ABOUT THE WORK

This small altar table or mesa altar of narra has very fine cabriole legs ending in upturned tips resting on a platform supported by short and squat cabriole feet with a square outline at the bottom, the exposed sides of which, in the form of half-round moldings. The aprons on all sides are jigsaw-outlined with ogee curves and cusps that follow the curve of the cabriole legs at either end, while symmetrical curves and cusps below the center of each apron board for a design resembling a stylized bat, the symbol of good fortune or happiness. The sides of the lower frame of the carcass has half-round molding all around, and upright frames that have solid narra panels at the rear and the sides. A pair of drawers separated by a vertical divider have brass handles at the center of each, attached at each end to a ball and a boss chased with a pair of concentric rings around the border. Flanges on either side of the upright carcass frames in front and at the back are jigsaw-outlined with ogive curves and cusps. The top of the altar table is made of a single plank of narra with its edges carved with a cyma molding. -Martin I. Tinio, Jr