Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 21

American Oak Dining Suite by R.J. Horner

About the Item

This outstanding 13-piece Victorian dining suite by R.J. Horner of New York boasts intricate hand carving rarely seen in furnishings of the era. Crafted of fine golden oak, the suite features eight dining chairs, a versatile dining table, a vitrine, a sideboard, a buffet and a chest that holds the leaves of the dining table. Each piece is detailed with a myriad of lavishly hand-carved figures, including winged lions, fanciful masks, dragons and maidens. The dining table was surely crafted with flexibility in mind, as inside the accompanying chest are nine leaves which allow the table to expand an additional seven feet in length from its original square dimensions. In terms of size and craftsmanship, this suite is a shining example of Victorian furniture. The period between 1880 and 1920 is often regarded as the “golden age” of American furniture craftsmanship, not only for the quality of the pieces, but also for the characteristic golden lacquers applied to finished furnishings. Overall prosperity following the American Civil War gave rise to wealthier families, larger homes and, hence, a desire for larger, more ornate furnishings for those homes. Oak became popular during this time, due to a shortage of available walnut. In particular, the New York firm of Robert J. Horner is known for creating some of the greatest, handcrafted oak furnishings of this period. Horner was a clerk at a curtain shop before opening his furnishing business in 1885. Although the firm lasted only 30 years, the pieces that were produced during that time displayed high-level carving and handmade craftsmanship that was seldom seen during the Victorian Age, which was largely marked by mechanized work and industrialism. Today, items crafted by Horner are highly desirable and sought by collectors of premium Victorian furniture. Circa 1885 Chairs: 19 1/2” wide x 47 3/4” high Table (without leaves): 53” wide x 53” length x 30 1/4” high Table (with leaves): 140 1/2” length Sideboard: 74 1/2” wide x 25 3/4” deep x 48” high Buffet: 44” wide x 18” deep Vitritne: 55 1/2" wide x 19 1/2" deep x 81 3/4" high Leaf Chest: 54 1/2" wide x 21" deep x 21" deep.
  • Creator:
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 30.25 in (76.84 cm)Width: 53 in (134.62 cm)Depth: 140.5 in (356.87 cm)
  • Sold As:
    Set of 13
  • Style:
    Victorian (In the Style Of)
  • Materials and Techniques:
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    circa 1885
  • Condition:
  • Seller Location:
    New Orleans, LA
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 29-32471stDibs: LU891129341072
More From This SellerView All
  • Colonial Revival Dining Room Suite
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    This important and complete American Federal dining room suite is truly a magnificent find. This suite has remained intact for over 150 years, and i...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century American Neoclassical Dining Room Sets

    Materials

    Brass

  • Expanding Jupe Dining Table by Johnstone and Jeanes
    By Robert Jupe
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    This exceptionally rare circular expanding dining table was designed by Robert Jupe and crafted by the English cabinetmakers Johnstone & Jeanes, successors to Johnstone, Jupe & Co. One of only a handful known from the firm, this table illustrates the Victorian era's quest to combine technical innovation with superb and beautiful craftsmanship. Complete with its original leaves, the table’s circular top is formed from eight separate segments. When the top is rotated, an ingenious swivel mechanism causes the sections to diverge, allowing a set of small or large leaves to be inserted for an adjustable increase in size. The design for the table was patented by Robert Jupe in 1835, who had envisioned “an improved expanding table so constructed that the sections composing its surface may be caused to diverge from a common center and that the spaces caused thereby may be filled up by inserting leaves or filling pieces.” The first of these fascinating tables were created between 1835 and 1840 during his partnership with John Johnstone and their firm of Johnstone, Jupe & Co. in London. Jupe left the company in 1840, after which the firm changed its name due to a new partnership and became Johnstone & Jeanes. The firm would eventually achieve international fame for its remarkable designs, exhibiting a "circular table made on the expanding principle" like this one at the Great Exhibition of 1851. Jupe was not alone in his fascination with combining the technical merits of engineering and mechanics with the more artful pursuit of cabinet making. The first half of the 19th century saw a prolific increase in the popularity of applying new ideas to furniture principles, which allowed furniture to serve many purposes. The resulting “patent” furniture...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century English Victorian Dining Room Tables

    Materials

    Mahogany

  • South American Presentation Sword
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    Believed to have originated from the collection of a South American diplomat, the exquisiteness of this presentation sword conveys its ownership by ...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century South American Other Arms, Armor and Weapons

    Materials

    Steel, Brass, Bronze

  • Oak and Walnut Tester Bed
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    This lavish American oak and walnut tester bed exhibits superior craftsmanship and detail. The design is embellished by elaborate carving throughout ...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century American Beds and Bed Frames

    Materials

    Silk, Mahogany, Oak, Walnut

  • American Cut Glass and Silver Tobacco Jar
    By Bailey, Banks & Biddle
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    This resplendent tobacco jar by Bailey, Banks & Biddle of Philadelphia features a beautiful sterling silver lid atop a body of elegant cut-to-clear glass. The lid is adorned with a wonderful Rococo repoussé decoration which contrasts beautifully with the green and cranberry cut glass...
    Category

    Antique Late 19th Century American Other Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes

    Materials

    Sterling Silver

  • Chippendale-Style Mahogany Dining Chairs
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    An outstanding set of Chippendale-style dining chairs, created from designs by Thomas Chippendale, one of history's most celebrated artisans. A testimony to the incredible workmanshi...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century English Chippendale Dining Room Chairs

    Materials

    Leather, Mahogany

You May Also Like
  • R.J. Horner Antique Victorian Oak Pedestal Dining Table with Carved Lions
    By R.J. Horner & Co.
    Located in South Bend, IN
    An outstanding antique Victorian extension pedestal dining table. By R.J. Horner & Co. USA, late 19th century. Oak, with ornat...
    Category

    Antique Late 19th Century American Victorian Dining Room Tables

    Materials

    Oak

  • Monumental Antique American Carved Mahogany High Relief Oriental Dining Suite
    Located in Dayton, OH
    An outstanding rare one of a kind American Victorian Chinoiserie Carved Dining Room Suite, Circa 1880s. Made from mahogany with a meticulous high relief Chinese Oriental dragon carved theme throughout. The suite features, a large hutch...
    Category

    Antique Late 19th Century American Victorian Dining Room Sets

    Materials

    Mahogany

  • DESIGNER KESTERPORT AMERICAN HARDWOOD DiNING TABLE & CHAIR DINING ROOM SUITE
    By Kesterport
    Located in GB
    Royal House Antiques Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this absolutely sublime American Mahogany Kesterport Dining table & Chair suite Please note the delivery fe...
    Category

    20th Century English Art Deco Dining Room Sets

    Materials

    Glass, Hardwood

  • Louis Majorelle "Chicorée" Walnut and Oak Dining Suite
    By Louis Majorelle
    Located in New York, NY
    This Louis Majorelle extendable dining table, accompanied by a set of six matching chairs, is a solid display of French Art Nouveau style in furniture. The "Chicorée," or "Chicory," ...
    Category

    Early 20th Century French Art Nouveau Dining Room Sets

    Materials

    Upholstery, Wood, Oak, Walnut

  • W. Kuyper Dutch Arts & Crafts Dining Suite in Oak & Rush, c. 1920s
    Located in Norwalk, CT
    Presenting a fabulous and rare breakfast suite from the early days of Dutch design, with influences from the Arts and Crafts and Rationalist movements. Crafted from oak wood and wove...
    Category

    Early 20th Century Dutch Arts and Crafts Dining Room Sets

    Materials

    Rush, Oak

  • Modern Armona Dining Table, American Oak Brass, Handmade Portugal by Greenapple
    By Rute Martins, Greenapple
    Located in Lisboa, PT
    Armona dining table, Contemporary Collection, Handcrafted in Portugal - Europe by Greenapple. Designed by Rute Martins for the Contemporary Collec...
    Category

    21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Dining Room Tables

    Materials

    Marble, Onyx, Brass

Recently Viewed

View All