Oak Shaving Cabinet with Carved Crest and Mirror Door, Belgium, 1900

An antique oak shaving cabinet from Belgium, made around 1900. This small wall cabinet has a mirror door that opens onto two shelves, with a drawer below and a moulded cornice on top, crowned by a scrolled carved crest. The frieze under the cornice and the front of the drawer are decorated with rows of carved flutes, and the door and drawer have turned wooden knobs. The oak has a warm medium-brown colour with a clearly visible grain, and the proportions give the piece a neat, architectural look. The cabinet measures 69 cm high, 40 cm wide and 18 cm deep. The mirror glass shows dark spots and loss of silvering, which gives it an authentic aged character; the cabinet itself is in good condition with normal signs of age. A practical and charming piece for a bathroom, a hallway or a guest toilet, to store small things behind the mirror door, or as a decorative wall cabinet in a kitchen.