, escritoire, lecturn, reading stand, rolltop, school desk, secretary, workspace, writing desk; concept 443 …   New thesaurus

  • desk — n. counter 1) (in a hotel) a front (AE), reception (BE) desk department 2) (at a newspaper) a city; copy desk table for writing 3) to clear one s desk 4) a cluttered desk 5) a rolltop; writing desk USAGE NOTE: In AE copy desk means local news… …   Combinatory dictionary

  • desk — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) n. escritoire, secretary, lectern, counter; bureau. See receptacle. II (Roget s IV) n. 1. [A piece of furniture] Syn. secretary, worktable, writing desk, writing table, drafting table, escritoire, bureau …   English dictionary for students

  • Tambour desk — A tambour desk is a desk with desktop based drawers and pigeonholes, in a way resembling a bit that of a bureau a gradin. The small drawers and nooks are covered, when required, by reeded or slatted shutters which usually retract in the two sides …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”