the canterbury was originally created to hold sheet music and didn’t appear until the late 18th Century. It was particularly popular in the Victorian era with the wellto-do when, due to the importance of a young lady’s musical accomplishments, a separate music room was an essential. Most were on castors so that they could be rolled underneath the pianoforte in between recitals and pulled out when the need for a rummage through the music sheets arose. The occasional example can be found with a flat back and no castors, indicating that it was made to stand against a wall. Early models were generally of rectangular shape with fairly plain or lightly turned upright divider bars, made usually from mahogany or satinwood.
Much later rosewood and walnut became more frequently used and the dividers were at times created using elaborate fretwork, lyre shapes or were heavily carved. In the late Victorian period some designs included a tabletop, with a shallow gallery to prevent small items from rolling off.
New materials were experimented with incorporating brass, Japanese lacquer and bamboo. During the Edwardian era the canterbury was superseded by the music cabinet, however, today they make ideal magazine racks.