Majestic Mahogany 1

Sleigh Mahogany Bedroom Suite

Mahogany Furniture – A Gift From France

In the first part of this two-part blog special we will be looking at how French mahogany furniture took Europe by storm before being snuffed out in its prime. Then, in the second part, we will look at its revival and longevity.

The deep reddish tones and regal lines of traditional mahogany furniture will forever hold a certain place in furniture history. There’s nothing quite like the grandiose of a Sleigh bed to bring a sense of opulence to your home.

In fact, opulence is a perfect word to describe the distinctive style of the sleigh bed and the related furniture that sits alongside it as they both originate from France! The word literally means wealth through work, again drawing uncanny parallels to the furniture.

Mahogany Furniture – In a Class of Its Own

Mahogany furniture became popular with the aristocracy of France in the middle of the 18th century. Furniture design had recently swung away from intricate patterns so common in walnut furniture towards using bold flowing lines. Mahogany leant itself ideally to this new styling. The grain of mahogany was easier to work and carve into these designs than walnut, and the simpler, wide grain structure of mahogany took stain far more evenly.

Mahogany and Flowing Lines

Mahogany Furniture – Not Just Sleigh Beds

This era saw mahogany furniture throughout the home, but most notably as bedroom furniture. The instantly recognisable sleigh bed was accompanied by matching mahogany wardrobes, mahogany chests of drawers, and mahogany dressing tables, etc.

Mahogany Furniture & The Revolution

It’s a crying shame that much of the original French mahogany furniture from this time was destroyed in the French revolution, when the French common men destroyed the aristocracy and everything that went with it.

However, the irony of mahogany furniture is that its major revival was brought about by a French king, some fifty years later! We will look into the lasting influence Duke Louis Philippe had on the world of furniture in our next blog post.