Furniture

OriginalHomewares Rare Penguin Donkey Mark Ii Bookcase By Ernest Race For Isokon

Etsy UK £595.00 Go to Etsy UK First seen in Jan 2022

Description

A rare find, this Penguin Donkey Mark II bookcase, designed by Ernest Race in 1963 & manufactured by Isokon for Penguin Books. It's a small, double-sided bookcase & magazine unit - magazines & papers store in the middle section & the open, sectioned sides were designed to house Penguin paperback classics. Ernest Race is renowned as one of the leading lights in great British twentieth-century furniture design, a true pioneer, creating contemporary pieces from unusual materials in ground-breaking ways. The history of this particular bookcase is also really interesting. The original 'Donkey' bookcase dates back to the 1930s & was designed by Egon Riss. It was so-called because the rounded shape looked like saddle panniers. Only around 100 of this design were ever made & production stopped before the war took over. Ernest race took up the mantel in 1963, redesigning it as an altogether more modern, clean-lined version for storing orange Penguin paperbacks & these were sold via mail order to Penguin readers & collectors. It may be small but this is a mighty, iconic piece of attributed midcentury design rarely seen. This original, vintage piece is 'sold as seen'. It's in good, vintage condition. We have carefully cleaned this piece. It is solid & sturdy with no movement in any of the shelf joints or the legs. It retains its original white painted finish which has not been touched up at any point, so there are numerous scuffs & chips, & small areas of paint damage. The top of the shelves have a little sun damage which has caused some crazing in the painted surface. There is also a small red mark on one of the shelves which cannot be removed without damaging the paintwork. Please refer to the photographs for an accurate representation of the condition of this piece. We feel the minor wear & tear is in line with the piece's considerable age. You can see more photos of this piece in the WOOD section of originalhomewares.com. If you have any questions about this piece or would like to view it, please do get in touch. Dimensions H: 40cm / W: 53.5cm / D: 34-40.5cm Delivery UK mainland delivery is included in the price, subject to our Delivery Terms. They will be sent via DPD (Mon-Fri only) & tracking information will be provided. originalhomewares.com Rare Penguin Donkey Mark Ii Bookcase By Ernest Race For Isokon