Relevant categories: Dining Tables,Dining Sets
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At Canonbury Antiques we carry a range of oak refectory tables. These pieces of furniture are such a great addition to any room hence people really like to take time chosing exactly the right one. Growing up I always remember our trusty oak refectory table occupying central place in the kitchen and hence the heart of the home. These tables are built to last and will endure the rigours of daily family life and can be passed down generation to generation like an heirloom and make for a great investment.
Nice French oak refectory table with bulbous hand carved legs
Oak refectory tables were first used for dining in monasteries in Europe in the early Middle Ages. Then it progressed and would become the banqueting table in castles, abbeys or other large residences. Indeed, the word refectory means dining room in a monastery, boarding school or academic institution. Typically they are hand crafted from oak and designed on the trestle style table with a low stretcher hugging the floor and solid, cylindrical legs. Refectory tables were common in Germany, England, Spain, France and Italy and have since gone on to becoming a long lasting design classic.
More of a trestle table look to this charming oak refectory table
The classic oak refectory table look shows a very solid and thick plank of oak resting on the chunky - often hand turned or carved - legs. The rail of the table top will often include hand carved designs, such as gotic motifs. Some of the French refectory tables will feature ornate hand carved legs which look really great. The typical size of the top would be 2 inches thick. Of course for interior designers going for that farmhouse look these are the perfect table - they bring that cosy English / Welsh country cottage look to any room, whether it is on the Hamptons, Newport Beach, Sydney or Dubai. We have shipped these tables all over the world for this very reason. We have also sold them to pubs, restaurants and hotels as they are such a practical dining table, you can spill things on them, they take knocks and scratches - indeed, the patina of the wood will only improve over time as all that daily use becomes etched into the very being of the table, spills, scratches and dents and all. It is part of the character.
These Mary Tudor style chairs look great around the kitchen dining table
Many of these oak refectory tables are available to view in our Canonbury Antiques Hertfordshire showroom - please get in touch for an appointment. We also specialise in farmhouse dining sets so we can match these tables to various chairs perfect for that farmhouse look. Favourite chairs to pair these tables up with include Windsor chairs, ladderback chairs, spindlebacks, Tudor and barley twist oak chairs. Of course viewing them in our showroom means you can try different ones out for style and size. Nothing beats sitting at the table to see if the chair works for comfort and size. These refectory tables also look good with a pair of benches either side, for that classic monastic look - all that would be missing would be a few pints of trappist ale on the table!
These benches really complete the abbey / monastery look
We can of course ship these oak refectory tables anywhere in the world - and of course UK. We have delivered these tables to Sussex, Surrey, Scotland, Wales, Northumberland, Cornwall and everywhere else in between. Alongside these oak refectory tables, our showroom is worth a visit for all the other pieces and antiques we specialise in including art deco furniture, Chinese porcelain, bronzes, continental antiques, architectural and all things interiors. We can also offer good discounts to trade and interior designers. If you have any questions or need us to source you an oak refectory table as you cannot quite see the one you want on the website then please let us know.
Nice set of Windsor chairs around this barley twist oak refectory table
Please enjoy some videos of our oak refectory tables from the Canonbury Antiques YouTube channel:
Please enjoy a photo gallery of some of our oak refectory tables with different dining chairs around if you are looking for a complete table and chair kitchen set up:
Set of Windsor chairs here - my favourite combination
Set of ladderback chairs around this large oak refectory table
Set of ladderback chairs around this table - from a different view
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