Canterbury

This unusual canterbury, used for storing sheet music or books, is made of kauri but has been carved and painted to look like bamboo. The top and bottom shelves are solid, and the middle section is slotted.

In the late nineteenth century, when this piece was made, furniture and other objects from Asia were becoming increasingly popular with New Zealand's well-to-do. Between 1881 and 1884 imports from Japan rose from £95 to £10,393, driven by the 'fashion for orientalism' (Cottrell 2006, 191).

These imported items were expensive, however, so pieces like this were made to emulate the fashion while still making use of widely available native timbers.

Reference

Cottrell, William. 2006. Furniture of the New Zealand Colonial Era, An Illustrated History 1830-1900. Auckland: Reed, 2006.