French furniture part 1 - La table de chevet

I start a series of some interesting furniture I have found in my travels around France in the September of 2014.

La table de chevet

Here is a good example of a bedside table that shows the importance of trying to keep woodworm in check.

The piece is an antique of unknown age, (maybe a knowledgeable reader could supply the period of manufacture), it has wonderful pierced cabriole legs, a shaped top and a single lockable drawer in the front apron. The dovetails in the drawer were all handcut and the base was made from 3 boards of oak glued together and roughly cut to fit in grooves cut into the drawer sides and front.

On the face of it the table looks fabulous

Look a little closer and some holes can quite easily be seen

Zoom in and you can see those pesky bugs
have had a big meal

The base is made of three boards
with some quite rough edges left on the
rabbet planing.

An interesting detail at the back
of the drawer. A new one on me.

So make sure you either use kiln dried stock or treat the timber with an approved insecticide to avoid ending up with problems like this piece has. Of course the bugs may have got into the piece by some other means during its history.