There are a several possibilities; 1 - He has his house up for sale and his wife made him clean up the room to show the house; 2 - It's a new antique desk he got for Christmas and he hasn't started using it yet; 3 - His mother or her mother came over for Christmas and he had to straighten up for Mom; 4 - SWMBO explained the consequences of not straighten up that corner of the house.

First off you notice it appears to be a nice piece of antique furniture he uses for a desk, I have my son's old college desk and a tying bench made from scrap plywood and wood pallet scraps. I would be afraid of spilling something on a nice piece like that.