Antique Oak Dining Tables
Antique Oak Dining Tables cover a huge period of history through from Medieval times into the 16th,17th, 18th & 19th Centuries with the early Jacobean, Charles II and Tudor oak refectory tables and continued with evolution to the Victorian Oak Extending Dining Tables.

English oak forestation at one time covered a majority of the UK landscape so plentiful for the construction of houses, ships and furniture. As we know the growth in population and civilisation, in relation to the slow growth rate of the magnificent oak trees, has sadly led to the oak tree being pretty rare and expensive timber these days.

The early period oak refectory tables were of very simple format combining thick plank tops, sometimes cleated at the ends and all jointing with mortice, tenon and pegs through the bases which were initially of simple shaped trestle boards or X frame and evolved into Charles II period with gun barrel turned legs united by stretchers. Of course the refectory type table has been made in these formats right up to today but in terms of formal dining the introduction of imported mahogany from the Colonies pretty much had oak for furniture construction skipping the whole late 18^th Century through to late 19^th Century as a design evolution period of the formal dining tables.

We’ve seen the odd late 18^th Century George III period section D end design tables in oak and indeed one Regency period pedestal table in oak from very north of the UK but really the whole period, after Gillow's introduction of the runner system extending dining table in around C1815, tables were made in mahogany. It wasn’t until the 1880s, when we lost the Colonies and import of mahogany, that formal dining tables once again required using English oak. At this time the format of extending dining had very much been set with tables in the round, oval or rectangular supported by legs and the framework incorporating a box section runners system incorporating a steel winder to adjust lengths and incorporate combinations of extension leaves.

This late 19^th Century Victorian period also saw, with the re-introduction of oak, a revival of many former design aspects that hadn’t been used since the 17^th Century. So Jacobean, Gothic and Tudor influences very much influenced what became the Arts & Crafts movement using predominantly oak. These influences are highlighted by quite a variance of appearance in the antique oak dining tables we have from this period today with clean lined, carved or still retaining some notion of the Victorian rococo curves.

The late 19th Century oak extending dining tables are extremely well built, incorporating immense runner systems on substantial legs and the solid tops of figured quarter sawn oak. They offer up a less formal look than mahogany and many here at Elisabeth James leave with a client’s specification of a bleached matt finish rather than the formal French polish to suit modern fresher house interiors. With sizes from 8ft to 26ft length also a great variation on offer for all homes and budgets.