Editing Desk (section)

==History==
[[File:Yokeback armchair and painting table, Ming dynasty, Metropolitan Museum of Art.jpg|thumb|left|Chinese editing desk of the 12th century]]
Desk-style furniture appears not to have been used in [[classical antiquity]] or in other ancient centers of literate civilization in the [[Middle East]] or [[Far East]], but there is no specific proof. [[Middle Ages|Medieval]] illustrations show the first pieces of furniture which seem to have been designed and constructed for reading and writing. Before the invention of the movable type [[printing press]] in the 15th century, any reader was potentially a writer or publisher or both, since any [[book]] or other [[document]] had to be copied by hand. The desks were designed with slots and hooks for [[bookmark]]s and for writing implements. Since manuscript volumes were sometimes large and heavy, desks of the period usually had massive structures.<ref name=FineWoodWorking>{{cite web | url=http://www.finewoodworking.com/PlansAndProjects/PlansAndProjectsAllAbout.aspx?id=3029 | title=A Short History of Desks | publisher=FineWoodWorking.com | access-date=2012-05-17 | archive-date=2012-10-30 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121030145714/http://www.finewoodworking.com/PlansAndProjects/PlansAndProjectsAllAbout.aspx?id=3029 | url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Desk, designed by Frank Furness, 1870-71, Philadelphia Museum of Art.jpg|thumb|upright|Ornamental desk (walnut), designed by [[Frank Furness]], 1870–71, [[Philadelphia Museum of Art]]]]
Desks of the [[Renaissance]] and later eras had relatively slimmer structures, and more and more drawers were added as [[woodworking]] became more precise and [[cabinet-making]] became a distinct trade.<ref name=FineWoodWorking/> It is often possible to find out if a table or other piece of furniture of those times was designed to be used as a desk, by looking for a drawer with three small separations (one each for the ink pot, the [[Blotting paper|blotter]] and the powder tray) and storage for [[pen]]s.

The basic desk forms were developed mostly in the 17th and 18th centuries. The modern [[ergonomic desk]] is a refinement of the mechanically complex [[drawing table]] or drafting table<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreedictionary.com/drafting+table|title=Drawing table|publisher=The Free Dictionary By Farlex.|access-date=2012-05-17|archive-date=2005-05-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050523234421/http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Drafting%20table|url-status=live}}</ref> from the end of the 18th century.