An Anglo Indian padouk and ivory inlaid bureau bookcase Vizagapatam, circa 1780

the upper section with a pair of glazed astragal doors enclosing adjustable shelves, the fall revealing pigeonholes above small drawers, below are four long drawers with white metal handles, inlaid throughout with engraved ivory trailing flowers and foliage

Anonymous sale, Sotheby's London, 19 June 1981, lot 90a.

Good overall condition. Refinished. Minor age cracks to pediment fretwork. Minor wear to engraving. Left side of bureau section with a water mark and an age crack. White metal handles appear to be original. Minor repairs, losses and lifting to ivory bandings and beading. Back boards in teak. Good consistent colour. Minor old marks and scratches.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The present lot belongs to a distinct group of furniture manufactured in the south-eastern coastal town of Vizagapatam for European settlers and traders. Whilst the decoration is recognisably Indian in character, drawing its inspiration from brightly coloured cotton goods, the design of the cabinet-work is based on 18th century Dutch, English or Portuguese models. The materials such as ivory, teak and padouk were locally sourced, providing striking new variations on familiar themes. This bureau bookcase represents a stylistic evolution of an earlier double domed prototype exemplified by a number of closely related pieces documented in Amin Jaffer, Furniture from British India and Ceylon, 2001, pp. 182-185. Dating from 1730s, these are characterised by a greater profusion of inlay, sometimes featuring an ebony ground. In contrast, the inlay on the cabinet here is restricted to border work. The offered lot can be regarded as a rare survival as the standard reference works covering this category of furniture do not include any directly comparable  full-scale bureau cabinets of this date. Towards the end of the 18th century, Vizagapatam cabinet-makers extended the use of ivory to veneer work, typified by miniature bureau cabinets such as that illustrated in Amin Jaffer op. cit., p. 201, no. 46. The relative abundance of extant examples of this smaller size, suggests the possibility that the fashion for ivory veneering was not conducive to full scale cabinet work. This may have been a contributing factor in the apparently diminishing production of larger pieces such as the present lot, towards the end of the 18th century.

A related clothes press recorded in the collection of the Earls of Craven at Combe Abbey, is illustrated in H. Avray Tipping, English Homes, 1920, period IV, vol. I, p. 171, pl. 227. Further comparable clothes presses sold Christie's, Wateringbury Place, 1 June 1978, lot 627 and Christie's London, 15 November 1990, lot 111.

For a comprehensive footnote on 18th century Anglo-Indian furniture production in Vizagapatam, see Sotheby's London 6 June 2006, lot 330.