a Corsican furniture??

I'm writing a short research paper on an illustration I found in a 19C English travel book. I was hoping someone could give an idea as to what type of table is shown here? - ie. is it a table for writing, game, work etc.? What would be the "style" of the table? I know it only shows the top, but any help/suggetions would be great!!

The book is written in 1840s, and the setting is Corsica (which was by then part of France).