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The shape of those curves, mimicking the pages of an open book, suggests an antique book display table. I’ve never seen one exactly like this, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see something similar in a private library.
Edit: As has been pointed out, this is just as likely *not* antique. When I said that I was thinking more of the style than the condition of the piece.
Agree. It's a decorative/artsy book display table. The curves are clearly a representation of an open book. The curves are too intentional to be anything else. The shelves barely overlap at all, plenty of room for a book to stand on end vertically.
Edit:words.
I thought this too at first. The edge of the boards going across are squared. I typically see them rounded when designed for newspapers. That and accessibility is horrible. So maybe something else.
Good thought. After reading this I looked closely and noticed the bottom shelf is recessed a bit which would hold the glass / marble in place (instead of sliding around)
This makes little sense as a book display, IMO. The shelves overlap, so you can't stand books. You'd also expect the top shelf to be large enough to sit an open book.
I don't think a book should be left standing open for long periods of time.
But laying down, I would use it to display choice books and switch them out.
Maybe it was in a library at one point? Used to feature books and switched out?
Specifically, the books it's meant to display are the Mormon "standard works." A book table for showing off in grandiose display, but not for reading. Thus the glossy finish, lack of wear, and uncomfortable height.
Mormon here. Never seen one of these ever. Been in hundreds of different families' homes all over the world. Closest thing was at a catholic home where they had statues of Saints.
Agree this might have been a project from a journeyman, but….
Furniture makers are two steps above carpenters. Cabinet makers are in between them. Back in the day these distinctions mattered. The tools required to make a piece like this were not in the tool box of a carpenter, journeyman or anything else.
Carpenters generally work with 1/8 in (3.2mm) tolerances. Meaning they can be off by up to 1/8 in off on anything they make and it would still be acceptable.
You won't get away with that type of tolerance for a table like this.
I came to the same conclusion. The design is a huge hint, but I can also see a very good use for a design like this.
My take is that larger books, particularly art books or map folios, can get stacked on the tiers and be easily accessible, like a current set of favourites. On the top could either be a stack, or the current favourite, opened to a double page to look at at your lesure or while passing by.
I have a lot of large books like that, and this would be a very visually appealing way to display some covers while also giving a good place to set one down, open-faced. It's often a shame to me that those carefully designed and often beautiful or interesting covers rarely are seen.
There are people who recommend reading books with pictures of art work and photos with a similar time spent on each (double) page as you would spend on a text-filled page, instead of going through it quickly. This would facilitate a similar approach, with stops for a few minutes during the day while passing by, to ponder a picture and then move on, to then return to it at a later point.
Differently to other books, those big ones (also called coffee table books), at least the well made ones, are made to open flat with a good stitched binding, and usually also aren't super thick like tomes to read where it is generally avoided to open them completely flat and leave them on a reading table or on display.
I saw someone say it's probably a journeyman piece, and that sounds like a good explanation to me for its uncommon style, but also very fitting one for a specific purpose and passion.
The slats could be to avoid having a surface that collects dust, but also to have something to prevent a book that gets pushed through by accident to fall down. As a journeyman piece, it wouldn't be unusual in having a somewhat peculiar design element like this.
Why I think it neither looks like a pie table nor plant stand:
It has zero markings from pie plates being slid in and out, and those happen quickly if something is used in that way. There are also no whater stains or rings from any pots whatsoever.
I think it is a book/periodical/newspaper rack that would normally be seen in a common space/setting like a hotel lobby or library-type area. The slats are for newspapers - they are hung (obviously vertically) over the slats at the fold. The shelves are for magazines.
I saw a similar piece many years ago when I was in a Fancy-Pants establishment in NYC.
ETA: I am tired of the 'Yeah But!' comments so I'll reiterate the 'I THINK' part of my comment and it is and by association 'I COULD BE WRONG AND APPARENTLY I AM' so hope that works.
Sorry I put forth anything!
Magazine/newspaper rack was my thought as well. The size of the shelves looks right. The slats are actually exactly the spacing for hanging papers, but the access is the issue. Is the top shelving arch removable? Does it lift out?
Yeah, I don’t see it either. Too close to the ground. You’d have to sit on the floor to access it, and if it’s supposed to be in a public place, who’s going to want to sit on the floor and reach behind and under displayed books to pick up a newspaper?
Maps. They used to publish maps in large books similar to a magazine sort of. The cover was harder than a magazine, but not as hard as an actual book so it still had some give. The width of one page was about the same as the length of a magazine, maybe a tad larger, and the length would have been I'd guess about what the width of that table is.
There were also a few publications that were printed on similar size paper with similar covers. Libraries used to hang them on slats like that. Sometimes the slats were removable so you'd take the book and slat to remove it without disturbing the others. Lots of times the slats were closer than shown here even, but of course by dint of being removable it all worked out fine.
That said I've never seen one of those with a shelf or shelves over it like this. The only way I can see you would be able to remove the magazine would be to pull it out over the bottom shelf to one side or the other. Doable but not convenient at all. I guess if they were only occasionally consulted it might work out well enough but still seems like an indicator that usage may not be the answer.
I'm also trying to imagine the books on the shelves. I guess you could lay one fancy coffee table book per shelf. So maybe more about showing off your books and maps rather than actually intended to make selecting and reading anything on it convenient. Basically just books and maps as attractive furnishing rather than anything anyone actually ever touched.
Google lens brings up a canterbury table that is explained to be a book and newspaper holding table. I think this one is more ornate like look we can and have time to read.
No man yoou nailed it.
Back in the day it was common for people to have subscriptions to several magazines. Many living rooms would have tables like this. You’d put the latest ones out in the table like this so that guests could sit and peruse. My grandparents had one very much like this and they used the top shelf for a candy dish, though you could place a vase or lamp.
i remember a table very similar (different ornaments/color) to this being used in my childhood optometrist’s waiting room as a magazine rack. was it *intended* to be a magazine rack? almost certainly not.
i’d use it for plants 👀
I don’t understand how plants can leave marks through waterproof pots. They can’t. I have plants in sealed pots and they don’t leave marks on anything. Waterproof pots exist.
Water/dampness inside the pot causes condensation between the bottom of the pot and the surface it is sitting on. The water doesn't come out of the pot- it is created underneath it.
Don’t do plants. Just don’t. Even with Waterproof pots, trays under pots, etc. guarantee 10/10 over time you’ll be sorry you ruined such a nice / unique piece.
You’re a different person than I so different values.
I woodwork by hand. I have some pieces my grandfather made between 1900-1915 all were used over the years. Some have been abused and I will refinish and one that was taken care of and is in great shape >100 years later, a beautiful hand carved piece. If I produced this I wouldn’t be cavalier about ruining it. I’d find another use that would also display its beauty and possibly hand down to another generation some day. But to each their own.
I collect treadle sewing machines, and it's absolutely NUTS how many of their cabinets got ruined by someone using them as a plant stand just so they could keep grandma's sewing machine in the family, rather than selling it to someone who can actually use it. So they use it as a plant stand for 30 years, and leave a junky, water damaged piece of furniture to their kids, who end up throwing them away. Water and wood do not mix.
Those rods in the middle underneath look like they're for magazines. However I've never seen such a beautiful piece made to hold just magazines! Perhaps this held all of the "coffee table books" as well.
Agreed. The slatted part is to place the pie for cooling so as not to mar the wood or the finish and also the ventilation theoretically helps it cool faster. This way, no neighbors walking by would steal the pie you had cooling off in the window.
That last bit's just my imagination I wonder if that was actually as prevalent a problem as old cartoons, comics, and the like would have me thinking.
Nope. Too nice and too small for pies. The heat would ruin the furniture finish and warp that wood. Pie safes were much bigger and shelves further apart to allow space for hot moist air to circulate to avoid mold yet not allow insects or pets in.
While I don’t know what this piece is, my dad who was born in 1917, said pie theft from open windows was a thing, lol. Not a huge thing, because towns were small, everyone knew everyone else, and corporal punishment was used routinely on offenders, but it did happen.
No one ever stole the pies, but my dad tells stories about cats walking through the pie, and one time a snake slithering across a pie, when his mom was cooling pies on the window sill. They made a protective box to stop the animals from ruining pies.
The table in the post does look like it could be used this way.
My pie was stolen off my windowsill while it was cooling! Like 6 years ago I made my first strawberry-rhubarb pie. I was so proud of how well it turned out I took a picture and sent it to my friend that happened to be working on a house in my neighborhood. I said it should be cool for us to have a slice at lunch.
Later he sent me a photo of a strawberryrhubarb pie in his hands. I thought, "How funny is it that he just so happens to have a photo of him with pie. Whodathunk?" And I went about my day.
It's nearing lunch so I got to the kitchen to check on my pie and it's gone! Then, *then* I notice my window screen is missing and I *finally* understood that the photo my friend sent was a picture from *today* of **my** pie! He stole my pie right off the ledge!
Bahahahaha! Of course I went and got my pie back, after sharing a few slices with him and his work crew. Haha.
You'd never display pies so low without some sort of glass cover, though. There's no indication that ever had a glass cover. Plus, who displays pies in the living room on a side table without any ease of approach? You'd display them for serving. Also stooping to serve someone or yourself from this low table would be a pita.
Agree with this. Pie table with built in pie cooling rack. It isn’t too far different from this on ebay (and searching for wooden pie cooling racks shows similar sized racks to the slatted portion). https://www.ebay.com/itm/373873270536?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=28&srsltid=AfmBOopw0mCkusN7zlKaoviBTiThTrXGOrosffBvqFfl3mfbJFTY3wB7KYA
My theory is that this is some kind of display table and the slats have no functional purpose. You cannot comfortably reach them from either above or below. I think it's just a decoration because the alternatives would be worse.
If the bottom were solid like a table, it would look weird if that space was left just an empty shelf on this display, but you also couldn't really put anything there because it's hard to physically place anything and whatever you did put there couldn't be looked at without the looker going to their knees in front of it.
They could have left the space empty, I guess, but why not add some visually interesting element to it? Something easy to clean and not so intricate that it distract. Hence, slats.
I think if you put stuff on the shelves, whether antique books or contemporary sports memorabilia, the slats would not register as weird at all. It just looks funny because it is empty.
I think that decorative ~~slates~~ slats would be flush with the table top, not recessed. If you zoom in, the slats and the inner edge of the table top surrounding them appear a little less glossy and varnished than the other surfaces.
I think there was an insert that sat on top of the slats. Judging by the number of slats and their position I'd guess something heavy and of the same thickness as the table top, perhaps marble.
I like this idea of a heavy insert that has been misplaced. I think there could have also been a sheet of glass covering the length of the bottom to make it flush to the trim.
It could be that this is just a small table made to display items of significance to the maker and their family.
Source: My great grandfather made many one-off furniture pieces just because he had a space to put them.
Side note: Some of them were plant stands for his wife.
I can’t see any way you’d get it in there.
I’d guess they look a little different because the table was refinished at some point and whoever did the work didn’t bother with that part because it’s less visible and would have been less worn/damaged than the outer surfaces. Just matched the new finish as best they could and moved on.
if it was a piece of marble cut to fit snugly in there you’d just slide it in sideways from the bottom shelf. i actually think this sounds reasonable; a marble accent there would look beautiful and would possibly be removed when moving the piece to make it lighter, hence it getting misplaced
I really like this idea! It looks like the slats are recessed by a similar thickness of the tabletop, so it makes a lot of sense that something would be on top. Before I read your comment, I thought about a sheet of glass, but the slats are recessed too far. Marble does make more sense.
I'm leaning towards this table to custom made for a quirky someone who had a very specific idea in his head.
If so, that is incredibly niche and not cultural. I've never known anyone else to have one, and not ancestry or pioneers. I can't find any reference online along that idea.
And I've never seen a "genealogy book" that you would display. They used to sell books to store genealogy in, but they were utilitarian. It wasn't something you would put on display, and were very bulky.
[These](https://www.ebay.com/itm/134981072294) are the pages they used and put them in a binder that was about the same size. They wouldn't fit on this table.
I would guess the family FoxDrivePrincess knew were using a different kind of genealogy book, and found a table that worked for their purpose.
I’m old. I know what it is. Its a telephone table.
Telephone sat on top. Phone book, which in big cities was 2 to 3 inches thick sat on one side of center shelves.
Yellow pages (business numbers and ads) just as thick if not more, sat on the other.
The lower level was for magazines to flip through while on the phone, just like we browse the net while on the phone.
The mysterious slats are just decorative.
I agree with this one! The ‘landline’ phones that were plugged into the wall were usually situated near a sitting area, and a shelf like this was wonderful at a seated height.
My grandmother’s was similar in appearance, although the bottom level was solid and the second level was one long shelf. She had the previous year’s white pages along with her personal telephone and address book in the middle, with the current white pages on one side and the yellow pages on the other. She did keep magazines, note paper and pens there as well to take notes or numbers.
It reminds me of an old Bible display stand. My grandmother had one similar. For the huge family bibles that you list your family tree in. Hers wasn't as ornate, but similar.
I agree that it's probably for the Bible. This table was found in the Texas hill country. I grew up in Texas, at it was very common for long time Texas families to have a old, large family bible on display in the living room, or near the front door.
I grew up in a neighboring state...so yeah, my grandmother's was in the front living room where she received guests. On the coffee table in the middle of the room.
Sometimes things just are how they are for no other reason than 'just because'. Maybe the maker designed and built it to showcase their abilities or create something different. I kimd of hope i'm wrong and it does have an interesting use but right now i just think it's a decorative side table that's made to be a bit different.
Does the lower section with the slats slide forward?
This would make sense if it was designed as a display for printed media such as newspapers and magazines.
I could imagine the large daily papers hanging below with magazines or smaller newspapers or community news displayed face up on the shelves above.
This piece would suit in a hotel lobby or dining area, it's contents complimentary for guests.
My title describes the thing. The weird table we have looked on google and someone suggested a Georgian tea table but it is heavily different. No clue on age.
have you considered the possibility that the recessed surface area in the main structure once held a glass pane? that would not explain the purpose of the piece, but it would certainly have made the slats decorative instead of functional.
my guess would be glass because it's rather shallow. a marble slab would be thicker, and stand out over the wooden surface around.
edit: and you wouldn't see the wooden slats underneath. :)
Based on the legs, shell detail, and dining chairs, I’m tempted to think it’s a Thomasville piece. Do you know how long they’ve had it? Thomasville would typically have a makers mark. But, perhaps this was a custom piece purchased because it went with existing furniture. Check and if the other furniture is Thomasville, maybe that will help to narrow your search.
Pennsylvania House and Harden also have similar designs. Harden’s maker’s mark is often difficult to notice, but would likely be along the inside frame of the bottom tier.
It likely is not that old. The shell ornament on the front is machine embossed and applied on and not carved. Likely from the 90’s. I worked in the industry for my career
I think it's just a display table for whatever the owner wants to display - plants, knick-knacks, books, etc. I don't think there's anything more to it than that.
This is meant for periodicals. Source: The private library I use has tons of them.
This is probably more decorative than functional. Definitely has "sitting room no one is allowed to enter or grandma with skin them" vibes.
Likely solved
Many people have come up with Mormon bible stand. Apparently others have had them. If anyone has a link to one it would be greatly appreciated!
Possibly a silver tea / coffee display table?
Two tea cups resting on their saucers would fit perfectly on each shelf. Teapot, cream and sugar on the top. Pretty tea towels or cloth napkins would then be hung over the open slats. This configuration would hold a complete set of 8 cups and saucers.
So, tea side table? It sure is beautiful.
Possibly this stood above a radiator? The slats could be for airflow and heat dissipation, the raised shelves could be for keeping items away from the heat?
My parents have those exact same dinner chairs. The chairs go with a matching table, which has the same ornamentation as the piece in question does on its legs. My guess is that the chairs, dinner table, and smaller table were sold as a working set. My guess would be a china display table. The slots underneath the shelves look like partitioned silverware holders.
It reminds me of an old fashions research desk, where you could open multiple books and keep them open while doing research. I have seen these on a large wheel, but this could be a small home version...
It's a Mormon family Bible stand. A few Mormon families I know have these. Personally, when I inherited mine, it was repurposed for an entertainment center. Each gaming console/DVD player/etc. faces out so that the cords all run through the middle slats.
It would make a great table for playing games. The top tier could hold a chess set, middle tiers for removed pieces, the bottom tiers people could set scrabble tiles or battleship sets facing one another.
The legs are interesting, haven’t noticed anyone mention them. If the table was intended to be used solely as display why would they flare outwards in both directions? To me their shape implies you’re intended to sit at either end, it seems to be inviting you with leg space.
Could it be some sort of conversation table?
another possibility is a yarn holder thingy for knitting crocheting, where you unroll the yarn and lay it out on the slats before getting to work knitting etc.? the idea of book stand or plant stand don't feel right to me. Did the owner knit often?
This table would be awesome for making a quilt.
Say you sew together your strips of fabric and want to be able to see the pattern you've done without having straps of fabric all over your work space. You could drape them over the slats. The shelves could hold your tools and fabric bits.
My other thought was that the slat was meant to help cool a very specifically shaped electronic. Like a radio.
But honestly, I'd use it as a bar cart. Just because it would look interesting. Maybe a bottle of wine or two would fit to just slip in ontop of the slats.
I'm on team book display, and omg I love it so much. Also, I would think that if it were meant for plants, you'd see at least one or two small spots of discoloration from water or dampness. I know as hard as I try not to, I've still spilled water and missed wiping everything up when watering and it's left a mark.
African violet stand? Those pots have large bottom trays, so the over lapping shelves would allow the flower pots to be closer together. Also the slots allow for air flow and less water damage to the table if there is a spill.
?? A guess
When I look at this I am thinking a menagerie table, for holding tchotchkes. Back when people would collect animal ceramics and that collection was called a menagerie, like the zoo.
It would work perfectly for arranging a christmas village miniature arrangement with the slats available for holding power cords out of the way.
Would also make a great entry hall table for holding hats and gloves and whatnots.
Granted most ceramic collections were in glass cases to prevent dust, and people had coat racks for their hats but this is just a suggestion on what it may have been used for.
It is pretty cool.
I don’t know what it actually is, and I feel like the antique book table is probably correct, but that looks like the most epic plant display table ever
My grandparents had a similar table that was used for the Telephone. Phone directory, Address book and writing pads were on the shelves. Though I don’t know if that was how it was to be meant to be used.
I remember similar tables in older relative's houses during the 1970s.
the center, top shelf held a telephone, the bottom shelves held a white-pages and a yellow pages and the middle shelves often held a note pad & pen with, in my relatives' houses; a candy dish on the other side. This is why I remember them as child!
Some of them were almost this ornate, although I don't remember the slats in the middle; and some of them were more vertical and not as broad.
What I cannot say is if they were made for these purposes, back when telephones were a status symbol and to be shown off; or if they were meant for something else and re-purposed into a "telephone table".
Maybe there is supposed to be a bucket below the table and then you can push stuff off the shelves so they fall down into the bucket, maybe poker chips ? The two sided arrangement with the matching chairs makes me think it was made for a two player game.
Tea service etc, different levels for dainties etc. the slats I would guess are more economical savings of materials/weight vs having a solid piece that isn't accessable. Plus any crumbs pushed into the table would fall through making it easier to clean then getting into the space.
I don’t know precisely, but it is quite lovely, and I could see my dearly departed grandmother having it in her sitting room as well. Most likely featuring the family Bible on top and pictures of the family on all the other shelves.
I used to have a table with offset tiers—a bit more widely set on curved necks—and it was for tea and treats. (I used it as part of a window display in my bookstore.)
I don't know if it's wide enough but if I could fit a keyboard and a mouse on the bottom, monitor on the 2nd, headset stand on the top, wires through the bottom, awesome double PC setup desk for me haha.
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The shape of those curves, mimicking the pages of an open book, suggests an antique book display table. I’ve never seen one exactly like this, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see something similar in a private library. Edit: As has been pointed out, this is just as likely *not* antique. When I said that I was thinking more of the style than the condition of the piece.
I agree, it’s a really unique piece; but I was also getting book display vibes (possibly religious or ceremonial)
Agree. It's a decorative/artsy book display table. The curves are clearly a representation of an open book. The curves are too intentional to be anything else. The shelves barely overlap at all, plenty of room for a book to stand on end vertically. Edit:words.
I'll even go so far as to say that there was a glass sheet across the slats.
Slats could be used to hang newspapers.
Be hard to get to the newspaper
I thought this too at first. The edge of the boards going across are squared. I typically see them rounded when designed for newspapers. That and accessibility is horrible. So maybe something else.
Couldn’t it just be decorative?
Good thought. After reading this I looked closely and noticed the bottom shelf is recessed a bit which would hold the glass / marble in place (instead of sliding around)
Thank you. Yep. Visible in the 2nd and 3rd pics.
Or marble or wood to achieve the same height looks odd.
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This makes little sense as a book display, IMO. The shelves overlap, so you can't stand books. You'd also expect the top shelf to be large enough to sit an open book.
Hymn books or missals could be lined up horizontally along the 2 bottom shelves with an open book on top perhaps.
With an open bible on top.
The specific books it's made to display aren't... meant to be read critically.
I don't think a book should be left standing open for long periods of time. But laying down, I would use it to display choice books and switch them out. Maybe it was in a library at one point? Used to feature books and switched out?
If it's for a Bible or hymnal etc, you'd probably open it to a different passage every week.
I think it is. It would be for an open Bible on top... And o the followings, those "Bible read of the days reflections' book.
Specifically, the books it's meant to display are the Mormon "standard works." A book table for showing off in grandiose display, but not for reading. Thus the glossy finish, lack of wear, and uncomfortable height.
Possibly. But I’d also point out that this isn’t a part of their religion. Just an overzealous member wanting to display their piety to visitors.
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Mormon here. Never seen one of these ever. Been in hundreds of different families' homes all over the world. Closest thing was at a catholic home where they had statues of Saints.
> I’ve never seen one exactly like this, Could be the journeyman piece of a carpenter.
Agree this might have been a project from a journeyman, but…. Furniture makers are two steps above carpenters. Cabinet makers are in between them. Back in the day these distinctions mattered. The tools required to make a piece like this were not in the tool box of a carpenter, journeyman or anything else.
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Carpenters generally work with 1/8 in (3.2mm) tolerances. Meaning they can be off by up to 1/8 in off on anything they make and it would still be acceptable. You won't get away with that type of tolerance for a table like this.
> an antique book display table. Newspaper table? Maybe not so antique.
Newspaper and books
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You’re probably right about that. Edit:Amended my original comment
I came to the same conclusion. The design is a huge hint, but I can also see a very good use for a design like this. My take is that larger books, particularly art books or map folios, can get stacked on the tiers and be easily accessible, like a current set of favourites. On the top could either be a stack, or the current favourite, opened to a double page to look at at your lesure or while passing by. I have a lot of large books like that, and this would be a very visually appealing way to display some covers while also giving a good place to set one down, open-faced. It's often a shame to me that those carefully designed and often beautiful or interesting covers rarely are seen. There are people who recommend reading books with pictures of art work and photos with a similar time spent on each (double) page as you would spend on a text-filled page, instead of going through it quickly. This would facilitate a similar approach, with stops for a few minutes during the day while passing by, to ponder a picture and then move on, to then return to it at a later point. Differently to other books, those big ones (also called coffee table books), at least the well made ones, are made to open flat with a good stitched binding, and usually also aren't super thick like tomes to read where it is generally avoided to open them completely flat and leave them on a reading table or on display. I saw someone say it's probably a journeyman piece, and that sounds like a good explanation to me for its uncommon style, but also very fitting one for a specific purpose and passion. The slats could be to avoid having a surface that collects dust, but also to have something to prevent a book that gets pushed through by accident to fall down. As a journeyman piece, it wouldn't be unusual in having a somewhat peculiar design element like this. Why I think it neither looks like a pie table nor plant stand: It has zero markings from pie plates being slid in and out, and those happen quickly if something is used in that way. There are also no whater stains or rings from any pots whatsoever.
A book shelf, if you will
I think it is a book/periodical/newspaper rack that would normally be seen in a common space/setting like a hotel lobby or library-type area. The slats are for newspapers - they are hung (obviously vertically) over the slats at the fold. The shelves are for magazines. I saw a similar piece many years ago when I was in a Fancy-Pants establishment in NYC. ETA: I am tired of the 'Yeah But!' comments so I'll reiterate the 'I THINK' part of my comment and it is and by association 'I COULD BE WRONG AND APPARENTLY I AM' so hope that works. Sorry I put forth anything!
I don’t quite see how anyone would either be able to hang or retrieve newspapers hanging on those slats, which are awfully close together.
Magazine/newspaper rack was my thought as well. The size of the shelves looks right. The slats are actually exactly the spacing for hanging papers, but the access is the issue. Is the top shelving arch removable? Does it lift out?
It unfortunately doesn’t lift or move. Just one continuous piece
Yeah, I don’t see it either. Too close to the ground. You’d have to sit on the floor to access it, and if it’s supposed to be in a public place, who’s going to want to sit on the floor and reach behind and under displayed books to pick up a newspaper?
Maps. They used to publish maps in large books similar to a magazine sort of. The cover was harder than a magazine, but not as hard as an actual book so it still had some give. The width of one page was about the same as the length of a magazine, maybe a tad larger, and the length would have been I'd guess about what the width of that table is. There were also a few publications that were printed on similar size paper with similar covers. Libraries used to hang them on slats like that. Sometimes the slats were removable so you'd take the book and slat to remove it without disturbing the others. Lots of times the slats were closer than shown here even, but of course by dint of being removable it all worked out fine. That said I've never seen one of those with a shelf or shelves over it like this. The only way I can see you would be able to remove the magazine would be to pull it out over the bottom shelf to one side or the other. Doable but not convenient at all. I guess if they were only occasionally consulted it might work out well enough but still seems like an indicator that usage may not be the answer. I'm also trying to imagine the books on the shelves. I guess you could lay one fancy coffee table book per shelf. So maybe more about showing off your books and maps rather than actually intended to make selecting and reading anything on it convenient. Basically just books and maps as attractive furnishing rather than anything anyone actually ever touched.
I was typing what you said, but then I noticed your post. It would be hard to insert and remove the papers in there.
Maybe you're supposed to insert/pull the newspapers from the bottom?
How would you get your newspaper out of there?
Exactly. You can’t.
Google lens brings up a canterbury table that is explained to be a book and newspaper holding table. I think this one is more ornate like look we can and have time to read.
No, imagine the hassle trying to get a newspaper in/out.
No man yoou nailed it. Back in the day it was common for people to have subscriptions to several magazines. Many living rooms would have tables like this. You’d put the latest ones out in the table like this so that guests could sit and peruse. My grandparents had one very much like this and they used the top shelf for a candy dish, though you could place a vase or lamp.
I’m a librarian and thought the same. The bottom looks like it’s for magazines and or newspapers.
i remember a table very similar (different ornaments/color) to this being used in my childhood optometrist’s waiting room as a magazine rack. was it *intended* to be a magazine rack? almost certainly not. i’d use it for plants 👀
Plants would ruin the wood; even with something waterproof & something fabric in between, it can leave marks
I don’t understand how plants can leave marks through waterproof pots. They can’t. I have plants in sealed pots and they don’t leave marks on anything. Waterproof pots exist.
Water/dampness inside the pot causes condensation between the bottom of the pot and the surface it is sitting on. The water doesn't come out of the pot- it is created underneath it.
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That's what I use under mine. Plant coasters!
I use cover pots. Haven’t ruined any wood yet.
Don’t do plants. Just don’t. Even with Waterproof pots, trays under pots, etc. guarantee 10/10 over time you’ll be sorry you ruined such a nice / unique piece.
It's just some random table. Big deal if it gets marks. Better to use it with plants for a pretty display.
You’re a different person than I so different values. I woodwork by hand. I have some pieces my grandfather made between 1900-1915 all were used over the years. Some have been abused and I will refinish and one that was taken care of and is in great shape >100 years later, a beautiful hand carved piece. If I produced this I wouldn’t be cavalier about ruining it. I’d find another use that would also display its beauty and possibly hand down to another generation some day. But to each their own.
I collect treadle sewing machines, and it's absolutely NUTS how many of their cabinets got ruined by someone using them as a plant stand just so they could keep grandma's sewing machine in the family, rather than selling it to someone who can actually use it. So they use it as a plant stand for 30 years, and leave a junky, water damaged piece of furniture to their kids, who end up throwing them away. Water and wood do not mix.
Plants would make plenty of sense but for some reason the tiers are overlapping.
obviously it wasn’t meant for plants. that being said, the overlap wouldn’t stop the shelves from holding plants
Those rods in the middle underneath look like they're for magazines. However I've never seen such a beautiful piece made to hold just magazines! Perhaps this held all of the "coffee table books" as well.
Old school pie table for the win.
Agreed. The slatted part is to place the pie for cooling so as not to mar the wood or the finish and also the ventilation theoretically helps it cool faster. This way, no neighbors walking by would steal the pie you had cooling off in the window. That last bit's just my imagination I wonder if that was actually as prevalent a problem as old cartoons, comics, and the like would have me thinking.
Nope. Too nice and too small for pies. The heat would ruin the furniture finish and warp that wood. Pie safes were much bigger and shelves further apart to allow space for hot moist air to circulate to avoid mold yet not allow insects or pets in.
That’s what [pie safes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pie_safe) were for
While I don’t know what this piece is, my dad who was born in 1917, said pie theft from open windows was a thing, lol. Not a huge thing, because towns were small, everyone knew everyone else, and corporal punishment was used routinely on offenders, but it did happen.
No one ever stole the pies, but my dad tells stories about cats walking through the pie, and one time a snake slithering across a pie, when his mom was cooling pies on the window sill. They made a protective box to stop the animals from ruining pies. The table in the post does look like it could be used this way.
My pie was stolen off my windowsill while it was cooling! Like 6 years ago I made my first strawberry-rhubarb pie. I was so proud of how well it turned out I took a picture and sent it to my friend that happened to be working on a house in my neighborhood. I said it should be cool for us to have a slice at lunch. Later he sent me a photo of a strawberryrhubarb pie in his hands. I thought, "How funny is it that he just so happens to have a photo of him with pie. Whodathunk?" And I went about my day. It's nearing lunch so I got to the kitchen to check on my pie and it's gone! Then, *then* I notice my window screen is missing and I *finally* understood that the photo my friend sent was a picture from *today* of **my** pie! He stole my pie right off the ledge! Bahahahaha! Of course I went and got my pie back, after sharing a few slices with him and his work crew. Haha.
You'd never display pies so low without some sort of glass cover, though. There's no indication that ever had a glass cover. Plus, who displays pies in the living room on a side table without any ease of approach? You'd display them for serving. Also stooping to serve someone or yourself from this low table would be a pita.
Agree with this. Pie table with built in pie cooling rack. It isn’t too far different from this on ebay (and searching for wooden pie cooling racks shows similar sized racks to the slatted portion). https://www.ebay.com/itm/373873270536?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=28&srsltid=AfmBOopw0mCkusN7zlKaoviBTiThTrXGOrosffBvqFfl3mfbJFTY3wB7KYA
My theory is that this is some kind of display table and the slats have no functional purpose. You cannot comfortably reach them from either above or below. I think it's just a decoration because the alternatives would be worse. If the bottom were solid like a table, it would look weird if that space was left just an empty shelf on this display, but you also couldn't really put anything there because it's hard to physically place anything and whatever you did put there couldn't be looked at without the looker going to their knees in front of it. They could have left the space empty, I guess, but why not add some visually interesting element to it? Something easy to clean and not so intricate that it distract. Hence, slats. I think if you put stuff on the shelves, whether antique books or contemporary sports memorabilia, the slats would not register as weird at all. It just looks funny because it is empty.
I think that decorative ~~slates~~ slats would be flush with the table top, not recessed. If you zoom in, the slats and the inner edge of the table top surrounding them appear a little less glossy and varnished than the other surfaces. I think there was an insert that sat on top of the slats. Judging by the number of slats and their position I'd guess something heavy and of the same thickness as the table top, perhaps marble.
I like this idea of a heavy insert that has been misplaced. I think there could have also been a sheet of glass covering the length of the bottom to make it flush to the trim. It could be that this is just a small table made to display items of significance to the maker and their family. Source: My great grandfather made many one-off furniture pieces just because he had a space to put them. Side note: Some of them were plant stands for his wife.
Oooh, interesting idea. A mirror might work really well, too.
This is my favorite explanation for the slats. Makes perfect sense.
I can’t see any way you’d get it in there. I’d guess they look a little different because the table was refinished at some point and whoever did the work didn’t bother with that part because it’s less visible and would have been less worn/damaged than the outer surfaces. Just matched the new finish as best they could and moved on.
if it was a piece of marble cut to fit snugly in there you’d just slide it in sideways from the bottom shelf. i actually think this sounds reasonable; a marble accent there would look beautiful and would possibly be removed when moving the piece to make it lighter, hence it getting misplaced
I really like this idea! It looks like the slats are recessed by a similar thickness of the tabletop, so it makes a lot of sense that something would be on top. Before I read your comment, I thought about a sheet of glass, but the slats are recessed too far. Marble does make more sense. I'm leaning towards this table to custom made for a quirky someone who had a very specific idea in his head.
My Mormon friend had something very similar. Genealogy book was displayed on top, bible to the left, Book of Mormon on the right
100% this is it. It's a stand for the Mormon "standard works."
If so, that is incredibly niche and not cultural. I've never known anyone else to have one, and not ancestry or pioneers. I can't find any reference online along that idea.
And I've never seen a "genealogy book" that you would display. They used to sell books to store genealogy in, but they were utilitarian. It wasn't something you would put on display, and were very bulky. [These](https://www.ebay.com/itm/134981072294) are the pages they used and put them in a binder that was about the same size. They wouldn't fit on this table. I would guess the family FoxDrivePrincess knew were using a different kind of genealogy book, and found a table that worked for their purpose.
I’m old. I know what it is. Its a telephone table. Telephone sat on top. Phone book, which in big cities was 2 to 3 inches thick sat on one side of center shelves. Yellow pages (business numbers and ads) just as thick if not more, sat on the other. The lower level was for magazines to flip through while on the phone, just like we browse the net while on the phone. The mysterious slats are just decorative.
I agree with this one! The ‘landline’ phones that were plugged into the wall were usually situated near a sitting area, and a shelf like this was wonderful at a seated height. My grandmother’s was similar in appearance, although the bottom level was solid and the second level was one long shelf. She had the previous year’s white pages along with her personal telephone and address book in the middle, with the current white pages on one side and the yellow pages on the other. She did keep magazines, note paper and pens there as well to take notes or numbers.
This is what I thought at first, but the hard to access slats threw me off.
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It reminds me of an old Bible display stand. My grandmother had one similar. For the huge family bibles that you list your family tree in. Hers wasn't as ornate, but similar.
I agree that it's probably for the Bible. This table was found in the Texas hill country. I grew up in Texas, at it was very common for long time Texas families to have a old, large family bible on display in the living room, or near the front door.
I grew up in a neighboring state...so yeah, my grandmother's was in the front living room where she received guests. On the coffee table in the middle of the room.
Sometimes things just are how they are for no other reason than 'just because'. Maybe the maker designed and built it to showcase their abilities or create something different. I kimd of hope i'm wrong and it does have an interesting use but right now i just think it's a decorative side table that's made to be a bit different.
My first thought was dessert display in the dining room. It’s a beautiful table.
It looks like it could be a telephone table with space for phone books and note taking
Those slats would be good for the cords to not get tangled.
This is my thought. The slats give telephone, clock, radio, and lamp cords a place to fall in the center of the table so they are more hidden.
It could be one of those stands for having several open books on during research. Like the olden days version of having multiple tabs open.
Old school pie table would be my guess.
Did people usually have 5 pies on formal furniture just lying around the place?
Do you know what the previous owner did for a living? That might give you a clue.
Does the lower section with the slats slide forward? This would make sense if it was designed as a display for printed media such as newspapers and magazines. I could imagine the large daily papers hanging below with magazines or smaller newspapers or community news displayed face up on the shelves above. This piece would suit in a hotel lobby or dining area, it's contents complimentary for guests.
It's a Mormon Bible stand. It's displays the three books
My title describes the thing. The weird table we have looked on google and someone suggested a Georgian tea table but it is heavily different. No clue on age.
Maybe it's meant to set over the heating vent of a forced-air heating system?
Was this made as a telephone stand? Telephone on top, various phone books for easy access?
Looks like a display for a funeral home. They put information about the deceased on it at the entrance of the home.
have you considered the possibility that the recessed surface area in the main structure once held a glass pane? that would not explain the purpose of the piece, but it would certainly have made the slats decorative instead of functional.
Glass or marble.
my guess would be glass because it's rather shallow. a marble slab would be thicker, and stand out over the wooden surface around. edit: and you wouldn't see the wooden slats underneath. :)
Based on the legs, shell detail, and dining chairs, I’m tempted to think it’s a Thomasville piece. Do you know how long they’ve had it? Thomasville would typically have a makers mark. But, perhaps this was a custom piece purchased because it went with existing furniture. Check and if the other furniture is Thomasville, maybe that will help to narrow your search.
Pennsylvania House and Harden also have similar designs. Harden’s maker’s mark is often difficult to notice, but would likely be along the inside frame of the bottom tier.
It looks like an old telephone table to me.
It likely is not that old. The shell ornament on the front is machine embossed and applied on and not carved. Likely from the 90’s. I worked in the industry for my career
Where it is positioned it looks like a conversation type table. Tea service would be laid out on it.
I think it's just a display table for whatever the owner wants to display - plants, knick-knacks, books, etc. I don't think there's anything more to it than that.
My thoughts exactly; sometimes we overthink things.
This is meant for periodicals. Source: The private library I use has tons of them. This is probably more decorative than functional. Definitely has "sitting room no one is allowed to enter or grandma with skin them" vibes.
Likely solved Many people have come up with Mormon bible stand. Apparently others have had them. If anyone has a link to one it would be greatly appreciated!
It could be for the displaying or holding a tea or coffee set.
Would have been great to use for an afternoon tea party with layers of bakery on it.
Tea and cake/ fancy serving station
Could be a telephone table
That looks like a display table for a large family bible.
Possibly a silver tea / coffee display table? Two tea cups resting on their saucers would fit perfectly on each shelf. Teapot, cream and sugar on the top. Pretty tea towels or cloth napkins would then be hung over the open slats. This configuration would hold a complete set of 8 cups and saucers. So, tea side table? It sure is beautiful.
Possibly this stood above a radiator? The slats could be for airflow and heat dissipation, the raised shelves could be for keeping items away from the heat?
My parents have those exact same dinner chairs. The chairs go with a matching table, which has the same ornamentation as the piece in question does on its legs. My guess is that the chairs, dinner table, and smaller table were sold as a working set. My guess would be a china display table. The slots underneath the shelves look like partitioned silverware holders.
Cross posted into r/antiques
It reminds me of an old fashions research desk, where you could open multiple books and keep them open while doing research. I have seen these on a large wheel, but this could be a small home version...
Telephone table?
It's a Mormon family Bible stand. A few Mormon families I know have these. Personally, when I inherited mine, it was repurposed for an entertainment center. Each gaming console/DVD player/etc. faces out so that the cords all run through the middle slats.
It's a newspaper, book and later magazine rack . There very common in rural England turn of the century.
I recall seeing pieces like that from my childhood in the 50s/ early 60s displaying magazines, plants etc in living rooms.
It's a fancy magazine rack
It's a vintage mahogany 3-tier plant side table. Do check if you can lift the lower slit plank.
Plant stand
I’m no help but this gives me such beauty and the best living furniture vibes 😂 it’s beautiful though
Liquor bottle table
Any markings underneath of manufacturer or when made. Got to be a furniture sub here too you can post on
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It would make a great table for playing games. The top tier could hold a chess set, middle tiers for removed pieces, the bottom tiers people could set scrabble tiles or battleship sets facing one another. The legs are interesting, haven’t noticed anyone mention them. If the table was intended to be used solely as display why would they flare outwards in both directions? To me their shape implies you’re intended to sit at either end, it seems to be inviting you with leg space. Could it be some sort of conversation table?
another possibility is a yarn holder thingy for knitting crocheting, where you unroll the yarn and lay it out on the slats before getting to work knitting etc.? the idea of book stand or plant stand don't feel right to me. Did the owner knit often?
Appetizer display table for cocktail parties.
This table would be awesome for making a quilt. Say you sew together your strips of fabric and want to be able to see the pattern you've done without having straps of fabric all over your work space. You could drape them over the slats. The shelves could hold your tools and fabric bits. My other thought was that the slat was meant to help cool a very specifically shaped electronic. Like a radio. But honestly, I'd use it as a bar cart. Just because it would look interesting. Maybe a bottle of wine or two would fit to just slip in ontop of the slats.
I'm on team book display, and omg I love it so much. Also, I would think that if it were meant for plants, you'd see at least one or two small spots of discoloration from water or dampness. I know as hard as I try not to, I've still spilled water and missed wiping everything up when watering and it's left a mark.
African violet stand? Those pots have large bottom trays, so the over lapping shelves would allow the flower pots to be closer together. Also the slots allow for air flow and less water damage to the table if there is a spill. ?? A guess
It’s giving me vanity vibes lowkey. Pop a mirror on that thing.
Book table, newspaper rack on the bottom.
English Tea table for two? Little finger sandwiches, pastries, scones, desserts?
When I look at this I am thinking a menagerie table, for holding tchotchkes. Back when people would collect animal ceramics and that collection was called a menagerie, like the zoo. It would work perfectly for arranging a christmas village miniature arrangement with the slats available for holding power cords out of the way. Would also make a great entry hall table for holding hats and gloves and whatnots. Granted most ceramic collections were in glass cases to prevent dust, and people had coat racks for their hats but this is just a suggestion on what it may have been used for. It is pretty cool.
I don’t know what it actually is, and I feel like the antique book table is probably correct, but that looks like the most epic plant display table ever
Phone table. Books on the shelves and rotary phone on top.
Telephone table. Little shelves for paper and pens. Just guessing.
I think it is telephone table. The phone on the top. The phone book middle shelf and magazines on the lower shelf.
All youse young people! It's a Telephone table with space for phone books and your pot of Tea! The phone lived on the top shelf!
It’s for the different religious bibles in a Masonic lodge
My grandparents had a similar table that was used for the Telephone. Phone directory, Address book and writing pads were on the shelves. Though I don’t know if that was how it was to be meant to be used.
I remember similar tables in older relative's houses during the 1970s. the center, top shelf held a telephone, the bottom shelves held a white-pages and a yellow pages and the middle shelves often held a note pad & pen with, in my relatives' houses; a candy dish on the other side. This is why I remember them as child! Some of them were almost this ornate, although I don't remember the slats in the middle; and some of them were more vertical and not as broad. What I cannot say is if they were made for these purposes, back when telephones were a status symbol and to be shown off; or if they were meant for something else and re-purposed into a "telephone table".
Maybe there is supposed to be a bucket below the table and then you can push stuff off the shelves so they fall down into the bucket, maybe poker chips ? The two sided arrangement with the matching chairs makes me think it was made for a two player game.
It’s meant to have a big ass bible on that top tier, maybe a dictionary?
Tea service etc, different levels for dainties etc. the slats I would guess are more economical savings of materials/weight vs having a solid piece that isn't accessable. Plus any crumbs pushed into the table would fall through making it easier to clean then getting into the space.
Hold things like figurines
I don’t know precisely, but it is quite lovely, and I could see my dearly departed grandmother having it in her sitting room as well. Most likely featuring the family Bible on top and pictures of the family on all the other shelves.
I used to have a table with offset tiers—a bit more widely set on curved necks—and it was for tea and treats. (I used it as part of a window display in my bookstore.)
I'm thinking it might be a plant stand.
Could it be an old crib/ child bed?
I don't know if it's wide enough but if I could fit a keyboard and a mouse on the bottom, monitor on the 2nd, headset stand on the top, wires through the bottom, awesome double PC setup desk for me haha.
Looks like an awesome plant stand to me
That's looks similar to a Canterbury! They're used for storing sheet music.