Perfectly charming is he in those bijou pieces with which he shows his genius for catching feminine taste (Plate cxlvii.). Not Chippendale or Heppelwhite can rival him in this field, though the one in some few of his lighter tables and screens, the other in a work-table or two of the simpler kind, has produced an elegant result. Sheraton's high-water mark is reached in these delightful inventions, so daintily silhouetted, so prettily inlaid with detail.

Plate CXL. Sideboard, Mahogany Inlaid Sheraton

cxl. Sideboard, mahogany inlaid. Sheraton. Augustus Spencer, Esq.

Plate CXLVII. Cabinet, Cedar Veneered With Satin Wood And Inlaid Sheraton

CXLVII. Cabinet, cedar veneered with satin-wood and inlaid. Sheraton. One of a pair. The inlay is of root of walnut. Within the folding doors are drawers and partitions, and a folding shelf which draws out. V. & A. M.

Dimensions: Height 40½, Breadth 18½ Depth from front to back 12 inches.

A most beautiful specimen, veneered and inlaid with satin and other woods, of which an illustration is given (Plate cxlix.), belonged to the late Mr. Henry Willett, of Arnold House, Brighton. If any proof were required that English inlay and cabinet-making could hold its own with that of France, this cabinet would afford it. Its total height is about six feet, breadth four and a half, depth two and a quarter. The finial at the top consists of a bust of a youthful Bacchus excellently chiselled in ormolu, with vine leaves and grapes in his hair. There is an ormolu scroll-work bulwark of good quality at each end of the top shelf, which has on its surface two ovals of dark inlay, and is bordered with tulip. Four drawers with serpentine fronts, chiefly of mahogany, rise one above the other on each side of a cupboard with two folding doors. In the illustration these folding doors are absent, having been temporarily removed, and the pigeon-holes are visible. The three upper drawers on each side are inlaid with oak leaf and acorn designs, the lower drawers with the short upright flute, shaded. There is an ingenious arrangement for disguising access to the drawers.

Plate CXLIX. Cabinet, Satinwood, Inlaid, With Ormolu Mounts Sheraton

CXLIX. Cabinet, satin-wood inlaid, with ormolu mounts. Sheraton. H. Willett, Esq. (the late).

Dimensions: Height 72, Breadth 54, Depth from front to back 27 inches, approximately.

The stiles or jambs between them and the cupboard doors are inlaid Corinthian pillars above, and vine and grape inlaid flats below. Each of these slides upwards, and discloses a keyhole governing one set of four drawers. The circular ring handles of these have round them an elaborate little inlaid laurel wreath. The removed cupboard doors are flat, and below the pigeon-holes, but unseen in the illustration is another drawer.

In the lower part of the cabinet, the top slab, which projects a good way beyond the upper cupboard and drawers, is bordered with tulip and has a massive ormolu moulded edge. Like the upper shelf, this slab is inlaid, and on a more elaborate scale. There are scallop and fleur-de-lys shapes, mistletoe and olive wreaths. The main feature is a vase with a carnation in it, from which scrolls branch out on either side. There are green leaf swags stretching across the vase.