Roma Bookcase: what 80 x 30 x 120cm holds and where it fits

The Roma Bookcase is listed at 80 x 30 x 120cm. That is the whole description, so this post works from the measurements: what a 30cm depth holds, what stopping at 120cm does to a room, and what to ask us before you order.

The figures, exactly as listed

The numbers are unlabelled. Read as a bookcase they are 80cm wide, 30cm deep and 120cm tall. The listing does not state how many shelves there are or the gap between them, and that is the figure that decides what will stand up inside, so ask us if you are buying it for particular books.

What a 30cm depth takes

30cm is a shallow bookcase, which is mostly an advantage. Measure a few things off your own shelves and you will see why:

• Paperbacks are around 11 to 13cm deep. Two rows deep would fit, though you should not do that to yourself.
• Hardbacks and most novels run 15 to 20cm. Comfortable, with room for the spine to sit proud of the edge.
• Art and photography books are often 25 to 30cm. These fit flat but may sit flush with the front, so check the deepest one you own.
• Ring binders and box files are typically 25 to 32cm. Some will overhang. Measure yours.
• Vinyl records are 31.5cm square and will not fit upright on a 30cm shelf.

The shallow depth is what lets it work in a hall: 30cm out from the wall leaves a walkway that a 40cm piece would compromise. Remember the skirting board, which stands a flat-backed piece off the wall and pushes the front further out.

Why 120cm matters more than it sounds

120cm is roughly chest height on an adult, which puts the top below the eye line of anyone standing. Three things follow.

1. The room still reads open. A bookcase that stops below the sightline does not divide a space the way a tall one does, so it can stand behind a seating area without closing it off.
2. The top becomes a surface. A display shelf for a lamp or a plant, and above a radiator in most rooms, though check whether yours sits directly below.
3. Everything is reachable. No top shelf you need a chair for.

At 80cm wide it suits a chimney-breast recess. Measure the recess at the floor and again at the top, because old walls narrow.

What the listing does not say

Shelf count, shelf spacing, whether the shelves are fixed or adjustable, what weight they take, the material, the finish and whether it arrives assembled: none of that is recorded. Nothing is said about a wall fixing either, worth asking about for any tall piece in a house with children. It is filed in Mirrored Furniture, so the five photographs are your best guide to the finish.

What it works with

If you want the same idea with more height, the Roma High Bookcase is the taller version in the same family and we can confirm its dimensions against this one. Along the same wall, the Roma 2 Door 3 Drawer Large Sideboard at 120 x 40 x 80cm puts closed storage below a bookcase's open shelves, and the Roma Coffee Table at 100 x 60 x 47cm finishes the seating area.

Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond. Measure the deepest book you own first, then see the Roma Bookcase page for the photographs and to order.