Antique Octagonal Drop Leaf Gateleg Table, Yellow Paint, c. 1900–1935
Viridian Eclection
The Piece
A small octagonal gateleg table, the top divided by a single drop leaf so that it opens to a full octagon and closes to a flat backed half, and the whole thing painted a soft buttery yellow that has worn back to black and to bare wood along every edge and corner.
The top carries a shallow scratch bead run parallel to the perimeter, following all eight sides, which is the detail that keeps an octagon from reading as a plain slab. The edge below it is a simple rounded thumb profile.
Underneath it is a proper gate. Four slender legs stand at the corners, and a fifth swings out on a pivoting arm from the stretcher assembly to carry the leaf when it is raised. The legs are turned as slim balusters with ring collars, square blocks at the top and at the stretcher junction, and small turned feet below. They join a shaped cross stretcher, one arm of which is cut in a serpentine wave rather than left straight, which is the ornamental flourish the maker paid for. The apron under the leaf side is cut with a scrolled skirt.
Turn it over and the story is plain. The underside was never painted. It carries its original dark, nearly black stained finish, with the yellow having run over the edges in drips and splatters where a brush was worked from the top down. A rolled steel back flap hinge sits mortised into the leaf joint, held by six flat screws, and there is an old pencil mark on the boards.
History & Provenance
There is no label, stamp or paper anywhere on the table, so the dating is built from the way it was made and from what it does not have.
The floor comes from the turning. The legs are cut with uniform, repeating ring and baluster profiles of a crispness and consistency that belongs to a production lathe, not to a hand turner working one leg at a time, and the hinge is a rolled and stamped steel back flap of the kind supplied by the hardware trade rather than forged. This is factory furniture. The type itself is Colonial Revival, the American industry programme that ran from the Centennial of 1876 and dominated commercial furniture output from about 1900, and the small octagonal gateleg occasional table was one of its staple products.
The ceiling comes from the screws. Every screw in the table is slotted. Henry Phillips patented the cross recess in 1936 and American manufacturing took it up quickly, so a piece assembled much past that point would be expected to show at least some cross recess screws somewhere. There are none, which caps the date rather than setting it, and that is how it has been used here.
The wood has not been identified and is not claimed. It is stained very dark underneath and painted above, and the exposed chips show a close grained hardwood with no figure, which is consistent with the birch and maple that American factories used for turned work but is equally consistent with several other woods. Stripping a corner would settle it.
The yellow is a later coat, and that is not in doubt. It stops at the underside, it has run over the edges in drips onto a finish that was already there, and the finish beneath it is the original dark stain. How much later is not established. The paint is worn thin on every high point and chipped to black and to bare wood at the corners and along the leaf edge, which is a long time of use rather than a recent distressing.
Product Details
| Era | c. 1900–1935. Dated on construction and hardware rather than on style, since the Colonial Revival reproduced earlier forms continuously. The uniform production lathe turning and the stamped steel back flap hinge place it as factory furniture, and the octagonal gateleg occasional table is a Colonial Revival staple of the period from about 1900, which is the floor. Every screw in the table is slotted, with no cross recess screws anywhere, which caps the date at roughly the point American manufacturing adopted the Phillips recess after its 1936 patent. The absence of a label sets no boundary of its own. The yellow paint is later than the table and is not part of the dating |
| Form | Octagonal top with a single drop leaf, five legs including one swinging gate leg, shaped serpentine cross stretcher, scrolled apron |
| Material | Close grained hardwood, not identified, consistent with birch or maple. Original dark stained finish retained on the underside |
| Finish | Later pale yellow paint over the original dark finish, worn thin on the high points and chipped to black and bare wood at the corners and edges. Underside unpainted with brush drips over the edges |
| Hardware | Rolled steel back flap hinge mortised into the leaf joint, six slotted flat screws, original and oxidised |
| Marks | None. No maker label, stamp, stencil or paper. An old pencil mark on the underside boards |
| Dimensions | Approximately 24 in. across the octagon open by 29 in. high, and approximately 16 in. deep with the leaf down |
| Condition | Good sturdy antique condition. Frame tight, joints sound, stands level without rock. Gate swings freely and carries the leaf. Hinge firm with all six screws present. Paint worn throughout with chipping to black and bare wood at the corners, the leaf edge and the feet, and a small open loss on the top near one edge. Top boards show a visible seam at the leaf joint. Sold as found with the paint untouched |
Why It Belongs in Your Home
The drop leaf is the reason to buy this rather than a round side table. Flat against a wall it takes almost no room and reads as a narrow console. Swing the gate out and you have a full octagon that seats two for coffee or holds a lamp, a stack of books and a drink. Very little furniture at this size does two jobs that cleanly.
The paint is doing work too. A yellow this soft is close to a neutral, and because it is worn through to black at every corner it carries contrast that a freshly painted piece never has. It will sit against white walls, against dark green, against wood tones, and it will look at home in a farmhouse room, a cottage room or a modern one that needs something with a history in it.
It can also be taken the other way. The underside proves the original dark finish is still under the yellow, so a buyer who wants the table stripped back has a known quantity waiting rather than a gamble. Either choice is open, which is worth something on its own.
Every piece is packed with professional-grade materials: multiple foam layers, double-boxing, directional and fragile handling labels. For large furniture we use custom timber crating. We photograph packing before dispatch and can provide images on request.
White-glove delivery is complimentary within 100 miles of Reno, NV. National shipping quotes provided at checkout. All shipments are photographed and documented. Damage claims must be filed with the carrier; we provide all documentation needed to support your claim.
Local pickup is available at Viridian HQ (Reno, NV) with 2–4 days notice. Contact us to arrange. Private viewings also available.
All antique and vintage items are sold as described and all sales are final. Each listing includes detailed condition notes and photographs so you can make a fully informed decision. We encourage buyers to ask questions — about condition, dimensions, finish, provenance — before purchasing.
Antiques are irreplaceable and one-of-a-kind. Carrier handling is outside our control once a piece has left our facility, and major carriers including FedEx do not insure antiques. We do everything within our power to ensure safe transit, but cannot accept liability for carrier damage. If damage occurs in transit, we will provide full documentation to support your carrier claim.
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