An Anglo-German oak and parquetry Nonsuch chest

An Anglo-German oak and parquetry Nonsuch chest, the hinged top revealing a lidded till fitted with two drawers, the front with a pair of pedimental arches, inlaid with buildings and geometric and floral borders, with iron side carrying handles, late 16th / early 17th century, 67.4cm high, 123cm wide, 59.7cm deep.

'Nonsuch' chests resemble similar chests made in Germany but they are now thought to have been made in Southwark by émigré German and Netherlandish cabinet makers. Their decoration of parquetry spired buildings derive from prints by Hans Vredeman de Vries (1527-1604). They became to be known as 'Nonsuch' chests after Henry VIII's palace of Nonsuch in Surrey because their decoration was thought, wrongly, to represent that building.