Old writing desk

I recently bought an old desk off of Craigslist, and I was wondering if anyone could help me gauge roughly how old it is. It has what looks like hand-pounded copper drawer pulls and I'm fairly certain that the wood is some type of elm. (It was in pretty rough shape when I bought it, and I've since painted it.) The only marking on it is a bird (emu/ostrich?) and the word "Pampa" on the locking mechanism of the middle drawer. Any and all speculation and/or information is both welcome and appreciated! Thank you in advance!

 

Sounds possibly like Arts and Crafts style IMHO with the "hand pounded copper drawer pulls" but pictures will be necessary to get much information.

 

Full desk by Laura808 posted Aug 2, 2017 at 10:04 PM

Marking by Laura808 posted Aug 2, 2017 at 10:04 PM

Dovetails by Laura808 posted Aug 2, 2017 at 10:04 PM

Drawer pull by Laura808 posted Aug 2, 2017 at 10:04 PM

 

Sorry that the lighting is so terrible, but the marks are very worn and sort of hard to make out, even with good lighting. I didn't even notice them at first. I'll try to take a better picture in the morning!

 

The link does not let us view them. Many people here won't click on links anyway. When you get your new pictures I am sure someone will be along who can tell you how to post them. I have never posted pictures here so I am of no help regretfully. I rather suspect that if the marks are on the actual locking mechanism that they are the name of the manufacturer of that piece rather then the whole desk BTW.

 

Laura, could you post the photos in the thread, we can't access them. Please click on 'full image' when you do.

The bird is probably a rhea, native to the grassland regions (pampas) of South America. They are related to the emu and the ostrich.

Pampa and a rhea on the lock - Argentina, Chile?

 

Thank you so much! I'm pretty technologically helpless so any assistance would be greatly appreciated! I'm located in Hawaii, so it'll take me awhile to post better photos, but I TRULY am thankful for your help and advice!

 

Marking by Laura808 posted Aug 2, 2017 at 10:04 PM

 

Sorry! I don't know why it made duplicates of everything! Are those visible?

 

That DEFINITELY looks like the bird! Thank you!

 

@Laura808 Your Album in the gallery is set to Private. This is why your "links" don't work for other members. Change the setting to Public and the pictures will appear!

 

I think the pictures you see here now are the same as in the links.

 

Definitely in the arts and crafts style. Would think with that lock, this would likely be from South America. I know nothing of the furniture industry there so speculating on age or pinpointing a source would be a guess at best.

 

The dovetails are unique too. The carpenters choice... Choosing a minimal number is rare. Laura, what is the drawer liner? It looks like embossed ceiling tiles.... Metal? I like the lock too.... piece looks very handmade, homemade (amateur)?

 

I found this strange little trademark/marking that looks similar to the itsy bitsy marking on my desk but it seems like Pampa made steel tools/sheep shears?

 

I found this too....
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-M...042451164?clk_rvr_id=1274548802924&rmvSB=true

 

That's so cool! I love learning about all of these things, but I feel as though the internet is a little daunting for research on a broad scale, so I am frequently frightened away before I even begin. I actually used textured wallpaper that I painted with a navy blue enamel paint (that I had leftover from a previous project) as a drawer liner, so it looks like a ceiling tile. The drawers were a mess of spilled ink and somebody had Sharpie-d the drawer numbers into them so I wanted to mask all of that. Every drawer pull, nut/bolt, etc. has very unique tool marks on them, so I feel like it very well could be homemade/handmade?