Posts Tagged ‘armchair’

MODERNISM
CHAIRS
AS FURNITURE PRODUCTION steadily
shifted emphasis from craft-based manufacturing to industrial methods, so the look of the chair changed dramatically Ornament was doggedly erased from designs as structure became more important to the aesthetic look. Solid wood began to fall from favour (too expensive and inflexible) as moulded plywood and tubular steel stepped into the spotlight.
Just as the notion of open-plan space was creeping into Western architecture, so furniture was freed from fulfilling just one function. Chairs became
increasingly ambiguous, with some made for indoor and outdoor use, and others equally at home in an office or dining room. Chairs became lighter, too, as they were frequently moved around the house.
With mass production in mind, designers began to concentrate their efforts on fixtures. The aim became
to produce a chair made of a minimum number of components that fitted together easily and quickly It’s no surprise, then, that the cantilever chair became so popular, as the continuous loop of legs and base eradicated the need for numerous nuts and bolts.
While the structure of the chair became increasingly celebrated in its design, as opposed to any stylistic conceits, so the designer as an
individual receded into the background. Industry became more important than art, as designers sought to express nothing more romantic than the manufacturing process.
The reason the chair dominated the focus of designers’ effort`_ is because a person’s emotional attachment is far greater to a chair than to, say, a shelving unit. If Modernist designers wanted to alter their audience’s emotional and intellectual outlook, it was through the chair that they tried to do so.
The slender armrests display a use of cushioning that is rare fora chair by Marcel Breuer.
The steel struts beneath the seat have been bowed so they cannot be felt by the sitter.
The chair is made from non-reinforced tubular steel, thereby making it less rigid.
B34 CHAIR WITH ARMS
The frame of this cantilever chair is made from one continuous loop of tubular steel. Although the base looks as though it is all in contact with the floor, the side pieces bend slightly so that only the corners touch the floor — the idea
being that most floors are slightly uneven and the smallest change in level would make the chair wobble. This chair has arms with elbow supports, and a blue canvas seat and back. Designed by Marcel Breuer and produced by Thonet. 1928. H:85cm (33Vzin); W.57.5cm (22Vain); D:63cm (24-Xin), Qu I
This armchair was inspired by a model made by Alvar Aalto. The chair’s seat and back are made from a single sheet of laminated wood and sit within an oak open-arm frame. H:76cm (30in) CA
LANDI CHAIR
This easy chair comprises a series of square-section planks of pine, joined by wooden dowels. It has a slatted section on both seat and chair back. Designed by Hein Stolle. c.1930. BonBay 2
SIDE CHAIR
The seat and back of this early cantilevered chair are made of ebonized moulded plywood and sit on a chrome-plated tubular-steel frame. The armrests are ebonized beech. Mart Stam for Thonet. c.1930. BonBay 2
ZIG-ZAG CHAIR
One of a pair, this chair has a tubular-steel frame reminiscent of Rietveld’s Zig-Zag chair. The wooden seat is supported on steel rods and has a later vinyl cover. H: 82.5cm (321in); W.41.5cm (161in); D:63.5cm (25in). Qu I
Lightweight and durable, this stacking chair is made from pressed and bent aluminium. Each armrest and pair of legs is from one piece of aluminium. Hans Coray. 1938. H: 76cm (290); W.51cm (19in); D:55cm (21in). BonBay 2
CLUB CHAIR
AALTO-INSPIRED CHAIR
EASY CHAIR
The rectilinear frame is made from stained pearwood secured with brass fittings. The chair is upholstered in hand-woven woolen fabric. Peter Keler, Bauhaus Weimar. 1925. H:69cm (27in); W.62cm (24V:ln); D:68cm (26%0). WKA
LOUNGE CHAIR
CANTILEVERED ARMCHAIR
One of a pair, this armchair has a tubular-chrome frame and seat with cushions upholstered in a dark brown, brushed fabric with red trim. The armrests are black-enamelled. H:86.5cm (34in). SDR I
Designed by Gilbert Rohde, this cantilevered armchair has a bright chrome base and black laminated armrests. The cushions are upholstered in ivory leather with a black trim. H:94cm (37in). SDR 1
THE STACKING CHAIR
STILL FOUND IN CAFES WORLDWIDE, THIS ICONIC DESIGN IS PERHAPS THE FIRST STACKING CHAIR, AND CERTAINLY THE FIRST WIDESPREAD DESIGN, OF ITS KIND.
The so-called Bistro chairs These have a pressed-steel frame and are painted red; with plywood seats. c.1926. H:82cm (32Vin). DOR 3
The origins of this chair, despite the efforts of numerous historians, have proved murky at best. The design is most likely to have been developed in France some time around 1925, specifically for the country’s booming cafe culture. The chair bears a strong, albeit rather crude, resemblance to chairs designed by Emile Jacques Ruhlmann, although it’s doubtful whether the French high-society designer ever had a hand in its conception.
What is perhaps most impressive about the chair, apart from its stackability, is its economy of materials. The steel used is incredibly thin and, to give the legs rigidity, the steel has been subtly curved. To save further on metal, holes have been cut from the seat back. While the perfect low-cost, space-saving chair was to become something of a holy grail for 20th-century furniture designers, few ever bettered the chair design that first set the ball rolling.
FREE SWINGER ARMCHAIR
The base of this chromed-steel cantilevered armchair from Austria is the only part of the structure that is exposed. The chair seat and back are filled with down and upholstered in sand-coloured velour. H:84cm (331in). DOR 3
LAMINATED LOUNGE CHAIR
This chair has been made from one sheet of cut and moulded laminated birch and resembles the Gerald Summers classic (see p.438). The arms are fixed to the back with metal brackets. Hans Pieck. 1944. H:76cm (30in). Bon Bay 4
BAUHAUS ARMCHAIR
This chair was designed by Erich Dieckmann for the Weimer Bauhaus, in collaboration with Ernst Mayo. Made from solid beech, it has a bowed back and slatted seat. c.1930. H:81.5cm (321:in); W.52.5cm (21in). WKA
DINING CHAIR
This is one of a pair of stacking birch plywood dining chairs that were produced by Artek. The chair has a circular wooden seat and a pierced plywood back, supported on L-shaped plywood uprights. c.1930s.
DIAGONAL CHAIR
This chrome-plated, tubular steel chair is named after the supports between the seat back and legs. The arms, seat, and back are of laminated wood. W.H. Gispen. c.1927. H:82.5cm (321-in); W-54cm (2111n): D:60cm (23,Xln). QU 2
SLATTED CHAIR
This Viennese chair has a tubular-steel frame and solid, stained-beech wooden slats for the seat and back. The arms have wooden armrests. One of a set of four. 1925. H:84.5cm (33V4in). DOR 3

SHERATON PERIOD
THE last of the eighteenth century designers, Thomas Sheraton, came to London from his native town of
Stockton-on-Tees about 1790 rare antique marble . Although he had undoubtedly been a practical cabinet maker, there is no evidence that he ever made any furniture in London myott son & co from the 1920s . Certainly he never had a prosperous business such as Chippendale and Hepplewhite had had antique gilt wood mirror frame . His fame in the furniture world rests upon his book, The Cabinet Maker and Upholsterer’s Drawing Book, published in 1791-1794, and appearing in further editions in later years antique mahogany tea table with glass tray .
It was essentially different from Chippendale’s book, the purpose of which was mainly that of a catalogue to appeal to wealthy patrons 1700’s trestle table . Sheraton’s drawing book was primarily a trade book intended to help the practical man, not only in providing designs but also in supplying a treatise in geometry, perspective, and drawing eighteenth century tripod table . In the long run it brought him posthumous fame, but as a commercial proposition it was a failure 17th/18th century style, open-rack oak dresser . Probably few practical men were interested in learning to draw in perspective or to know of the problems in geometry (except in the limited way it affected the setting out of their work), and in looking back the whole thing certainly seems an ambitious undertaking wellinton chest of drawers .
So far as the designs were concerned, Sheraton certainly showed originality in many of the mechanical movements he introduced, and in the design of his chairs, but it must be confessed that the general run of furniture was little more than a representation of the general style prevailing at the time antique oak drawleaf trestle table . It was noted in Chapter VIII that Hepplewhite and Sheraton furniture (excepting chairs) had a great deal in common ; so much so that it is often impossible to say to which it belongs for sale louis 16th walnut sideboard cabinet . It will be realised then that in speaking of Sheraton furniture it represents for the most part the work of a school of craftsmen working in a certain style sheraton 18th century dresser .
antiquegames writing table . BEECHWOOD
ARMCHAIR antique tripod tilt table .
About 180 mahogany bow fronted chest of drawers scottish .
The chair is painted In
black and gilt, and the
rails of the back have
small decorative panels
painted with floral and
musical Instrument sub-
jects masons patent ironstone chinese peony .
FIG english antique reproduction dining table round with add on leaves . 142a carved seating . MAHOGANY
ARMCHAIR where can i buy a rennie mackintosh table with brass lion paws .
Late 18th century thonet bentwood rocker .
The backs of Sheraton chairs were usually lower than those of other contemporary work cutlery boxes . The sweep of the arms into the back is a characteristic Sheraton touch central part of the library has a display cabinet .
Details found in Sheraton Chairs
In his chairs, however, he undoubtedly did strike an original note georgian kneehole cabinet . They are lighter than the majority of other late eighteenth century examples, the backs are lower, and instead of the top rail forming a more or less continuous sweep with the uprights (see Fig french console table 1830 . 131) it was frankly a separate item tenoned between the uprights dining tables art deco . The legs were either turned or square tapered (see Fig antique 2-tier pedestal table . 151), and the arms, instead of bowing out sideways, were usually shaped in
FIG antique maple desks . 143 arts and crafts +jupe table . MAHOGANY CHAIR art deco kneeling dancer lamp .
Late 18th century georgian peat bucket .
Sheraton used both square tapered and turned legs horses as allegorical figures in art . The cabriole
type was never used old english pattern forks with four tines .
side elevation only, generally springing from the back in a continuous sweep fine porcelain arc .
A good example is given in Fig smith furniture gateleg drop leaf table . 142 empire hall bench . Note the obvious way in which the back rails fit between the uprights (compare with Fig fake brass antiques . 131), and the sweep of the arms into the uprights spanish lacquered cabinet inlaid . The whole thing is different from anything else being made at the period art deco console and germany . The curve of the arms into the turned uprights, the curved turned legs, and the graceful design of the pierced back are typically Sheraton 19th century american rosewood rococo console table . It is painted all over (something else that no other designers SIDEBOARD DECORATED WITH SATINWOOD INLAY BANDINGS catherine the great of russia plates . Late i8th century charles neo classism boulle .
The bow front sideboard became extremely popular at this time antique trestle refectory table . Sometimes the space between the centre
legs was title in with a cupboard having a tambour front made to slide sideways pottery german weimar art deco .
Tapered Legs in Sheraton Chairs
attempted), and some extremely fine art work is put into the small panels of the back florence lamps giuseppe antique .
Another Sheraton chair, this time with tapered legs, is given in Fig who sells maggiolini furniture . 142a decoration metal bureau table desing . In this case the arms meet the turned uprights more or less at right angles, but they sweep into the back as in the previous example extending glass table with wrought iron legs . The back is practically square, and the uprights which continue down to form
II how drop leaf table evolved .C; antique serving cabinet . 1 a & s smee finsbury .15 round “dining table” “six legs” . WHEEL BACK CHAIR irish cabinet makers antique wine coolers .
About i800 antique porclean handled sheffeld flatware .
The finest chairs of this kind came from Norfolk and Suffolk value of primitive antique work bench . They became popular towards the end of the 18th century, and into the 19th century lowenfink . Earlier models had curved arm supports at the front instead of turnings antique drum shaped table .
the legs are shaped only in side elevation wood furniture legs clawfoot . They are straight when looked at from from the front art glass vases antique . This is another feature invariably found in Sheraton chairs, and never in contemporary work of other designers scriptoire . All these features also appear in the chair in Fig oak table 5 legs built in leaves rectangular antique . 143•
Sheraton died in i8o6, and it is unfortunate that towards the end his designs suffered severely decorative spindle legs from antique card table . Probably no man, no matter how individual, is quite free from extraneous circumstances bread/cake baskets 17th century . Prevailing fashions exert their sway, and designers
146 varguenos . TWO WRITING DESKS IN MAHOGANY WITH SATINWOOD BANDINGS antique pedestal mahogany table .
Late i8th century bauhaus style furniture +scale .
The Importation of Ykirious foreir4n fancy woods, satinwood, am boyna, rosewood, ebony, and so on led to the free use of
these for use in inlay bandint!s art nouveau antique drinking cabinet . Satinwood, too, was freely used in the solid, entire pieces being made up in it antique 17th century dresser .
Deterioration of Late Sheraton Work
are often faced with the choice of either following them or retiring from the scene antique mahogany card table, imperial . Many things were happening in Europe at the close of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth century which were to affect design gilt metal mounted pier table . The French revolution, culminating in the establishment of the First Empire, produced a style in France which rapidly found its counterpart this side of the Channel, and the naval victories of this country had an extraordinary effect on furniture 1800 hundred french mantel and candle clock .
FIG antique art deco furniture black lacquer . 147 maurice adams art deco . MAHOGANY SIDE TABLE WITH BANDED DRAWERS anglo indian cabinets .
Late i8th century vintage buttterfly dropleaf tables .
A prominent feature of the Sheraton school was the very limited use of
carving antique 17th century dresser . Probably it was a reaction from its free use in the Chippendale
period dutch cabinet marquetry 18 .
Just as topical events of thirty or forty years ago were commemorated in fretwork designs, so the furniture of the early nineteenth century showed its reaction to the events then happening gillows bow front mahogany chest drawers .
Sheraton fell into the general line and published his E’?IcYc10P,Tdia of 1804-1807, in which was one of the most extraordinary collections of furniture designs ever put together regency occasional table . Naval emblems of all kinds—anchors, lifebelts, pulley blocks, ropes, and so on—abound, and it is a mercy that more of them were not made up,
To revert to his earlier and happier period, Sheraton’s chief form of decoration was inlay 19th century parian busts . Cross-bandings of fine
MAHOGANY WARDROBE WITH BUILT-UP VENEERED
DOORS
Late i8ti century antique chinese circular revolving bookcase .
The fine mahogany imported at this time led to the revival of the built-up
patterns in veneer as the grain had splendid decorative value 17 century elm gateleg table .
foreign woods, such as satinwood, rosewood, tulip wood, ebony, amboyna, and so on, were inlaid around the edges of drawer fronts and panels, and various built-up patterns in veneer were made use of with great effect period style display cabinets . The bow front sideboard in Fig antique ceramic tambour german mantle clocks . 144 shows the use of this cross-banding italy spoons that might be antiques . Painting also he used considerably, naturalesque floral subjects and panels in the style of Angelica Kauffman being the chief forms it took nicholas sprimont solid silver . Carving he used
E; <
FIG value of an antique pembroke table . 152 antique mahogany french bedside commode . MOULDINGS OF THE SHERATON PERIOD dutch 18th century walnut chest on chest .
Mouldings were invariably small and delicate islamic influence furniture . Occasionally carving and inlay
were introduced, though they were usually plain dining tables with wood inlay work .
sparingly and never in the full scrolling form favoured by Chippendale french console table 1830 .
A small Sheraton side table is given in Fig arts and crafts furniture, antique collectors . 147 flemish refectory table . Here again the drawers have an inlaid cross-banding around the edges antique german breakfast table . The turned legs are reeded down their length dresser accessories . Two other Sheraton pieces are given in Fig russian chippendale trays . 146 silver candleabras made in england . Note the inlay again decorative writing styles . Desks of this kind were often fitted with elaborate secret contrivances in which stationery boxes, drawers, and cupboards rose up at the touch of a spring how common is walnut drop leaf table .
The Sheraton Wardrobe
Fig antique chinese chamber pot . 148 shows a fine inlaid wardrobe in which built-up patterns in veneer are used effectively myott son&co hanley 1880 . The dentils in the cornice and the flutes in the frieze are carried out entirely in inlay american crafts armchair upholstered . The curved bracket feet are a typical feature of the late 18th century 17th century oak side table .
CHAIR WITH SABRE LEGS AND
CANED SEAT rococo style flower arranging .
About i8io pembroke style end tables .
This is an extremely fine example of the chairmaker’s craft 18th century marquetry . Despite the somewhat complicated curvature of the back the construction follows conventional methods, the tops of the back legs being tenoned into the cresting rail and the moulded shaping worked across the joints mark vezzi porcelain . The curved rails fit together with a form of halved joint cylindrical crock eared handles cobalt blue .

French Art Nouveau Furniture: DISPLAY CASE, TWO-TIER TABLE, TABLE LAMPS, ROSEWOOD AND WALNUT VITRINE.

FRANCE: THE NANCY SCHOOL
MANY OF THE FINEST WORKS of French
Art Nouveau were created at the Alliance Provincale des Industries d’Art, or Ecole de Nancy, in the province of Lorraine. It was founded in 1901 by the innovative furniture and glass designer Emile Galle, and was based on the example set by the English Arts and Crafts guilds. A design school and workshop that was profoundly influenced by the Symbolist movement in art and literature, the goal of the enterprise was to modernize technical training in both the decorative and applied arts.
The natural world inspired and informed the artists and craftsmen
who gathered around the brilliant Galle at the Ecole de Nancy, and the school gave a coherent identity to the diverse craftsmen working there.
Among those who ran the Nancy school with Galle were some of the finest craftsmen and designers of the day, including Louis Majorelle, Eugene Vallin, Victor Prouve, and the Daum brothers, Auguste and Antonin.
BOTANICAL INSPIRATION
In addition to history of art and Symbolist poetry and literature, Galle’s rich influences included the study of local flora and fauna — cow parsley, thistles, insects, and so on — which
was to furnish him with creative inspiration for shapes as well as decoration. His romantic vision of nature, a delight in plants, animals, and other living creatures, and a passionate faith in the mystery of creation lay at the heart of his most inspired designs.
FURNITURE STYLES
Galle’s emotional connection with the vitality of nature and his love of symbolism resulted in highly original, imaginative furniture that seemed to breathe with life.
Tables and cabinets were made
from richly coloured or exotic woods,
including rosewood, maple, walnut, or fruitwoods such as apple or pear. The pieces stood on carved supports in the shape of dragonfly wings, or boasted cornices featuring carved
creatures such as snails, moths, and bats. Decorative bronze mounts resembled insects, and fruitwood inlays in extravagant compositions depicted natural motifs, including flower blossoms, leaves, fruit, cars of corn, snails, and butterflies.

Many of Galles pieces were unique, and were signed and frequently engraved with verses by Victor Hugo, Paul Verlaine, or Charles Baudelaire.
LOUIS MAJORELLE
The other great furniture designer working at Nancy – Louis Majorelle –turned his back on the Louis XV taste, which had been the staple of many established workshops, and created some of the finest pieces of Art
Giltwood Aubepine table by Louis Majorelle This occasional table has a circular marble top above a moulded gilt frieze. The tapering moulded legs are decorated with foliate carving.
Nouveau furniture. Although his desks, tables, chairs, and bedroom suites lack the symbolic poetry found in the works of Galle, his finely crafted furniture is beautiful in its own right.
Majorelle established several workshops so that he could increase his output. He was a trained cabinetmaker, and although much of his furniture incorporated some machine-made parts, the quality was superb. Majorelle’s furniture was usually made
of dark hardwoods such as mahogany and rosewood, with fluid outlines and massive, sculptural gilt-bronze mounts shaped as orchids or water lilies,
alongside delicately carved, inlaid, or marquetry decoration in fruitwoods, pewter, or mother-of-pearl. He also collaborated with the Daum brothers, who were famous for their glassware, to produce a wide variety of decorative lamps with glass shades and elegant bronze or iron mounts.

ROSEWOOD AND WALNUT VITRINE
This rosewood and walnut vitrine by Emile Gallo is inspired by organic motifs. The upper section has glazed doors with carved foliage surrounds extending to a central support to form a heart motif. The back is decorated with fruitwood leaf-form marquetry. 1900.
ARMCHAIRS
These mahogany chairs by Louis Majorelle have rectangular padded splats, stuff-over arms on unusual, sweeping, reverse-curved supports, and stuff-over seats on moulded legs. This is a graceful variation on the traditional chair style with gently curving lines. c.1900.
This is an unusual pair of glass and bronze lamps made in Nancy by Daum Freres and Louis Majorelle. The tapering, gilded, bronze shaft has a flower motif in high relief and three raised supports for the domed, mushroom-shaped shades. The lamp shades are made of clear flashed glass with powder inclusions in rose, greenish-yellow, and dark violet. They are signed “Daum Nancy” and have a Cross of Lorraine on the rim of the shade. c. 1904.
TABLE LAMPS

Made rom mahogany and makasar, this display case by Louis Majorelle rests on curved diagonal legs. The doors have distinctive blossom ornaments. c.1920.
This rosewood occasional table by Emile GaIle has three out-splayed supports and scroll legs with carved hoof feet. The table is decorated with floral marquetry. c.1900.
This sumptuous, blonde mahogany, goose-design cabinet by Louis Majorelle is decorated with marquetry, pierced wood, and exotic timbers. The piece has pierced side panels, a frieze drawer with bronze goose-head drawer
DISPLAY CASE
NEST OF TABLES
These Emile Galle tables Aux Magnolias are made of fruit- and rootwoods and decorated with magnolia and butterfly design inlays, and carved branch patterns on the legs of the largest tables. c.1900.
TWO-TIER TABLE
ARMCHAIRS
This pair of Marrons d’Inde armchairs by Louis Majorelle have splats with exotic wood marquetry, bent and curved arms, tapering legs, and stuff-over upholstered seats. 1905-10.
Pierced side panels
are decorated
with repeated scrolling motifs.
Bronze drawer pulls are in the shape of goose heads.
The goose motif is continued on the front doors.
GOOSE DESIGN CABINET
pulls, and cupboards inlaid witn exotic wood showing a gaggle of geese. A superb designer and highly skilled technician, Majorelle created flamboyantly luxurious pieces of unrivalled
quality. c.1900.

Antiques: Furniture, Tables, Cabinets, 18th Century Furniture, Art Deco Furniture Recently Featured at Antcollectors (3)

Early 19th Century Chairs

ALL “THE CHARACTERISTICS oF Regency
and Empire furniture, from the Neoclassical motifs – often on pierced backs – to the choice of timbers, are displayed on early 19th-century chairs.
One of the most typical types of chair of the period is the Trafalgar chair, which was made in Britain and used for dining. The chair had two horizontal splats – one usually of bar form, the lower one sometimes a rope-twist, set above a caned or drop-in seat. Caning, with all its exotic overtones, was revived again during this period, particularly on British or Cape furniture. During the first two decades of the century the front and back legs were usually of sabre form, but turned or ring-turned legs, which are Structurally stronger, were used later.
These chairs, and many that they inspired, were often made of solid mahogany or rosewood, with veneered
panels on the bar back. Beech was used, and was often painted; light-coloured woods were favoured outside Britain. Chairs from this period rarely had stretchers.
One type of armchair, inspired by Georges Jacob, had a rectangular, scrolled, upholstered back and open arms with straight supports, often carved with sphinx heads or female masks. It also had turned and tapered front legs. These more comfortable fauteuils might be used in the drawing room, whilst Regency bcrgeres, which had caned backs, sides, and seats, were probably made for the library. These chairs had squab cushions, often covered in leather and buttoned. Other pieces might be upholstered in silk or velvet. Needlework was rare, although a suite of furniture from the Winter Palace in Russia, was covered in tapestry, in a mixture of wool and silk.

ENGLISH TRAFALGAR CHAIR
FRENCH DIRECTOIRE CHAIR
This Regency mahogany dining chair has a plain top rail and a rope-twist back rail. The needlework-covered drop-in seat is supported on a plain seat rail and sabre legs. One of a set of four. Early 19th century.
This is one of a pair of Directoire side chairs, each with a rectilinear back rail and splat inlaid with brass musical instruments. The upholstered stuffover seat is supported on sabre legs. c.1800.
SWEDISH BIEDERMEIER ARMCHAIR
CHINA TRADE ARMCHAIR
This birch open armchair has a stepped yoke backrest with a decorative oval inlay and scrolled armrests. The drop-in seat has a plain seat rail and is raised on sabre legs. c.1825.
This Asian hardwood armchair, has a Greek-key carved top rail and a shaped, carved back rail. The cane seat rests on a reeded seat rail above slender reeded legs joined by an T-stretcher. Early 19th century.
All the surfaces of the chair are carved and decorated in shades ofgreen, blue, and red, highlighted with gold.
INDIAN THRONE CHAIR
This polychrome-painted, ivory-veneered chair is in an exaggerated Regency style. It has an arched, slightly panelled back with a reeded top rail, carved uprights, sabre legs, and paw feet. c.1830.

AMERICAN FEDERAL SIDE CHAIR
This walnut and fruitwood side chair has a gently reclining back with a rectangular top and back rail. The padded seat is supported on a plain seat rail above stylized cabriole legs. Early 1901 century.
These Biedermeier mahogany-veneered dining chairs were made in Berlin. Each chair has a bar top rail, a solid, shaped back rail with a central oval, and elegant, slightly sweeping uprights. The shaped caned seats are set
within a curved frame with a rounded seat rail and are supported on tour outswept sabre legs. 1820-30.
This mahogany side chair has a moulded and rope-carved shield back around an urn, Princeof-Wales feathers, draped swags, and leaves. The serpentine seat rests on reeded, tapering legs. Early 19th century.
FRENCH RESTAURATION CHAIR
GERMAN BIEDERMEIER CHAIRS

AMERICAN GONDOLA CHAIR
ITALIAN GONDOLA CHAIRS
GEORGE III SHIELD-BACK CHAIR
This is one of a pair of Neoclassical figured mahogany gondola chairs, each with a curved back and vasiform, solid splat, a padded slip seat, and downswept stiles continuing into shaped sabre front legs. c.1830.
These six dining chairs are made of walnut and are designed in the Neoclassical style. Each chair has an unusual fluted, rectangular backrest positioned above a pierced, stylized leaf border. The cane seats have an applied
roundel at each side and are supported on plain seat rails. The chairs are raised on sabre legs. The elegant sweeping uprights give the chairs their characteristic shape, which is reminiscent of the style of the gondola boats found in Venice.
Early 191h century.
This mahogany armchair has a shield-shaped, curved back, outlined with guilloche moulding, with five reeded splats, curved downswept arms, a bowed seat rail, and reeded, tapering front legs.
RUSSIAN OPEN ARMCHAIR
AMERICAN DINING CHAIRS
SWEDISH GUSTAVIAN SIDE CHAIR
This birch open armchair has a stepped yoke backrest, with carved fan detail, and slender, scrolled armrests. The upholstered seat is raised on sabre legs. It is one of a pair. Early 19th century.
These eight Neoclassical-style dining chairs are made of mahogany. Each chair has a flat curved top rail carved with a foliate pattern and a slender horizontal splat, also decorated with leaf carving, plus a rosette. The seats
are upholstered with black Naugahyde and are showing considerable signs of wear. The seats are supported on plain seat rails and raised on sabre legs. The armchairs have gently curving supports. The set comprises two armchairs and six side chairs, and is attributed to Anthony Quervelle. c.1820.
This white-painted side chair has a shield-shaped back with a solid, carved splat. The padded seat is supported on a moulded seat rail and is raised on stop-fluted legs joined by an H-stretcher. Early 19th century.

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Antiques Recently Found on Antcollectors (3) - Scandinavia

THE GREAT BRITISH VICTORIES of Abukir
(1798) and Trafalgar (1805), which opened up trade along the North Sea coastline, suggest that sympathy for Britain and British design could be evident in Scandinavian furniture. This was not always the case. Denmark and Sweden’s ambivalence to France encouraged the British Prime Minister, Pitt, to destroy the Danish fleet and bombard Copenhagen, creating much animosity towards the British. This affected trade and shipping and left the Danish-Norwegian economy at the point of bankruptcy in 1813.
So, although there are traces of British Neoclassicism in early 19th-century Scandinavian furniture, it was often due either to the residual effect of late 18th-century design, or it had filtered through the influence of north German cabinet-making.
The one positive outcome of these hostilities was that local craftsmen were protected from British competition and were encouraged to develop their own workshops and styles. As in the rest of Europe, the Empire style predominated, although it had marked local characteristics.
DANISH EMPIRE
A traditional preference for simplicity, and the need for frugality as a result of war and financial hardship, gave rise to a version of the prevailing French style called Danish Empire, which was taken up by three of the Scandinavian countries. Although mahogany was
favoured, and was used in the larger, wealthier cities, it was difficult to obtain due to war. As a result, the Danish Empire style made use of light local woods, such as alder, maple, ash, and birch, which could be polished to look like satinwood. Mahogany furniture did reappear after 1815, and was generally veneered on pine rather than oak pieces.
Danish furniture was often inlaid with contrasting woods, such as citrus, rather than having ormolu mounts. Inlaid lunettes and arched details were popular, as was the occasional pressed brass or giltwood detail.
One of the most distinctive chairs produced in Denmark was the klismos chair, designed by Nicolai Abilgaard in 1800 and now in the Copenhagen
Museum of Decorative Arts. Similar
to a chair later designed by the sculptor Hermann Freund (now in the Fredericksborg Castle), it mimics the ancient Greek original.
The Danish custom of using one room as a combined dining room, drawing room, and study at this time resulted in some unique types
of furniture. One of these, the Chatol, consisted of a cylinder bureau with a retractable writing slide, surmounted by cupboards for storing cutlery and glassware. Another was a divan, which had cupboards in the sides.
HETSCH STYLE
In Denmark, the Neoclassical style lasted into the 1840s, thanks to the late Empire style popularized by Gustav Friedrich Hetsch. Hetsch had studied with Charles Percier in Paris earlier in the century, returning to Copenhagen to direct the porcelain factory. He was also a designer and his works were often scholarly reproductions of antique prototypes. This style, which favoured the use of carved appliques and mouldings over mounts, is sometimes confusingly called Christian VIII after the Danish king who reigned from 1839 to 1848.
SWEDEN
Sweden was slightly more francophile in its tastes than Denmark, particularly in Court circles. The furniture in the Yellow Room at Rosendal Castle in Stockholm, created for the king in the 1820s, is closer to true French Empire style than any furniture produced in Scandinavia during the early 19th
century It was designed by Lorenz Wilhelm Lundelius, the leading craftsman in Stockholm.
A famous secretaire, made by Johan Pettey Berg in 1811, demonstrates how Swedish cabinet-makers absorbed German heaviness, combined it with Empire motifs (such as white marble pilasters), and added the occasional British reference, such as the Sheraton-inspired inlaid shell.
The Hetsch style eventually arrived in Sweden, but it did not become dominant because Neo-Gothic had taken hold there quite early Indeed, by 1828, there was already a room decorated in the Gothic style in the Royal palace in Stockholm.

BIEDERMEIER LOVE SEAT
This mahogany, Biedermeier-style love seat has a solid, rectangular form with outswept arms. The back and sides of the seat have brass-moulded panels and fan spandrels. The arms have rosette terminals and mahogany
facings. The seat rail has brass mounts and is supported on verdigris brackets, carved in the shape of drapery. The piece terminates in massive gilt and verdigris claw-and-ball front feet. The love seat has an upholstered back, sides, and seat. Early 19th century.

SWEDISH SECRETAIRE
The tall, flame-veneered case of this Swedish Empire secretaire has tapering sides. The upper section of the case has a fall front positioned beneath a shallow drawer. The lower section consists of three graduated drawers; the bottom
drawer has a cut-away arched shape. The piece is raised on rectangular block feet. This secretaire is made in the style of furniture from towards the end of the period and is a move away from the Empire style. It was possibly made by J.C. Reher. 1841.

DANISH ARMCHAIR
The substantial hooped-back, upholstered backrest of this mahogany armchair is raised on curved supports. The upholstered seat has square, tapered legs at the front and sabre legs at the rear. Early 19th century.
EVE LATE GUSTAVIAN ARMCHAIR
This Swedish gilt-and-painted armchair has an upholstered seat and back, a curved top rail with lion’s head terminals, and carved, down-sweeping arms. The padded seat is supported on a carved seat rail and is raised on turned and fluted legs at the front and sabre legs at the rear. Early 19th century.
LADY’S WORKTABLE
This late Gustavian Swedish worktable has an oval, galleried top above a single frieze drawer. The table top is supported on tapering legs terminating in brass caps and casters and joined by a shaped cross-stretcher.

19TH CENTURY CHAIRS
CHAIR DESIGN HAD NEVER been so
diverse as in this eclectic age. The different styles seen in other types of furniture also existed in chairs. Elements from the popular revival styles – from Classical acanthus
carvings to Gothic arches and all points in between – combined to create a multifarious riot of forms.
Chairs were often designed to complement other pieces in a room, but were also influenced by fashion, which resulted in the design of tow, wide seats to accommodate full skirts.
COMFORT FIRST
An emphasis on comfort was at the core of many mid 19th-century chair designs, especially those that emanated from France, where padded arms, seats, and backs were dc rigueur components of the Rococo- and Neoclassical-revival styles. In Britain, the easy chair was thickly padded in fabric or leather and
provided a respite from the more ascetic oak chairs in the Gothic style. There was a renewed interest in the designs of Chippendale, Sheraton, and Adam towards the end of the century.
Two separate interpretations of the Rococo style – the bentwood laminate styles of the Thonet and Belter factories on the one hand, and the padded giltwood offerings of French workshops on the other – both enjoyed popularity Classical motifs such as urns, acanthus, and festoons were equally prolific. Oriental and Anglo-Indian furniture expanded the canon of Western decorative arts to include elements from these two ancient Eastern cultures.
Salon suites al became popular in middle-class homes during this period. The suite typically comprised a sofa, a chaise longue. four side chairs, a lady’s armchair. a gentleman`s armchair, and a stool – all in the Louis XV style.
These open armchairs are made of white-painted wood and each have a flower-carved crest and apron. The seat, arms, and back are upholstered in a pale fabric decorated with a floral and foliate pattern. In each case, the
serpentine seat is supported on painted (formerly gilt) cabriole legs. The chairs are Louis XV in style and make an interesting contrast to the armchairs shown below. c.1880.
FRENCH OPEN ARMCHAIRS
Each one of this pair of giltwood open armchairs has an upholstered back, arms, and seat. The frame of each chair is carved with a scroll, ribbon, and swag crest and stiff lead
borders. Each chair has fluted, finial-surmounted supports and tapering legs, which terminate in brass casters. The chairs are Louis XVI in style. c1900.
GERMAN CHAIR AND ARMCHAIR
This solid mahogany chair and armchair are designed in the Empire style, with scrolled top rails and upholstered backs and seats. The supports. armrests, and seat rails are inlaid
with bronze decoration. The arm supports are giltwood sphinxes, while the cabriole legs have carved and gilt griffin heads and paw feet. c.1880.
BRITISH GENTLEMAN’S CHAIR
This walnut-framed gentleman’s easy chair has a Morocco-leather buttoned back and seat with studded decoration and outscrolled arms. It is a good example of a chair with coil springs. The chair is raised on turned front legs and casters. 1890-1900.
Carved splat panel
CHINESE ARMCHAIRS
These red-lacquered elm armchairs from Shangxi Province each have a scrolling top rail and a panelled splat carved with an animal and objects. Each panel seat with a carved seat rail is supported on square-section legs with stretchers. c.1880.
BLACK FOREST HALL CHAIRS
Each one of this pair of chairs has a stained and carved frame inlaid with hunting scenes on the back and seat. The waisted, pierced, scrolling back rises above a shaped serpentine seat, which is supported on cabriole legs.
AMERICAN SIDE CHAIRS
This pair of Rococo-revival, laminated, rosewood side chairs each has a shaped, moulded back, enclosing scrolling devices. The upholstered seats have a flower-carved rail and are supported on
cabriole legs.
BRITISH EASY CHAIR
This George III-style, mahogany, upholstered easy chair has a curved crest above rolled arms and is raised on cabriole legs with claw-and-ball feet. The chair has rose and beige silk damask upholstery. c.1900.
BRITISH OPEN ARMCHAIR
The rounded back and seat of this armchair in George I style are upholstered with gros and petit-point woolwork. The walnut frame has shepherd-crook arms and shell-carved cabriole legs, terminating in claw-and-ball feet.
ANGLO-INDIAN OPEN ARMCHAIR
This Empire-style armchair has a shaped top rail, a square-section back rail, scrolled arms, and cabriole legs. Every surface is covered with sadeli work decoration set within ivory and
ebony borders. c.1900.
ITALIAN ARMCHAIR
This lime and walnut armchair has an oval back with an upholstered panel framed by carved, gilt surrounds. The seat has a moulded top rail and is supported on cabriole legs. c.1840.
BRITISH SIDE CHAIR
The caned, shield-shaped back of this Sheraton-style, painted satinwood side chair is surmounted by a medallion, depicting a female figure. The seat is raised on square, tapering legs, which terminate in spade feet. c.1900.

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INDIA
UNTIL THE 19TH CENTURY, artistic
depictions of domestic Indian interiors tended to portray very little furniture. A low, canopied bed, a small dressing table, and a chest were quite often the only pieces present in such images. The throne chair, a staple form in most world cultures, was a symbol of prestige and had more currency as a ceremonial object than as a piece of domestic furniture.
Even the wealthiest of the Indian elite had very sparsely furnished homes until the 19th century when they became influenced by European colonialists, whose opulent lifestyles they eagerly imitated.
A UNION OF TWO TRADITIONS The ease with which Indian wood workers turned their hands to producing furniture in European forms was astounding. Fanny Parks, a British traveller, published a journal in 1850 that included an account of how an Indian carpenter constructed a table from a model she had made from river mud.
The Dutch had encouraged Indian craftsmen to make furniture for export during the 17th century, establishing a tradition that was to flourish as the British consolidated their grip on the subcontinent. As more and more British citizens arrived in India,
demand for furniture that was similar to that which they had used at home increased steadily.
From the mid 19th century, a new style of furniture that came to be known as Anglo-Indian began to evolve. Indian cabinet-makers were quick to adopt British forms, such as the cabinet-on-stand, or the
armchair, but they transformed them into something entirely new through the application of decorative elements drawn from their own culture. The use of surface decoration was profuse – it is not uncommon for every available surface of a table to feature
elaborate openwork carving or intricately patterned inlays.
A WEALTH OF RESOURCES
The practitioners of the Anglo-Indian style had a huge creative resource available to them in the shape of India’s diverse and rich cultural heritage. Devotional carvings from sacred sites, such as the Buddhist monuments at Sanchi, were
incorporated into furniture design.
The great natural bounty of India had an equally important role to play. Although timber from the Far East was imported, the majority of Indian furniture was constructed from teak, rosewood, ebony and padouk, all of
which was harvested locally. Ivory was widely available and craftsmen used it frequently as an inlay material, carving it with intricate designs before applying dark shellac varnish to enhance the decoration. It was not unheard of for chairs and other smaller items to be hewn from solid ivory. Even elephant or rhinoceros feet were incorporated into some of the more outlandish furniture designs of the mid-19th century.
STYLES OF DECORATION
Cheaper alternatives to ivory-inlaid furniture were pieces decorated with penwork. Regional centres throughout India soon developed their own specialities. The town of Vizagapatam became famous for its wood and quillwork ornamental boxes, while Baharampur – notable as the flashpoint of the Indian Mutiny in 1857 – was renowned for the skill of its carvers. The care taken by Indian
craftsmen was most evident in the ornament of the furniture they created. By contrast, hidden areas, such as the tops of cabinet doors, would often be finished somewhat roughly and bear visible tool marks.
NLAID LOW TABLE
This is one of a pair of rare horseshoe armchairs made of huanghuali, the Chinese name for rosewood. It has a U-shaped, bamboo form, a carved top rail, a cane seat, and a lattice splat. The top rail and legs have been carved to simulate the, apperance of bamboo. S&K
This black-lacquered wooden low table of rectangular form is inlaid with mother-of-pearl and hard stones, depicting a rural scene. The image includes a pavilion and figures within a walled garden on a black ground. The table is supported on similarly decorated cabriole legs, terminating in paw feet.

A wall clock is simply a clock that can be fixed to a wall. Lantern clocks of the late 16th and 17th centuries were the first domestic wall clocks, but from the early 18th century large wall-hung clocks were made for taverns, inns, and other public buildings. Wall clocks of the 18th and 19th centuries range from elaborate, gilded French cartel clocks to the mass-produced, wooden-cased clocks of the USA.
LANTERN CLOCKS
A lantern clock is a weight-driven wall clock that strikes the hour on a bell. It is especially associated with Britain, where it was first made c.1620, but versions were also produced in continental Europe and Japan. Made almost entirely from brass – “lantern” may be derived from the old English word “fatten”, meaning brass – the clock resembles a domestic lantern: the square brass case has four small ball or urn feet, an engraved dial plate, three pierced frets, and a bell, covered by four straps and topped with a finial. The chapter ring, showing hours and quarter hours, was very narrow on the earliest examples and extended over the sides of the clock. In the dial’s centre are the maker’s signature and engraved designs – typically foliate scrolls and flower-heads – and often an alarm setting disc. The single hand is usually of iron but may be of brass or blued steel. Hands were “blued” by heating – this process not only strengthened them but also altered their colour to a dark blue-grey that was clearly visible against the dial.
Early lantern clocks were regulated by a balance wheel escapement, but after the pendulum was invented in the mid-17th century, most clocks were converted to or made with the more precise pendulum-controlled verge or anchor escapements. The verge escapement was especially popular throughout the 18th century with provincial makers. Lantern clocks went out of fashion in the early 18th century, but in the 19th century reproductions were made (and old clocks fitted) with spring-driven movements. Some clocks were refitted with balance wheel escapements as lantern clocks have become increasingly valuable in recent times.
TAVERN AND DIAL CLOCKS
Wall clocks for taverns, inns, assembly rooms, and public buildings were first produced in the 1720s.
The first such clocks are known as “tavern” clocks and sometimes erroneously as “Act of Parliament” clocks: in 1797 a tax on clocks and watches was instituted by the British Parliament (although repealed one year later), and this led to the popular misconception that these clocks were placed in taverns for customers who could not afford clocks in their homes. However, most tavern clocks predate this act by several decades. Measuring up to 76cm (30m) in diameter, and with a long trunk for the weight and pendulum, tavern clocks were designed to be seen clearly from a distance, and are usually only timepieces. The earliest examples from the 1720s have virtually square dials with arched tops; these developed into shield-shaped wooden dials. The numerals and chapter ring are usually gilt, and gilt designs
of flowers and scrolls feature in the corners of the dial, often with chinoiserie designs on the trunk.
Gilt finials sometimes ornamented the top of the case, but on some clocks these have broken off. Round dials were introduced in the mid-18th century: the dial itself was initially black with gold numerals, but from the 1770s a white dial with numerals and chapter ring in black was popular. As neither shield nor round dials had glass covers, the numerals and chapter ring are often worn away or repainted. Many round-dial tavern clocks also had black lacquered cases with chinoiserie decoration. From the 1790s lacquered tavern clocks declined and gave way to mahogany cases.
Dial clocks, made from the 1750s, became possibly the most popular style of clock ever produced. Simple in design, they consist of a round dial of engraved, silvered brass (18th century), painted wood (from c.1805), or painted iron (from c.1830), covered with glass and a brass bezel, and housed in a wooden case. The first dial clocks appeared with mahogany cases, but oak, walnut, and rosewood were also used in the 19th century, when these clocks were made by many British, German, and American firms to meet the demand for inexpensive timekeepers in offices, shops, and railway stations.
CARTEL CLOCKS
Cartel clocks are decorative, spring-driven wall clocks that were made in France, and to a lesser extent Britain, Austria, and Sweden, in the 18th and 19th centuries. “Cartel” is probably derived from the Italian word cartella, meaning “bracket”. The clock, with a verge or anchor escapement, typically featured a white-enamelled dial and a finely cast and gilded bronze or brass case. Elaborate, asymmetrical scrollwork, flowers, fruit, and shells are typical of mid-18th 18th century Rococo cases; more symmetrical Neo-classical designs of sunburst rays,masks, and urns were popular from the 1780s. Cartel clocks were produced in Britain on a limited scale from the 1730s to the 1770s; many are copies of French designs but are less exuberant than the Rococo originals.
AMERICAN WALL CLOCKS
Clockmaking began in New England c.1750 and was initially a very small industry, with parts such as dials Imported from Europe. In the early 19th century such clockmakers as Eli Terry (1772-1852) in Connecticut used streamlined methods of production and standard parts to mass-produce inexpensive clocks. As brass was expensive in the USA, movements as well as cases were often of wood. Most wall clocks from before c.1870 are weight-driven, with an anchor escapement.
Although many early American clocks were based on European designs, some distinctive new types were

created in the 19th century. In 1802 Simon Willard
( 17,53-1848) of Massachusetts invented the “banjo” clock, which featured simple but well-made brass movements and a white-painted metal dial. The long trunk, holding the weights and pendulum, was flanked by curved brass frets, with a box at the bottom decorated with verre eglomise (reverse-painted glass) panels. Only about 4,000 such clocks were produced and these are very collectable today.
Simon’s brother Aaron Willard (1757-1844) introduced a variant of the “banjo” clock, known as the “lyre” clock, which had a curving trunk of carved wood and a pendant-shaped bracket at the bottom of the case. In the mid-19th century the clockmaker Chauncey Jerome (1793-1868) of Bristol, Connecticut, designed an inexpensive, 30-hour duration shelf or wall clock known as the “OG” (ogee) clock, which took its name from the shape of the moulding around the dial and door. These mass-produced clocks had cheap brass movements, ogee-moulded veneered softwood cases, white-painted zinc dials, and verre eglomise panels. Early, rare American wall clocks are highly sought after in the USA.
Lantern clocks
• MOVEMENT a spring-driven mechanism indicates a clock made or altered in the 19th century
• CONDITION any shiny or artificially distressed parts are likely to be replacements; these should be good quality in order not to reduce the value
Tavern and dial clocks
• DESIGNS shield-shaped dials are typical of tavern clocks made between the 1720s and 1750s; later versions have round dials
• MOVEMENT dial clocks made before 1800 had verge escapements; anchor escapements were usual thereafter
• CONDITION some repainting of the numerals, chapter ring, and signature is common; clocks with extensive repainting should be avoided
Cartel clocks
• DESIGNS a gilt-bronze or brass case usually indicates a French make; most British versions are of carved, gilded wood
American wall clocks
• DESIGNS verre eglomise panels are typical
• LABELLING few are signed on the dial: instead they often have a label at the back of the inside case

The eighteenth century
The somewhat oppressive style of Louis XIV died with him. After his death life at court was characterised by elegance and a lighter touch. The effect was also felt in art with the salons of Paris being at the heart of the cultural life. The luxury of city life worked through to the country homes of the aristocracy which set an example to all Europe. The houses were extended with libraries, boudoirs, dining rooms, ballrooms, dressing rooms, bedrooms, workrooms and quarters for the servants being added. To give each room
its distinctive function, the range of furniture also became extended.
France — Regency and Rococo
During the Duke of Orleans’ regency rooms were still furnished with robust furniture but in the second half of the eighteenth century this altered radically. The fashion switched to lighter, more elegant designs that were also somewhat decadent in their decorative style. This made itself apparent in furniture with flowing lines, S-forms, and scrolls. Rococo was a fairly radical style period that endured for a shorter period in France than in other European countries. Customers made ever increasing demands on the furniture makers and furniture was required that was larger in size.
This caused a demarcation among the furniture makers with them specialising for instance in a particular type of expensive wood which they then made into furniture of the very highest standards. This was equally true of the bronze founders who engraved their adornments as if it were jewellery.
Increased demand brought about a certain amount of standardisation. The ebenistes started to buy in timber, drawers, mouldings, marquetry, and handles and catches. All the ebenistes were required to sign their work from 1743, except for those working in the service of the King and yet it can be extremely difficult to identify a maker. This is because all the ebenistes also sold furniture made by others and it was their custom to sign all the furniture that they sold.
Daily life for the upper echelons of French society was extremely lively. Lots of callers were received and many visits also made, and in the evening they either attended or gave dinner parties. Lots of different types of seating were therefore needed which had to be comfortable.
Only curved forms would do for these. Among the new types of seating there was a short upholstered sofa of which one type was known as a berg&e.
This had a closed back.
There was also the bergere a joue, which somewhat resembled a modern wing chair, and a number of versions of the chaise longue for lounging on. A chaise longue that was open at the front was known as a turquoise, while the variety with upholstered armrests was known as a vieilleuse.
A canape has open armrests at the side, while a sofa has S-form closed side arms. The dressing table was accompanied by a fauteuil de toilette and a desk or bureau by a fauteuil de bureau. Rococo furniture was decorated with brocade, damask, velvet, or satin. Damask came from Genoa, Lyon, or Peking. Gobelin tapestry and cloth with petit-point embroidery from the state factory at Aubusson were used to upholster furniture. Woven reed was also used to make seats and chairs backs.
The gilt carved cartouches and shells of Italy disappeared from decorations to be replaced with unrestricted compositions with ribbons and flower stems.
The rocaille from which some say Rococo got its name came into vogue around 1750. There was a movement, up to the middle of the century, away from structure-led form towards ornamental design and was expressed also in the bronze embellishments. These were applied to table legs for example where stringers and legs met. A piece of furniture with a purely decorative function is the Rococo console which eventually replaced the console table.
Cabinets disappeared from interiors during the Rococo period except for in country homes and those of the citizenry, although there were half-height cabinets with two doors serving as wash-stand chiffoniers known as meuble d’entre deux and small bookcases with two doors. There would be a games table in
the salon, sometimes with a chessboard inlaid into its top and the round gueridon or pedestal table was made for all manner of small items. There would be a large table in the dining room together with a whole series of smaller tables and for when they wished to talk without being overheard by the servants, there would be a ‘dumb waiter’ on which the staff would leave the food before retiring. In a ladies’ room there would certainly be a dressing table or table de toilette which later became known as a poudreuse. The lady would also have a writing table or bonheur du jour in one of her rooms. Men’s desks were much heavier in appearance, usually made from palisander but other words were also used for bureaux. Flat-fronted bureaux were popular until 1750 after which the cylindrical bureaux became more fashionable.
There would be several night tables in the sleeping quarters: the tables de nuit and tables de lit. During the Rococo period beds became more elegant and graceful but often with whimsical valances from which their names were derived of lit a la Chinoise, l’Anglaise, l’Allemagne, or l`Italienne. No chests or coffers were to be seen anywhere in the salons, these had been replaced by a commode with two attendant corner cabinets.
The form of the commode had also changed. The curves of the front had now disappeared and the bronze handles and catches were geometrically arranged. The bottom of the commode was bowed. As the years passed, Rococo became increasingly more complex. Bronze ornamentation and intarsia inlays now covered the entire fronts of pieces, without regard for the drawers.
Subsequently the decoration moved more to the sides of pieces. Bronze ornamentation became more simple with cleaner lines after 1740. Whatever their specialisation, virtually every furniture maker produced commodes during the Rococo era. Some of the famous names are J.P.
Latz, J.F. Leleu, Nicolas Pineau, F. Oeben, J.H. Riesener, Bernard van Risen-burgh, and Abraham Roentgen.
There was strongly exotic side to Rococo so that lacquered furniture was extremely popular at this time. Rococo flourished most during the first half of the eighteenth century and at this time French lacquer-work production overtook even that of the Dutch who had been the biggest producers of reproduction chi-
noiserie and the largest importers of Chinese and Japanese lacquer items. The Dutch Martin brothers were the major producers of reproduction chinoiserie.
Germany and Austria
The political situation had as great an influence on the furniture industry during the Rococo period as during the preceding era.
The artistic and cultural leanings of the individual courts depended both on their geographical position and political realities. Hence the main cities of Berlin, Dresden, Munich, and Vienna took their lead from the French court.
The German/Dutch Rhineland and the area between Liege and Achen differed markedly from the German/French Rhineland. There was a clear preference for Dutch and English style furniture in northern Germany.
The biggest variation in types of furniture and their styles resulted from the personalities of the persons commissioning them. When German makers did follow French inspiration they did not do so closely. This resulted in the Bandestil or `banded style’ which got its name from the banding motif popularly used until the mid eighteenth century on much furniture, but specially on bureaux.
A German Rococo secretaire had a style of its own, with a curved form which gave a far from restful appearance. The legs and corners were also slightly bowed and slanted. These secretaires were mainly made of ebony and fitted with drawers. Colourful marquetry was very popular for decoration. Frankfurt cabinets had a similar appearance and were therefore also extremely popular.
Northern makers who followed French ideas for commodes fitted them with three, four, or five drawers but they used no veneer. Further south, in contrast, a commode was deemed to be a tall cabinet finished in walnut veneer. This was finished unpretentiously with iron handles and fittings and had straight sides. The only decorated examples were those for aristocratic houses of the princes. The commode was a piece of furniture for the common folk. These were finished with refined carving in unvarnished oak and walnut in both Achen and Liege. These cities also made corner cabinets for tableware, wardrobes,
small and tall dressers, and display cabinets.
The bureau was adopted from France too but German versions were both lower and less deep.The glazed fronted Dutch cabinet was further developed in north-west Germany and there was also clearly a Dutch influence in their lacquered furniture. Some chairs were both lacquered and decorated with inlays. The most common furniture though is made of stained walnut and oak.
The most precious pieces were gilded. Furniture made of beech or lime was usually painted yellow or white. Luxury items of furniture were also made in some places in Austria and Switzerland, often with the help of important artists. There are also delightful country pieces from this era. Rocaille motifs continued to be used in painted decoration until the middle of the nineteenth century.
France - Louis XVI
A desire for the classical world returned in the middle of the eighteenth century resulted in a number of artists making journeys to Greece and Italy. Classicism became more widely known through their books, lectures, and works of art. Excavation of Herculaneum and Pompeii produced a great array of artistic treasures which inspired many contemporary artists.
This also coincided with a movement in art towards simplicity and naturalism. This trend manifested itself first in furniture, before the other arts. Furniture makers once more used motifs such as plaited garlands, egg and tongue mouldings, Hermes, nymphs, lion’s heads, vines, rosettes, bull’s heads, and Doric friezes. Rococo had shown a preference for gilding, white paint, and light colours. The mouldings and bronze ornamentation now faded into the background. Muted coloured veneers
Louis XVI dining chair.
From the 1880’s, at the end of Rococo, inlays of Sevres porcelain had been used together with glass painting and lacquer from Asia. Floral motifs were popular for upholstery fabrics. Chairs were not just required to look fine but also to be comfortable. The backs of chairs became rounded or oval in the 1870’s. These were crested with carved decoration. Legs resembling fluted columns were popular. The types of seating did not change though.
A newcomer was the three-seat sofa known as a confidente. The sides of both sofas and bergeres were now generally straight. Console tables stood on a fluted column. Beds were no longer placed in an alcove and the side not against the wall was decorated.The common folk’s furniture remained conservative. Items made for the citizenry
included two-door cabinets, ladies’ and medium height two-door dressers. Commodes were rectangular, smooth, and mainly set on conical legs.
A newcomer to less exalted homes was the cylinder bureau.One of the best furniture makers of the time was undoubtedly J.H. Riesener.
His pieces are decorated with marquetry flowers, urns, and fruits. Furniture was decorated with many allegorical figures and bronze embellishments. Riesener partially changed his approach towards the end of the eighteenth century with the introduction of straight legs and more geometrical marquetry. He undoubtedly gave his closest attention to his rectangular secretaires and commodes with rounded corners Most of the ebenistes working for the French court were actually German.
Great names among suppliers to the court include J.F. Schwerdtfeger and Adam Weisweller. The greatest of all were Abraham and David Roentgen, who also sold to the courts of other European rulers.
A provincial Louis XVI cabinet with basin for rinsing glasses.
David Roentgen’s speciality was furniture with secret mechanisms. His marquetry decorations were based on designs by the fresco artist Januarius Zick.
David Roentgen lived in Paris between 1775 and 1780 and it was at this time that his finest pieces were made. Most of them were light in colour with bronze decoration.
The first to incorporate English ideas in furniture in France was G. Jacob, a woodcarver, who made armchairs of mahogany. The backs of his chairs were in the form of an oval medallion and they had console legs.
The fan-like fretwork form of his chair backs was very fine. The German maker J.G. Bennemann specialised after 1779 in large horizontally arranged dressers that were decorated with bronze adornments specially made by P.P. Thomire.

Baroque Furniture
The principal characteristic of Baroque is its rejection of the rationalism of the Renaissance. Baroque is much more dynamic and lively, particularly with its use of light and shade in the manner of a painter. The design of a piece and its detail were subjugated to achievement of dynamism, which was at the core of Baroque. The eye for the main lines was expressed through the materials used. Wood was inlaid with gemstones or semi-precious stones, tortoiseshell, precious metal, and ivory. Light was reflected by polished wood. Supports were turned as scrolls and an overall impression of curved form was created by the use of projecting pediments, plinths, and cornices. Much use was made of acanthus stems with broad leaves and conch shell motifs.
It is difficult to determine with furniture when Baroque replaced the Renaissance because the two styles co-existed for a time. Furthermore the characteristic Baroque elements only became fully apparent during the late eighteenth century.
France
Most of Europe, with a few exceptions, fell sway to the dynamism of Baroque. France though preferred more rigid classical lines. This found its expression in an individual French style of furniture. It was precisely at this time that greater power came into the hands of the French king and with it a greater role in artistic commissions and hence of trends at the hands of the French court.
The best artists and craftsmen worked in the Royal studios — with the establishment in 1677 of the Manufacture Royale des Meubles de la Couronne. Cabinet making became regarded as an art in itself, with cabinet makers also working as ebeniste (specialist in inlay or marquetry — the name is derived from the
French predilection for ebony inlay) and woodcarver.
In addition to the importance of construction and decoration in the making of furniture, consideration was also given to the location in which the furniture was to stand. The ebeniste, designer of the ornamentation, and the architect all made decisions about the final form of a piece. In the Middle Ages furniture had been largely portable or easily moved but during the Renaissance furniture was made for a more set place in the interior of homes. Now the far extreme was reached in which it was no longer intended that the piece should ever be moved.
A strange schism arose between furniture for the citizenry and very luxurious pieces. This also meant that different materials were used in the making of these different items. Instead of the customary walnut, more exotic types of wood were now used.
A good example of this is the use of ebony, which by the time of Louis XIII was already being decorated with coloured inlays.
The artist Andre Charles, who worked for the court of Louis XIV was exceptionally talented, and stood out from the other ebenistes. In his early period he also used Dutch motifs such as vases of jasmine, roses, and tulips in his mosaic woodwork. Later he was influenced by the designs of Berain and Marot and replaced his motifs with banding linked together with acanthus stems. His designs were formed with both negative and positive inlays such as light pewter in tortoiseshell and vice versa. Later still he replaced the marquetry of the 1660’s and 70’s as it became less fashionable.
The bed was an important piece of furniture as the whole morning ceremony of rising or lever occurred around it. The enclosed square form of the bed remained with four posts and both outer and inner curtains. The bedroom had several ante-rooms attached in which there was much coming and going of court functionaries. The chest was banished from the furnishing of rooms and was replaced by the commode which became popular in France around 1700. The commode was a development of the chest with drawer which Boulle placed on legs. In the French salons table commodes also appeared, set on tall legs, encrusted with inlays of metal and tortoiseshell. These legs were furthermore decorated with bronze mascarons or grotesque masks. The drawers too were fitted with bronze handles which also held the encrusted decoration in the veneer.
The most important piece of salon furniture was a superbly made cabinet with drawes. At first the Boulle cabinets had separate plinths but later these were integral.
Tables were adapted to the considerable demands of the time and there were numerous variations. In common with other furniture, tables too were inlaid with metal and the same was equally true of cashier’s tables, most of which had a small drawer. The older-style baluster legs were considered too plump and were replaced by cabriole legs.
Other rooms than the salons were often used for a number of purposes and as required night and toilet cabinets might be placed in them.
There were also heavy tables with marble tops plus smaller tables for lamps and suchlike. Console tables provided an architectural element.Seating in the form of fa u teu ils (armchairs), tabourets, sofas, and chairs formed part of the interiors of the homes of the wealthy and the aristocracy but cabinets did not. These were found in the homes of the citizenry but the new item of luxury furniture was the bookcase.
Many different types of armchair and chair were made. Armchairs with turned legs were widely used but later these legs were replaced with richly decorated baluster legs. These were joined together
with diagonal carved stretchers or with H-form stretchers but these disappeared with the arrival of cabriole legs.
The backs of armchairs became more all encompassing and were upholstered and rounded off at the top in an arch. The curved arms of the chairs also became upholstered.
French furniture makers were also influenced by English furniture makers. This led to the introduction of the commodite — a kind of wide armchair — into France. The canape was also partially developed from the English day bed or lit de repos.
German-speaking Europe and the Low Countries
Baroque expressed itself in Germany through very excessive and lively inlay and carving and was of considerable influence there. The elements of the Baroque style were incorporated with both imagination and consistency. The output of German furniture makers was equally diverse as German politics. Designs based on the Renaissance endured for a long time but alongside this a new style developed in the palaces, castles, and grand homes of the countless principalities, which adopted a great deal of the influences from elsewhere. Furniture was imported into northern Germany for some considerable time from the northern Netherlands. After the death of Frederick I of Prussia in 1713 late Italian Baroque started to become more widespread and the artistic centre moved to Dresden, which became one of the most important artistic centres in Europe under Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony.
The Bavarian court in southern Germany was strongly influenced by French examples and items such as console tables with French baluster legs and lighter tables in the style of Boulle were made. The encrusted decoration of this maker and also of Marot found favour here too. Cabinets in ebony from Augsburg of this period are exceptionally fine. They have inlays of polychrome stones, ivory, wood, and pietra dura (mosaic of semi-precious stones).
Furniture was largely made from walnut with intarsia inlays of other wood. Great care was taken to ensure that the beauty of the grain of the walnut was revealed to its fullest potential.
The cabinetmakers achieved considerable results in such furniture. German Baroque ornamentation was dominated from the 1660’s by heavy use of acanthus leaf motifs that had replaced conch shell forms, and by small arrow-like columns. Intarsia decorations became figurative from the start of the eighteenth century (bouquets of flowers were very popular) and no longer utilised vines, squares, or rectangular patterns. Baroque became increasingly more valid in Germany and this is clearly apparent with cabinets.
The older-style cabinet on bun feet was drastically altered. It changed into a four-door — later two-door — cabinet with heavy cornice, turned pilasters or columns, and angled fronts.
In terms of furniture, the northern parts of the Low Countries can be considered as an entity with northern Germany, although there were local style variations of course. Hamburg was an important furniture-making centre. The Hamburg four-door cabinet closely resembled Dutch Renaissance cabinets. In addition to these a fine two door cabinet appeared from Hamburg around 1700 with a straight cornice. The faсade comprised large decorated areas with continuous pilasters. A similar cabinet from the Dutch Republic of this time is the linen cabinet for storing pillows.
The partial cornices of cabinets from Dantzig (Gdansk) gave them a less fussy appearance and their square panels were decorated with mythological scenes. By contrast, cabinets from Lubeck had arched cornices. The Baroque influence ensured that cabinets from Holstein and Westphalia were embellished with figurative decorations.
The influence of the naturalistic Dutch floral intarsia decoration remained apparent throughout the eighteenth century. In addition to the main show pieces many painted and non carved pieces were made in northern Germany.
In southern Germany, new life was given to Renaissance cabinets at Ulm and cabinets from Augsburg were smaller and sometimes overwhelmingly decorated. The popularity of the Wellenschrank originating from Frankfurt was great from the beginning of the seventeenth century. This is a simply decorated cabinet in walnut veneer with an attractive curved front. Cabinets were also the most important item of furniture in northern Germany too.
There were various variants of these as elsewhere. Those from Hamburg were decorated with acanthus stems while Dantzig cabinets were smaller with one or two doors.
Commodes with pull-out leaf for writing and bureaux formed important pieces of furniture in the homes of the middle classes. Their chairs had spiral, turned, or cabriole legs and leather seats and these were also used to sit at table.
These chairs had high backs with heavy armrests and were decorated with carved banding and acanthus stems.
Many canopy beds with turned posts had large panels that were usually copiously decorated with intarsia inlay or carving. Gradually beds began to be made without valances.
Carving fell out of favour over the years so that cabinets had large plain surfaces on their fronts which gave them a monumental appearance.