The table came fresh to the market in the sale held by Adam's of Dublin on May 17. Although the top had been re-blocked and the shell on the front damaged, the 5ft (1.52m) wide by 2ft 4in (71cm) deep table was in very good condition and had retained a lot of the original colour.
"The colour was a lovely chocolate brown and was in what auctioneers up and down the country would call 'good original condition'," said Adam's director Stuart Cole.
Well documented family history shows the quintessentially Irish table was valued at £20 in 1935 and £150 in 1958, both considerable sums at the time. Last week it attracted plenty of interest and was entered with an estimate of €150,000-200,000. The auctioneers were happy to see it sell to an Irish buyer for €180,000/£128,600 plus 15 per cent buyer's premium.
• A report of Mealy's sale held at Luggala, Co. Wicklow on May 2 - an event that included many good examples of Irish furniture and silver - appears on pages 21 and 22.
Stephanie Harris
