A CEYLONESE EBONY SPECIMEN WOOD INLAID CENTRE TABLE

This table is typical of the carved ebony furniture manufactured on the island of Ceylon Sri Lanka in the Galle district, throughout the 19th century. While the form of these tables is based on English designs dating to the second quarter of the 19th century (such as Thomas King's The Modern Style of Cabinet Work Exemplified of 1829), the carved ornament, including the pala-peti or lotus motif are derived from local traditions. These tables were supplied to the British colonists in Ceylon and India as for export to England. A number of tables similarly inlaid with exotic woods are known including the earliest dated example, formerly at the Royal Commonwealth Society with a presentation plaque dated 1836 (A. Jaffer, Furniture from British India and Ceylon, London, 2001, p. 373, fig. 142).