Seuffert pieces were always luxury items so it was unusual to see one in such poor condition. Despite this there were some things in its favour from a restoration point of view: the quality of the original parquetry, the thickness of the hand-cut veneers, and best of all no one had attempted a home restoration job on it e.g. no sanding or dodgy gluing.  Essentially it was a jigsaw puzzle with only a few pieces missing making it one of the most satisfying restorations I’ve ever carried out as well as one of the best “before and after” photos.

 

Another unusual aspect of the table was that the maker (probably William) had helpfully written the names of the timber underneath.  I was especially pleased with a cunning repair to the Toro veneer: I snuck out a piece of adjacent veneer by splicing it in two and using the underside for the missing bit. 

 

In late 2022 the table came on the market and I had the opportunity to “marry” it to an old base (it having previously hung on a wall) as well as to inspect my work and the finish 14 years after the original restoration.