Writing Desks - Designs of Diverse Architectural Languages

As we continue to unleash the architectural function, form and styles of the most common desk variations produced, let's examine the designs of the following writing desks: Bible Box, Rolltop, Desk and Bench, Desk on a Chest, Desk on a Frame, Moore Desks, Cubicle, Davenport, Escritoire, Fall Front Desk, Partners Desk and Chinese Altar Table.

1. Bible Box: This type of desk was small and originally meant for storing and using a bible.

2. Rolltop Desk: A series of stacked compartments, shelves, drawers and the desktop surface can be covered by means of wooden slats that roll or slide through slots in the raised sides of the desk.

3. Desk and Bench: Sometimes used to describe a school desk which has a built-in seat. It is also called a "Desk and stool".

4. Desk on a Chest: An antique portable desk made up of two chests: the bottom one usually has drawers and the top one has a hinged desk surface.

5. Computer Table & Desk Frame: An antique form made up of two pieces of furniture: a fairly large and closable portable desk and a stand made of it out of the same material and in the same style.

6. Moore Desk: Comes in two antique forms - The "Moore Office Queen" (a large desk, that has a single large door to lock up the main work surface with drawers and nooks around it; and The "Moore Insurance Desk" (nearly twice as big as the "Office Queen" and also opens up by means of a single large door, with its internal work surface sliding in and out).
  

The increase of paper usage and correspondence, prompted the need for producing more complex and specialized desks. Steel desks were introduced to take heavier loads of paper and withstand the pounding dished out on typewriters. Refinements to those first desk forms were considerable through the 19th century. The new desks can be transformed into many different shapes and angles, which is ideal for artists.