They can be quite attractive as well as functional. Old wooden cabins have seen some holes over their lives. The cabin backs, built before the instruments, were prime realestate for dials and maybe even bigger instruments.

This Nevins 40 yawl is beautifully maintained and lavished with craftsmanship($$). I was struck by the big port cut in. A few ghost holes from the past? I'm suspect. Who needs a big port next to a open companionway in a coastal boat?

But combined with the beautiful trim molding work, it's nice(I'm not doing this). Alongside is an instrument box which hopefully saved the cabin from repeated hole-saw assaults.

We're getting smarter. All those readouts from a few years ago are probably all combined into one, today. In fact, they're all available on one wireless device, and smarter today.

You could get rid of that box now, and get another seat in the cockpit on the bridgedeck. Just like it was in 1958. That's what I would want.