Buying into Dining History with Antique Sideboards

When you are buying a sideboard, antique or of more recent manufacture, it is important to be clear about the difference between this item of dining room furniture and a server; essentially, yesterday’s sideboards have become today’s servers.

However, when buying a sideboard for a formal dining room, furnished in traditional style, an antique piece is most desirable. It not only qualifies as an investment which is likely to increase in value, but it is also far more practical and functional than a typical server.

Characteristics of Sideboards

During the 18th century, only affluent homes boasted a sideboard, which was used as a surface on which to accommodate serving dishes from which food could be comfortably and conveniently served, since it was (and is) of waist height. It was also used to display prized items, such as silverware, goblets and decanters.

Typically, this handy furniture item has one or two drawers below its top surface, with two cupboard doors beneath the drawers, opening to reveal a shelf and storage space. Drawers held cutlery, serviettes and smaller table linens, whilst plates, serving dishes, glassware, table cloths and the like, were stored in the cupboard sections, all conveniently placed near the dining table.

By the 19th century, more people were able to afford to have a room and furniture dedicated to dining, and thus the sideboard gained popularity as an essential dining room accessory. Because the sideboards’ contents were enclosed, they remained secure, clean and dust free at a time when purpose-made storage space was a symbol of prosperity.

Sideboard or Server

Many people use these terms interchangeably, whilst others differentiate between the two. Commonly, a typical sideboard is much as described previously, often with very short legs or with the cabinet extending all the way to the floor.

Amongst those who differentiate, a server is thought to have two drawers beneath the top, for storage of cutlery, flatware and small items. According to these folks, the typical server is lower than the sideboard’s waist height and does not incorporate a cupboard section, instead having its legs extend all the way from below the drawers to the floor, with open space between the unit’s legs.

Welsh Dresser

This piece of furniture also has an interesting, varied history, beginning in the kitchen, where it functioned as a practical piece of furniture on which meats were dressed and food was prepared, prior to being taken into the dining room and placed on the sideboard, before serving.

A traditional Welsh dresser has one or two drawers with hinged cupboard doors below, much like the sideboard. The shelved section on top of the working surface was also initially used for storage and later for display purposes.

The old Scottish version of this dresser is noteworthy; one drawer was lined with tin and was known as the “porridge drawer”, into which boiling hot, cooked porridge was placed to cool off and be stored for slicing and consumption, as and when required.

Period Antiques

As importers of fine antiques from English and French royal periods, we supply discerning South African buyers with some of the best examples of furniture from these times, including Victorian, Edwardian, Georgian and Regency sideboards, perfect for dining or reception rooms.