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A Scotsman in Jamaica

The top is made using many exotic tropical hardwoods, and the inlay work includes marquetry depictions of Scottish thistles and Jamaican Lignum Vitae flowers or tree of life set among geometric shapes, creating a captivating visual effect. The national flower of Jamaica is the Lignum Vitae flower and the thistle is Scotlands. So this table represents a marriage of cultures, combined with the anchor representing sea travel and the end of a journey.

The table is believed to have been possibly made by Ralph Turnbull, a Scots-born cabinetmaker who emigrated to Jamaica with his brothers Cuthbert and Thomas in the early 19th century. The Turnbull brothers established themselves in Kingston, a thriving city built on the success of the sugar trade, where they found a receptive market for their locally made furniture, which was influenced by current English prototypes.

While it is believed that the Turnbull brothers initially worked together, each had established his own workshop by the early 1820s and began advertising their skills separately, attempting to distinguish themselves from each other and other competition. Ralph Turnbull was the most successful of the brothers, and he was the only one to label his furniture, perhaps in a bid to differentiate his work from that of his brothers.

Today, Ralph Turnbull’s work is highly prized for its quality and craftsmanship, and pieces like this mid-nineteenth-century veneered centre table serve as a testament to his skill as a furniture maker. The intricate inlay work and the use of exotic tropical hardwoods make this table a beautiful and unique piece of furniture

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Jamaican Tilt Top Centre Table In the Manner of Ralph Turnbull

Stock Number: 64578

This mid-nineteenth-century Jamaican veneered centre table is a stunning piece of furniture with a highly decorative top that features a profuse inlaid parquetry design. In the Manner of Ralph Turnbull.

£16,500

This rarefied unique piece is subject to availability.
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Telephone: +44 (0) 207 6920 897

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