This 'commode' form, with 'Secretary' frieze drawer combined with the ribbon-banded inlay of Roman-medallions of richly-figured mahogany, was introduced in the 1770s and later popularised, together with the arcaded cornice, by A. Hepplewhite & Co.'s The Cabinet-Maker and Upholsterer's Guide, 1788. Its octagonal handle plate was used by the London and Lancaster firm of Gillows.