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Espagnolette locks first appeared in the 17th century as a locking device for wood-frame windows; a slightly adapted version quickly found it’s way onto the back of furniture doors to lock armoires and wardrobes. For centuries, espagnolette locks have been commonly used in furniture, right up to the present day.
Their appearance has evolved with the passage of time, but the basic functional principle remains unchanged: a lock that extends a bolt whilst simultaneously rotating two vertical rods (one above and one below the lock), which in turn rotate locking hooks that wrap around metal pins in the top and base panel to lock; the process is reversed to unlock.
Despite being a centuries-old solution, espagnolette locks are still going strong. How is this possible? The reason for the longevity of espagnolette locks is that they solve three different issues that wood furniture makers face with unparalleled efficiency and elegance.
The three solutions that espagnolette locks provide are:
Secure three-point locking of tall doors: use of a standard single-point lock on a tall wooden door is often not a secure solution, because thieves can pull the top or bottom of the door away from the cabinet, creating a gap through which they can remove objects from within. An espagnolette lock has three locking points (center, top and bottom) that effectively prevent anyone from prising the door away from the cabinet. Espagnolette locks = higher security.
Prevention of bowed doors: Wood is a natural material which can deform with time or due to climatic conditions. When furniture is new, tall doors are straight and perfectly aligned with the furniture case – but over time, the doors can warp and bend, leaving an unsightly and uneven gap between the door and the case. Espagnolette lock hooks wrap around the pins in the top and base panels to lock the doors – at the same time they prevent warping by pulling the doors straight every time they lock. Espagnolette locks = keep wooden doors straight.
Double-door locking: case locks with a single locking point cannot lock double door units, because the bolt must lock against a fixed surface.
The second door is a movable surface, so a single-point lock is ineffective in locking double doors, manually operated door bolts (which are inconvenient and annoying to furniture users) are required to fix the door against the top or base panel. Espagnolettes hooks wrap around pins in the fixed top and base panels and can therefore lock double doors effectively. Espagnolette locks = convenient double door locking.
Espagnolette locks are typically used for the following types of furniture:
Wood furniture with hinged doors (especially for tall doors)
Wood furniture with higher security requirements
Double-door furniture of all sizes