Posts Tagged ‘English’

Globes
Pair of early nineteenth-century mahogany library globes by Newton, published in 1838 and 1836. The tripod frames with out-scrolled legs ending in brass castors, 3 ft 8 in high        780 0
Large pair of terrestrial and celestial globes by Newton; published 25 March 1875. Supported in mahogany frames on triple curving legs 205 0
Pair of terrestrial and celestial globes in turned stands by James
Wyld, Charing Cross East; published 1847 185 0
Knife Boxes
A pair of mahogany urn-shaped knife boxes, stamped W. Johnston, with domed lids and bodies inlaid with flowers and stripes, 2 ft 5 in high 115 0
Sheraton  inlaid  mahogany serpentine-fronted knife box in
original condition 32 0
Mirrors—Mantel
Empire-style giltwood overmantel with triple mirrored panels
and decorated with classical figures 105 0
Rectangular mantel mirror in a giltwood frame carved with
acanthus and shell motifs, 31 in by 25 in 60 0
Mirrors—Toilet or Dressing
Sheraton serpentine-fronted box-frame toilet mirror fitted with
two drawers, 17 in wide 36 0
Sheraton box-frame shield-shape toilet mirror with two drawers,
18 in wide 30 0
Mahogany box-frame toilet mirror with three drawers, 15 in
wide 15 0
Edwardian   mahogany   box-frame   toilet  mirror   with three
drawers to base, 22 in wide 9 0
Mirrors—Wall
Pair of Chinese-Chippendale giltwood girandoles of rococo outline mounted with phoenix-birds and clusters of flowers from which issue two scrolled candle branches. The base enriched with acorns and oak leaves, 38

in high 650 0
Mid-Georgian wall glass in a giltwood frame carved with scrolls
and foliage and pierced, 44 in high 200 0
Chippendale mahogany mirror with gilt gesso beading
George IV convex mirror in a gilt frame enriched with spherical ornament with two scrolled candle sconces. Crested with a gilt eagle with outspread wings 76 0
Regency giltwood convex mirror with ball encrusted moulded
frame and ebonised slip, 1 ft 11 in diameter 15 0
Settees, Couches and Chaise Longues
Small carved mahogany sofa, the arched back carved with
rococo motifs. Curved arms, carved seat rail and cabriole legs        135 0
some auction room prices ‘. 1968-69
Decorated satinwood cane-panelled settee with loose seat
cushion, 4 ft 4 in George III painted settee with flat rectangular back and arms,
on turned legs. The arms, seat rails and legs are painted
with husks and flowers on a cream ground, 6 ft wide Early George III mahogany settee with stuffed back and arms.
The seat rail and legs are carved with blind fret, 5 ft 8 in
wide, (some restoration) Victorian rosewood frame serpentine-fronted chaise longue on
short cabriole legs
Settles
Eighteenth-century oak settle, 5 ft 5 in wide Seventeenth-century panelled oak settle with box seat, 4 ft 6 in wide
Seventeenth-century carved and panelled tall-back hall settle, 5 ft 7 in wide
Sideboards
Small nineteenth-century sideboard inlaid with ebony lines. Raised back, the centre drawer flanked by a cupboard and deep drawer. Supported on six turned and tapering legs, 4 ft 8 in wide
Hepplewhite-style mahogany serpentine sideboard of rich mellow colour, cross-banded in kingwood and fitted with a napery drawer and cellaret cupboards with octagonal gilt metal handles and supported on chamfered

legs, 7 ft 2 in wide
Georgian mahogany half-moon sideboard with two cupboards to the sides and two drawers with lion ring handles in the centre. Four tapering legs, 4 ft wide
Large mahogany Sheraton-style sideboard fitted with two long drawers and flanked by two deep drawers, supported on tapering legs
Regency Empire mahogany sideboard of architectural form, with a reverse breakfront with two shallow drawers to the centre flanked by deep cupboards. Supported by two curved and four simulated bamboo legs

terminating in brass paw feet. The whole mounted with ormolu and brass griffins, lions’ masks and sphinx and with Adams-style garlands and patera, 7 ft 6 in long
Late Georgian mahogany sideboard with shaped front, the top back rail fitted with three tambour slides. Two cupboards and a centre drawer to the base over a waved apron. Supported on six slender tapering legs, 5 ft

7 in wide
Early nineteenth-century mahogany bow-front sideboard on spiral-turned legs, 6 ft 1 in wide
Tables—Break fast
Regency mahogany breakfast table with brass stringing on the banded top and a turned pillar ending in a reeded quadruped, 5 ft by 3 ft 5 in
Georgian mahogany oval breakfast table with reeded edge and
Tables—Card
Chippendale mahogany card table with shaped folding top on boldly carved cabriole legs ending in claw and ball feet, 2 ft 7 in wide 370 0
Late George II mahogany card table with border of carved flowerheads and legs and frieze carved with blind fret, 3 ft wide 250 0
Regency card table in figured rosewood inlaid with brass flowers and leaves, the D-top on a ringed stem and quadruple brass capped legs, 3 ft wide 190 0
Sheraton mahogany card table inlaid with satinwood lines and
on tapering legs, 3 ft 2 in wide 180 0
George II walnut card table with rectangular top on turned legs
with mantled knees and club feet, 3 ft wide 95 0
Regency mahogany card table with green baize interior on curving quadruple support, ending in brass claw feet. The top is cross-banded 65 0
Victorian mahogany card table with double Sap top supported
on four tapering shafts, terminating in curved legs 44 0
Tables—Centre
Regency painted centre tabic, the circular top simulating green marble, the border with brass mouldings hinged to a carved turned central support on a curved triangular base with lion’s paw feet, 4 ft diameter 120 0
Edwards and Roberts eboniscd centre table with ormolu beading on cluster column and quadruple base, 5 ft 6 in wide 38 0
Red Buhl shaped centre table with heavy ormolu mounts, two
drawers and on cabriole legs. (Poor condition) 11 0
Tables—Dining
Charles I oak dining table with a triple-plank top and the frieze carved with leaves and interlaced arcading, on column legs, 6 ft 5 in long by 2 ft 7 in wide 360 0
Large late George III mahogany dining table, the top richly carved with acanthus, ribbon motifs, satyr masks and a coat of arms. Supported on ten tapering spiral-twist legs with five loose leaves, 12 ft 4 in long 185 0
Georgian mahogany two pillar dining table with triple curving
legs ending in brass-capped feet 122 0
Georgian mahogany oval drop-leaf dining table on turned legs
and pad feet 75 0
Eighteenth-century mahogany oval drop-leaf cottage dining table
on taper legs with pad feet, 3 ft 6 in wide 44 0
Mahogany gadrooned oval dining table with cabriole legs and
claw and ball feet 40 0
Georgian mahogany drum library table with leather top and four real and four dummy drawers. On triple curving legs with brass-capped feet, 3 ft 3 in diameter 680 0
some auction room prices : 1968-69
George III mahogany library table fitted with seven drawers and dummy drawers with gilt metal lion ring handles, the top with gilt tooled green leather and the whole raised on a curved quadruple support with

brass-capped feet
Tables—Games and Sewing
Eighteenth-century mahogany, shaped folding top, games table on nutcracker frame with cabriole legs and claw and ball feet, 34 in wide
William IV games table with sliding and reversible top inlaid as a chess board opening to reveal a backgammon board with two drawers to the side. Central pillar supported on quadruple curving feet
Nineteenth-century mahogany sewing table with rising top and drawers below. The slender tapering legs ending in brass-capped feet
Tables—Gate-leg
George I elmwood gate-leg table, the oval top with flaps on
cabriole legs carved with scrolls and leaves and ending in
pointed pad feet, 3 ft 9 in wide Seventeenth-century oak oval gate-leg dining table with double
flaps supported on bobbin turned legs with plain cross
stretchers, 4 ft 9 in wide Late George II mahogany gate-leg table, the oval top with two
flaps, on unusual legs fluted and ending in paw feet, 3 ft 9 in
wide
Oak oval gate-leg table on turned underframe with drawer, 4 ft wide
Tables—Occasional
Late George II mahogany piecrust table with bird-cage support on fluted stem with carved legs and claw and ball feet, 2 ft 2 in diameter
Large mahogany piecrust tripod table with baluster stem and
pointed pad feet, 3 ft 5 in diameter Mahogany tripod table, the circular top with raised rim, on
cabriole feet, 1 ft 10 in diameter
Tables—Pembroke
Late Georgian mahogany oval Pembroke table with drawer, on
square tapering legs, 2 ft 7 in wide by 3 ft 6 in long Late Georgian mahogany Pembroke table painted with a floral
border and on turned and fluted legs Georgian mahogany Pembroke table with folding flaps and
single drawer, inlaid with satinwood lines and fan motifs, on
tapering legs, 3 ft 2 in wide
Tables—Refectory
Seventeenth-century oak refectory table of slender plain form, the base having square ends united by a single stretcher, 7 ft 3 in long
Oak refectory table on bulbous end supports with central
stretcher, 7 ft 7 in by 3 ft wide 130 0
An exceptionally long oak refectory table with triple curving
supports, 18 ft 6 in long, 3 ft 3 in wide 90 0
Tables—Side
Queen Anne banded walnut side table with two deep and two
shallow drawers on square legs, 3 ft 3 in wide 170 0
Chinese-Chippendale mahogany side table, the frieze carved with
blind fret. Moulded legs, 3 ft wide 88 0
Oak side table with drawer, on turned legs, 3 ft wide 64 0
Walnutwood side table with cabriole legs carved with acanthus
leaves 31 0
Tables—Sofa
George III satinwood sofa table cross-banded with acacia, fitted with two drawers and false drawers opposite on trestle supports with splayed curved feet and brass castors, 2 ft 10 in wide        750 0
Regency banded mahogany sofa table with tulipwood stringing with two drawers on end supports and central stretcher with brass claw feet, 5 ft 10 in extended 380 0
Late George III mahogany sofa table with two drawers in frieze and raised on flat trestle supports with out-curved legs, 3 ft 2 in wide 270 0
George III mahogany sofa table banded in rosewood and with two drawers. It has trestle supports with tripod splayed legs and brass feet, 3 ft wide 250 0
Tables—Sutherland
Mahogany Sutherland table on turned underframe, 2 ft 9 in
wide 42 0
Victorian walnut-veneered Sutherland table on turned supports,
2 ft 6 in wide 36 0
Tables—Tea
Regency mahogany tea table with folding top on a turned pillar and four curved legs, the whole inlaid with brass stringing, 3 ft wide 120 0
Late George II mahogany tea table, the top with a border of flowerheads and ribbon and the frieze and chamfered legs carved with Chinese blind fret, 3 ft wide 60 0
George III mahogany tea table with folding top, a drawer in
the frieze and square tapering legs, 3 ft 8 in wide 38 0
Tables—Wine
Hepplewhite mahogany wine table, the inlaid octagonal top
supported on triple concave curving legs 105 0
Victorian mahogany wine table on pillar and tripod base, 21 in
diameter 10 0
Tables—Writing
George III mahogany pedestal writing table, the gilt tooled leather top with three drawers at each side of the frieze and
the pedestals with cupboards and drawers at either end, 4 ft wide
Early eighteenth-century banded fruitwood writing table, fitted
with three drawers, a shaped apron and on cabriole legs with
pad feet, 2 ft 4 in wide Victorian lady’s mahogany writing table with two short drawers
on lyre end supports, 3 ft wide Carved mahogany writing table with fitted drawer, the top lined
with leather, on cabriole legs, 2 ft 5 in wide
Tallboys and Lowboys
George II walnut tallboy, the top with reeded and canted corners and three small and three long drawers. The base having three long drawers and bracket feet
Queen Anne small walnut tallboy of mellow colour, the upper chest fitted with two small and three long drawers over a brushing slide, and three long graduated drawers
William and Mary lowboy inlaid with scrolls and motifs. The top fitted with two small and two long drawers and two long drawers to the base, 4 ft 3 in high
Georgian mahogany tallboy with dentil cornice and two small and three long drawers to the top and tliree long drawers to the base which is supported on bracket feet
Georgian mahogany tallboy with dentil cornice, the top fitted with two small and three long drawers, the base with three long drawers and supported on bracket feet, 6 ft 1 in high
Waiters
Mid-Georgian mahogany dumb waiter with turned and carved columns supporting three trays. The whole on cabriole tripod feet, 4 ft high
George III mahogany dumb waiter with two revolving tiers and baluster centre on three curved and moulded legs and castor feet applied with roundels, 3 ft 2 in high
George II mahogany dumb waiter with three graduated revolving tiers and spiral fluting on turned central support. Plain cabriole legs, 3 ft 6 in high
Wardrobes
Mahogany breakfront wardrobe fitted with sliding trays, four
drawers and panelled cupboards Small Georgian mahogany wardrobe enclosed by two panelled
doors with three drawers in the base, 3 ft 9 in wide George III mahogany gents wardrobe with pierced swan-neck
cresting, a pair of doors banded in satinwood and two short
and two long drawers below, 7 ft high by 4 ft 4 in wide Regency mahogany wardrobe the upper part with sliding trays
with four drawers under on splay feet, 3 ft 11 in wide
Washstands
Late George III mahogany washstand, the top hinged and opening to form a back, the front with a pair of cupboard doors above one small drawer, on square splayed legs, 2 ft wide
Edwardian three-tier corner washstand with basin 18 0 George III mahogany corner washstand, the slender legs joined
by a stretcher with a drawer, 2 ft wide                                      14 0
Wine Coolers
Georgian inlaid mahogany sarcophagus wine cooler with lion
mask and ring handle on paw feet 65 0
Georgian mahogany octagonal wine cooler with lifting top and
short square moulded legs, 18 in wide 55 0

THE TRIUMPH OF THE GIRANDOLE
The other most characteristic form of earring of the i 8th century was the girandole, which was fashionable throughout the whole of Europe. In the early
j 8th century it tended to have a horizontal shape, the three drops more or less of the same size and at the same level, and the central motif clearly defined and simple in design. Later it became more vertical in emphasis with a longer and larger central drop and a more elaborate central motif.
Above and opposite right: Late i 8th-century girandole earrings from Spain, set with emeralds and diamonds, a characteristic feature of Spanish jewellery. The elaborate central motif combines leaves and spray of flowers.
Centre top: French, circa I 76os, set with foiled rubies and diamonds, the drops and the central motif articulated. The combination of rubies and diamonds and the elaborate bow motif place it in the second half of the century.
Middle: English, second half of the T 8th century, set with foiled garnets. Note the rather stiff design and the clearly defined ribbon motif. The colour of the garnets is enhanced by bright pink foiling.
Bottom: Portuguese, circa 1750, set with foiled topazes. The choice of the gemstones — topazes from Brazil, then a colony of Portugal — and the linear and flat design are typical of Portuguese jewellery.
THE ELEGANT PENDELOQUE
A collection of late i 8th-century silver and diamond pendeloque earrings. These examples show some of the many variations of the pendeloque design, from the cluster, ribbon bow and pear-shaped drop (right and opposite above) to the articulated and elaborate swing centre (centre and opposite below). Note the use of silver as setting metal to complement the whiteness of diamonds. As is normal at this time, all gemstones are mounted in closed settings.
IBERIAN STYLE
Right: A gold and hessonite garnet earring, Catalan, probably early i 9th century. The striking design is a development of the traditional pendeloque design with a cluster surmount, an elaborate floral spray centre and an elongated pear-shaped drop. Many examples are extremely long and heavy, requiring special mounts to support their weight.
Opposite right: A collection of i 8th- and i 9th-century gold earrings, Portuguese and Spanish. These earrings exemplify the persistence, in the Iberian peninsula, of the pendeloque motif based on
surmount, ribbon bow and elongated drop. The great variety of design includes the traditional pendeloque conceived as a cluster surmount set with emeralds or rose diamonds supporting a bow and a pear-shaped drop; the ‘Brincos a Rainha’ with its wide, almost circular, drop with swing centre, entirely pierced in high carat gold; the elongated spindle-shaped earrings chased in gold with scroll motifs known as ‘Fuso’, and the bow pendants (centre of page).
Detail of a portrait of Mary, Countess of Macclesfield, by Francis Coates, exhibited at the Society of Artists in 1763 and much admired by Horace Walpole. The Countess is wearing fashionable diamond girandole earrings.
REFINEMENTS OF THE 18TH CENTURY
Opposite far left: A Portuguese silver and white topaz earring of girandole design, first half of the i 8th century, and (below) front and back view of a diamond girandole earring mounted in silver. The back view shows three typical features of the girandole: the closed setting of the stones; the articulated and detachable drops that allow the earring to be worn in a reduced form; and the additional hoop, through which a ribbon was threaded and secured to the hair.
This page:
Illustrations from 18th-century literature on earrings. Top: An extract from the ‘Discours Preliminaire’ of the Recueil des Dessins by A. Duflos, 1744, where the author expresses his concern about the excessive weight and elaborate design of girandole earrings. Above, left to right: French engraved designs of two girandole earrings and one pendeloque earring by F. LeFebvre (active circa 1635-57); a page of French engraved designs for six girandoles by Pouget, 1762; six engraved designs for pendeloques and girandoles by J. Quien, 1710, published posthumously in London in 1762; and two designs for a two-stone or double-cluster earring, by Duflos, 1744, a fashionable form that cannot be classified as either girandole or pendeloque.
Centre left: A page of French designs by Maria,
175 1-70, engraved by Babel, illustrating fashionable pendeloques and girandoles.
Below left: Four engraved designs for pendeloque and girandole earrings, by an anonymous Italian, circa 1770.
THE PENDELOQUE: Centre right: An unusual and colourful pair of earrings, late T 8th century, set with
THEME AND VARIATIONS cornelian plaques within diamond borders.
Right: A pair of diamond pendent earrings, Russian, mid-i 8th century. The interest in large cushion-shaped brilliant-cut diamonds mounted in closed silver settings is a typical i 8th-century feature.
Opposite: Four pairs of pendeloque earrings mounted in silver or gold and silver with colourless gemstones such as white topazes and rock crystal.
Opposite far right: A pair of diamond pendeloque earrings, English, late i 8th century. Note the large rose diamonds in silver closed settings and the rather severe design typical of many English creations of the time. And (bottom far right) a pair of topaz pendeloque earrings and a matching devant de corsage, Portuguese, mid-i 8th century, interesting for its combination of light yellow and foiled orange stones.
Below: A collection of English diamond jewellery, late i 8th century, comprising typical pendeloque earrings and a flowerhead dress ornament.
OUT OF THE MAINSTREAM
Below: A mid i 9th-century portrait by Joaquin Argasot y Juan of a Spanish lady wearing a pair of large gold and gem-set earrings of girandole inspiration, proving how long earrings of this type continued to be popular in the Iberian Peninsula. Their size explains why additional fittings were required.
Right: Silver and rose diamond pendeloque earrings, probably Flemish; and gold Iberian earrings set with topazes, of modified girandole design, similar to those in the portrait above.
Opposite, top left to bottom right: Gold and gem-set Spanish earrings, a variation of the Catalan type but with a much more slender outline; Catalan earrings; gold Iberian earrings set with emeralds; and garnet Catalan earrings. All on this page late i 8th/early i 9th century.
PEARLS, GEMS AND GLASS
Below: A pair of seed pearl and ruby girandole earrings, Southern Italian, mid-18th century. The use of minute seed pearls threaded on a filigree structure is a typical feature of many Southern Italian and Adriatic jewels of low intrinsic value. Even so the design presents the most typical features of the girandole: cluster surmount, bow and detachable drops.
Opposite: A pair of gilt-metal and glass girandole earrings, probably Italian mid- i 8th century, using copper coloured aventurine glass with gold spangles cut and faceted as if it were a precious stone. Glass paste of various colours was frequently cut and set in i 8th= centuryday jewellery, and even aristocratic ladies who owned precious jewels did not disdain to wear it. The smaller pictures show two pairs of Iberian earrings set respectively with rose diamonds and emeralds, late i 8th century. One is modelled on the traditional girandole, the other on the pendeloque form, which in this region retained their popularity well into the 19th century.
A pair of spectacular Southern Italian gold and seed pearl pendent earrings, late i 8th century. Although this particular type seems to be confined to Southern Italy and the Adriatic regions, its structure conforms to the contemporary pendeloque design. The use of seed pearls had been a typical feature of jewels of this area since the I 7th century, providing an extremely successful and decorative alternative to jewels set with precious gemstones.

FASHIONS IN THE ANCIENT WORLD
Right: Part of a wall-painting from Thebes, New Kingdom, circa 14-00 BC, depicting a scene from a banquet. Three Egyptian beauties are wearing the large earrings or earplugs fashionable at the time. Designed as faience or gold discs, they had a groove round the edge which fitted into a hole in the earlobe.
Below from left to right:
A pair of gold, enamel and glass paste earrings designed as a bunch of grapes suspended from a vine leaf, Canosa, late 3rd/early 2nd century BC. The fragments of green enamel on the leaves and the purple-red glass paste beads display naturalistic interest. Although the type is not very common in the Hellenistic world the design is typical of its age.
A gold disc earring with cone pendant, from Tarentum, late 4th/early 3rd century BC. Note the elaborate decoration of the disc surmount rendered with filigree rosettes and acanthus leaves. Disc earrings with inverted pyramid or cone pendant were used in certain areas of the Greek world as early as the 6th century BC, but it was in the 4th century that they reached the peak of their popularity. The type remained in favour throughout the Hellenistic period.
A pair of gold and garnet earrings, from Altamura (Bari), late 2nd century BC. Eros, god of love and death with his double funerary and erotic symbolism, is a popular motif in Hellenistic goldsmithwork. He is represented here standing with a vine garland across his shoulders and with a patera in his hands. The surmount is set with a garnet.
A gold earring from Crispiano (Tarentum), circa 375-350 BC, of disc-and-pendant type. The disc supports three pendants, the central one in the shape of a female head, a motif not as common as inverted pyramids and cones. The head presents an interesting peculiarity: a small hole at the base for the insertion of a piece of sponge soaked in perfumed oils. There are almost invisible traces of polychrome enamels, a technique that was to be much used in the Hellenistic period.
GEMS OF THE BAROQUE
Front and back views of a pair of gold, enamel, emerald, ruby and pearl pendent earrings, first half of the I 7th century. The front is set with faceted gemstones; the
back is painted with red and black enamel depicting three tulips on a light blue ground.
A pair of gold, polychrome enamel, ruby, turquoise and diamond pendent earrings, circa 1640. Each is designed as an openwork garland of floral motifs carrying a fringe of pearls, the centre decorated with a red and white tulip, and suspended on a flowerhead cluster surmount.
What is noticeable in both these examples, besides the intricacy of design, is the interest in floral patterns, especially the tulip, which had become one of the favourite flower motifs of the time following the ‘tulipomania’of the years around 163 4.
THE RETURN OF ELABORATE EARRINGS
Portrait of Anne of Denmark, consort of James I of England, by De Critz (born Antwerp circa 1552-3 — died London 1642). The fashion for open wing-shaped collars and hair swept up on the head prompted the use of long pendent earrings such as those worn by the Queen, each set with a large pear-shaped pearl, connected by a faceted diamond to a red ribbon bow on the surmount. Although long pendent earrings were not worn in Northern Europe until the beginning of the 17th century, in Italy similar earrings, characterized by satin ribbon bows and pearl drops, are already depicted in mid-16th century portraits.
The three designs in pencil, pen and ink, wash body-colour and gold on vellum circa 161o, are by Arnold Lullus, a Netherlands-born jeweller (active circa 1585—circa 1621) greatly favoured by James I of England, the husband of Anne of Denmark. The second consists of a pendent earring designed as a green enamelled snake from which hangs a ruby within a white enamel crescent supporting three green drops. The first is similar, presenting a green enamel snake suspending a single diamond, a crescent in white enamel set with faceted diamonds and a single green drop. The third is set with eleven table-cut diamonds in a polychrome enamel openwork border supporting two pearl drops and a green gemstone. All three are characteristic of the early 17th century for their size, elaboration of design, interest in enamel-work and faceted gemstones, a consequence of the improved gem-cutting techniques of the time.
THE I 7TH CENTURY: EARRINGS REVIVED
Although the Renaissance is a particularly rich century for jewellery, earrings were not worn. Elaborate head ornaments or coiffures concealed the ears, especially in Northern Europe, and the fashion for very high ruff collars prevented the use of long and elaborate pendent earrings. It was only in the 17th century that change in both hair and dress fashions determined the
reintroduction of large pendent earrings. This is exemplified by the portraits illustrated here.
From left to right
Battista Sforza, Duchess of Urbino, circa 1465, by Piero della Francesca. The Duchess is wearing typically elaborate Italian Renaissance head ornaments: a jewel on the crown of the head and three gem-set brooches fastened to the hair coiled over the ear. (Uffizi, Florence)
Elisabeth Stafford, Lady Drury, English, late 16th century, by Sir William Segar. She is wearing the fashionable high lace ruff collar and hair dressed over paddings to form two puffs concealing the ears.
Barbara Kilingerin, German, 1530, by Hans Maler zu Schwaz. She has her long braids coiled over her ears: a fashionable hairstyle since the late 14th century.
Portrait of a Lady, circa 1660, attributed to the Scottish artist David Scougall. The sitter is shown wearing large and important pendent earrings, each set with a pear-shaped drop on an elaborate diamond and gem-set surmount.
Ann Carr, Countess of Bedford, English, circa 163o, by Sir Anthony van Dyck. The countess wears long earrings, each set with two pear-shaped pearls. This fashionable type of earring was known as the union d’excellence and is always characterized by exceptional size and match of the pearls.
Above: A gold earring of boat-shaped design, from Tarentum, second half of the 4th century BC. The boat motif is enriched with rosettes, nikai and palmette surmounts and is suspended with an elaborate arrangement of chain and pendants. A dramatic chiaroscuro effect is obtained here by the exploitation of gold leaf applications, corded wire, chain and beaded work, replaced in later examples by the use of polychrome enamels.
GREEKS AND ETRUSCANS
Heads on Greek and Roman coins bear witness to the popularity of certain types of earrings, for instance those with vase-shaped pendants. Such earrings appear on Greek vase paintings as early as the 6th century BC.
Above right: A silver dekadrachm of Syracuse by Euainetos, circa 400 BC, depicting the head of the water nymph Arethusa surrounded by four dolphins. She wears an earring with vase pendant. And an electrum tridrachm of Carthage, 3rd century BC, depicting the head of Tanit wearing an earring with vase pendant, copied from the Euainetos prototype.
Right: Front and side views of an Etruscan gold earring of a baule type from Cerveteri, second half of the 6th century BC. The a baule type, so called because of its similarity to a travelling case, is typical of Etruria. It consists of a strip of gold leaf bent round to form a cylinder and is often decorated with very fine corded wire and granulation forming geometrical or stylized floral motifs. In this case the decoration is repeated on the side plaque and the elegant palmette surmount. The type was popular throughout Etruria from about 550 BC to about 470 Bc and was revived in the i 9th century.
Far right: A gold earring, from Volterra, circa 330 BC. Another typically Etruscan form of earring consisting of a horseshoe-shaped surmount supporting a cluster of beads, decorated with corded wire and minute beaded work.
THE RANGE OF ETRUSCAN JEWELLERY
Right: A terracotta statue from Lavinium, first half of the 4th century BC, testifies to the popularity of the Etruscan earring in the form of a horseshoe plaque supporting a cluster of beads, like that shown below centre.
Far right: A gold earring, of uncertain provenance, late 6th century BC, designed as a disc decorated with concentric bands of corded wire and granulation and with rosette motifs at the centre. The origin of this type of earring, or better earstud, is probably to be found in Lydia, from where it spread to Greece proper and Etruria. In Etruria it was particularly fashionable in the second half of the 6th century Be as is confirmed by many tomb paintings at Tarquinia where dancers and ladies banqueting are depicted with disc ear ornaments.
Below: A pair of gold earrings from Spina decorated with heads of the river god Achelous, end of the 5th century sc. Tubular earrings terminating with the heads of men, animals or gods were the most popular form of jewellery in Etruria at the end of the 5th
century BC, and were exported to the Adriatic area and to central Europe. With slight variations the type remained popular throughout the 4th and 3rd centuries BC.
Below centre: A gold earring designed as a cluster of beads on a horseshoe surmount, from Vulci, circa 3 50 BC, stamped out from a single sheet of gold. This is an entirely Etruscan creation popular throughout the region during the 4th and 3rd centuries BC. The globules are hollow inside and act as perfumed oil containers.
Below right: Gold and glass paste earrings from Tarentum, second half of the 2nd century BC. Earrings with a pendant in the shape of a glass paste or enamel bird were particularly popular in Southern Russia and in Italy in the 2nd and i st centuries BC. Etruscan examples very close to this, dating from 3rd century BC, have been found in Vulci and Chiusi.
A THOUSAND YEARS OF EARRINGS
Top row, left to right:
A pair of gold earrings of hemispherical design. The S-shaped hooks concealed by smaller bosses. Roman, 2nd century AD, from Cyprus.
A pair of gold earrings, each set with an onyx cameo of a Cupid’s head within a reeded gold border. Roman, 2nd century AD. Unknown provenance. The Roman idea of setting
hardstone cameos in simple gold earring mounts became a feature of Neoclassicism.
A pair of gold earrings designed as pear-shaped drops set with an amethyst bead within a border of pearls and beaded wire. Early Byzantine, 6th-7th century AD. From Kyrenia, Cyprus.
A pair of gold earrings, each designed as a plain hoop supporting four chains with pearl drops. Early Byzantine, 6th-7th century AD. From Cyprus.
Centre row, left to right:
A pair of crescent-shaped gold earrings, decorated with scrolls of gold wire. Early Byzantine, 7th century AD, from Polis, Cyprus.
A pair of gold earrings of crescent shape, filled with an openwork design of a vase of flowers between two confronted peacocks. The edges are decorated with gold globules. Early Byzantine, 7th century AD, provenance unknown.
A pair of gold earrings of crescent design, decorated with wire motifs of crosses within medallions and scrolls. Early Byzantine period, 7th century AD, from Polis, Cyprus.
Bottom row:
A pair of gold Greek earrings, 4th century BC, with twisted wire hoops and terminals in the form of Maenads’ heads.
Two Graeco-Roman gold earrings, probably from Egypt, i st century BC/I St century AD, with twisted hoops and terminals in the form of the heads of wild goats, decorated with garnet and green glass beads.
A pair of Roman gold earrings, 1st-2nd century a variation of the popular boss earring, with blue enamel inlays at the centre.
A pair of Roman gold and amethyst earrings, 2nd-3rd century AD, the gold and amethyst circular surmount supporting a gold bead and amethyst drop.
A pair of Merovingian earrings, 6th century AD, designed as a large gold hoop decorated with a polyhedral bead inset with garnets. This type is widely spread through Merovingian, Ostrogothic and Southern Russian areas between the 5th and 9th centuries AD, and seems to be the only original form of earring produced in Europe after the fall of the western Roman empire.
THE GREEK LEGACY TO THE ETRUSCANS
Far left: A pair of gold and amber earrings, from Riparbella, 3rd century BC, designed as negro heads carved in amber, the helmet or headgear decorated with granulation. Hoop earrings decorated at the front with negro heads were very popular in Greek and Etruscan areas in the 3rd century BC. The hook fitting of this Etruscan example is rather uncommon for the type.
Left: A gold earring from Todi, last quarter of the 4th century BC. Designed as an oval boss decorated with filigree and beaded work supporting a female head pendant between chains ending in spindle-shaped drops. An interesting detail is that the female head itself is provided with earrings. The type as a whole derives from Greek prototypes, and shows clear similarities with examples from Tarentum. But this is more than a copy; it is a provincial and overdecorated interpretation, probably created in central Etruria, of more sober and refined Greek or South Italian prototypes. It is very long — over
10 - 5 cms — but such lengths were not uncommon. Such earrings are made out of thin gold leaf and therefore, although large, are light and reasonably comfortable to wear.
Right above: A pair of gold earrings of disc-and-pendant type from Vulci, 3rd/early 2nd century BC. Disc surmounts decorated with fine granulation support miniature amphorae between pairs of chains terminating with tassels and clusters of beads. Earrings of this type were very fashionable in Etruria at the time and widely diffused throughout the Hellenized world.
Right below: A gold and glass paste earring of disc-and-bird pendant from Tarentum, 2nd century BC. The disc surmount is decorated with white and blue glass paste, the hen pendant rendered in white glass paste. Swans, doves, peacocks and cockerels were favourite shapes for pendent earrings throughout the Hellenistic world, from Southern Russia to Greece, from Etruria to Tarentum.

Earlobes, necks, wrists and fingers are among the chief parts of the human anatomy which lend themselves to applied decoration. As with so many innovations in the field of jewellery, the practice of piercing the fleshy protuberances of the ears for the attachment of ornaments symbolic of race, tribe and status seems to have originated in Western Asia. A sculptured slab from the palace of Ashurnasirpal II (8 83-8 59 BC) in the British Museum depicts the king in profile wearing a long earring with an acorn-shaped terminal. At various stages of history men, women and children have been subjected to the ordeal of ear-piercing, though the male fashion for earrings has been mysteriously intermittent and sometimes a national rather than a cultural phenomenon.
English courtiers adorned themselves with single pearl drop earrings in the late 16th and early 17th centuries but some hundred and fifty years later, when similar ornaments were worn by French officers, the vogue aroused astonishment and hilarity in England. Thomas Rowlandson capitalized on the reaction in 1786 with a cartoon showing French officers in various stages of donning their uniforms-, they all sport earrings. Eleven years later the diarist Mrs Lybbe-Powys was struck by the sight of a French emigre officer in Bath ‘with large gold earrings’. But for all the British distaste, the custom had become general in France and Italy, from the highest to the lowest. Napoleon himself did not wear them, but his brother-in-law Joachim Murat, whom he made King of Naples in 1808, undoubtedly did. In the mid-197os, when the fashion recurred, young Englishmen were among the most enthusiastic proponents of the emblematic use of a single earring.
There is no evidence of the methods employed to pierce ears in prehistoric times but references in more recent centuries establish that the well-to-do employed the services of professional jewellers when the girls in the family were considered old enough to wear earrings. The experience for the victims was usually made palatable by the prospect of possessing a pair of ornaments of their very own. But even that prize was sometimes insufficient. The august presence of a royal jeweller, Dutens, summoned by Mrs Delany to attend her niece Mary Dewes in 1756, failed to persuade the young girl to submit to the operation. She held out for two months before succumbing. Girls of less affluent families were subjected to amateur attention with the aid of a needle, which pierced the ear while the lobe was supported by a piece of wood or other solid material. A cork was popular in the 19th century and later.
Children were dressed as miniature adults until the late 19th century and the ornaments worn by girls reflected contemporary fashions. There are comparatively few breaks in the history of female earrings charted by the authors, the longest being the Middle Ages, when the fashion for swathed heads concealed not only the hair but the ears as well. In the late 16th century women showed a renewed interest in ear ornaments, especially in the pearl drops which predominated for the next century and a half and survived thereafter. They were far more comfortable to wear than the girandole earrings which rivalled the drop type from the late 17th century. Usually comprising a top, an intermediate device such as a bow and three (or more) drops, these articles were so heavy that a secondary loop was often attached to the hook which passed through the ear and a ribbon threaded to the hook to be secured to the hair, taking some of the weight off the ears. This device helped, but many women reduced the period of discomfort by carrying their earrings in their pockets to parties and balls and assuming the ornaments on arrival, padding the backs of the lobes with small pieces of silk.
Fashionable women inevitably suffered permanent distension of the earlobes, which were dragged down by the weight of the girandoles. This fate did not prevent their descendants from participating in another fashion for huge earrings in the late 182os and 183os and suffering the same consequences. One of the most enthusiastic young adherents of the vogue was the future Queen Victoria, who often wore her grandmother Queen Charlotte’s girandole earrings of 1761. Photographs of Queen Victoria in old age, when she sometimes took to simple single-stone or pearl earrings, show them lodged on elongated earlobes. Fortunately the huge variety of new types and fittings means that no one now has to wear one kind of earring for a prolonged period.
The earliest archaeological evidence for earrings dates from the 3rd millennium Bc, but it seems likely that men
and women will have adorned their ears with, for example, shells and polished peb-
bles for centuries before that.
The idea of piercing the earlobe to insert a metallic ornament originated in the Orient. From the start earrings can be divided into two types: the simple rigid hoop in its numerous variations, and the more elaborate articulated pendant. In Antiquity, they were amongst the most popular means of personal ornament.
Around 2500 BC Sumerian women were adorning their ears with gold earrings in the form of single or double crescents, as revealed by findings in the royal graves of Ur in what is now Iraq. The crescent form, comprising two thin sheets of gold soldered together with a hollowed centre, was a simple yet successful design which was to spread towards the West and remains to this day a favourite shape of earring. More elaborate Babylonian examples of the early 2nd millennium Bc, also from Ur, show how the simple crescent motif could be embellished with embossed decoration, the details picked out with filigree and granulation.
Minoan and Mycenean
Early examples of earrings with a tapered hoop design, in a way a thinner version of the crescent- or boat-shaped earring, have been found in graves in Anatolia and Greece. Hooped earrings of gold, silver and bronze, tapered at the ends, have also been excavated in Crete and date from the Middle Minoan period (2000— 1600 BC).
It is not until the second half of the 2nd millennium BC that we find variations and elaborations of the crescent or hoop type; during the Late Minoan and Early Mycenean period (i 600— i 100 Bc) earrings in the form of scalloped or tapered hoops were common in Mycaene, while in Crete during the same period the most widespread form of earring consisted of a tapered hoop decorated with a conical pendant representing a clear progression from the earlier simple hoop.
The tapered hoop supporting a conical pendant was also popular in Cyprus, where several examples come from 13th and 12th century BC graves in Enkomi. Judging from the number of extant examples, this type had a long life; a less elaborate version consisting of a tapered hoop supporting a smaller bead cluster is well testified both in Crete and in Cyprus; it may have been cast in one piece, as a steatite mould of this shape has been found in Crete. This type continued in Cyprus throughout the Dark Ages, reappearing amongst Greek designs of the 7th century BC.
By the end of the 2nd millennium BC, the hoop earring, tapering to a different degree at each end, was widely dispersed in the Aegean world, Western Asia, Cyprus and Syria, as revealed by many excavations.
In Cyprus, from the middle of the 2nd millennium BC, and particularly during the third quarter, earrings were very popular and may have had some supernatural significance, since contemporary painted terracotta idols in the form of stylized nude females, probably fertility symbols, have their earlobes pierced two or three times and large terracotta hoops suspended from them.
The simple, tapered hoop was worn there from about 1400 BC, where it arrived possibly from Crete but more likely from Syria; it continued in Cyprus for a long time, surviving throughout the Dark Ages, and was reintroduced from there into Greece around the 7th century BC.
A variation of this type, of either Cypriot or Syrian invention, consists of a hoop of twisted or plaited gold wire. Also to be found is the ‘leech’ earring, a sort of elongated tapered hoop, the lower part expanded into a fat crescent motif. Hoops supporting clusters of beads or elongated conical pendants decorated with granulation were, as we have already seen, as popular in Crete as they were in Cyprus. A typical Cypriot earring of the 13th century BC was a hoop supporting a bull’s head pendant stamped out of thin sheet gold. Although the shape of the pendant is a common Mycenean motif, no contemporary examples have been found on the Greek mainland.
When, in about 1 100 BC, the Mycenean world succumbed to the Achaean invasion, which was followed by the three centuries of poverty and near-barbarism known as the Dark Ages, the arts declined and jewellery in precious metal became rare. It is likely that the main sources of gold at the time were the tombs of earlier periods. Among the limited number of gold ornaments such as finger-rings, bracelets, pins and fibulae, there survived a small number of spirals, the purpose of which is still not certain, but which may have been earrings or hair-ornaments.
The brilliant civilization of Cyprus was destroyed at the same time, but traditions lived on and the Achaeans left intact the long-established Mycenean techniques. Goldsmiths worked throughout the Dark Ages preserving and perpetuating forms and designs that were to be reintroduced into Greece around the 7th century BC.

automata - clocks, barometers and
musical boxes
THE DICTIONARY DEFINITIONof automata is’things which are self-moving or mechanical contrivances which imitate the motions of living beings’. In antique collecting terms, this means old clocks, watches, barometers, musical boxes, singing birds, and anything clockwork from an early Egyptian water clock to the first His Master’s Voice phonograph.
The antique market in clocks is still surprisingly reasonable compared with other fields, but unless you have a strong do-it-yourself bent and are one of those people who can put the piece back again, it is advisable to be a bit chary of some of the bargains offered by general dealers with the vague remark that ‘it only needs cleaning’. Unobtainable spare parts are costly to make, and if you want the clock to go it is better to pay more for a working clock or watch from a specialist dealer. Collecting fine clocks is an expensive hobby, especially if your taste is in French porcelain pieces, which I have seen in the most unusual shapes, such as an artist’s palette, a violin or an old mill complete with moving water wheel driven by real water.
It is quite the fashion now for women to wear a Victorian or Edwardian half-hunter watch on a long gold chain. This has given a boost to the trade in such watches which until recently have only commanded a second-hand price equal only to their melting down value. These beautiful pieces, often set with coloured enamels, can be bought for between ;C5 and Cio and make impressive presents.
There is also a boom in barometers. Items which fetched around £15 a few years ago are now changing hands for three times the price and, unfortunately for us, going to foreign dealers at a most depressing rate. An inlaid Sheraton stick barometer will certainly command a price from C40 upwards but the enchanting Admiral Fitzroy model, produced in Victorian times can cost as little as £5 and give just as much pleasure. Really early barometers, eighteenth century or older, are right out of reach of any but the serious collec-
tor and I have seen a reproduction Quare fetch more than c80.
ian clockwork novelties are ajoy to collect. and even though
nana is fast on the way in, pieces can be bought for a reason-
price. Old stereoscopes through which one views sepia col-cured three dimensional slides – rabbits which jump up and down at the turn of a knob and the multitudinous fairground novelties –are no longer to be found on junk stalls, but now command a real value.
Scientific instruments and animated pieces have a long history and can be traced to Islamic origins in the tenth century. Automata as we know it today really began to be developed only in the eighteenth century when moving figures and animated snuff boxes started to play sweet music or burst into chirruping song. The delicate singing bird box was first made in Switzerland when the intricate mechanism allowed a tiny bird to spring from its jewelled prison and give forth a melodious whistling sound. Such items of course, are extremely expensive now, nevertheless more modern examples made between 186o and 1930 can still be bought, but at prices above C50.
The musical box dates from Regency times and a collection is still within reach of the moderate purse. Most popular is the type which consists of a brass cylinder with projecting pins which produces sound when turned into contact with a resonant comb. Such boxes often play eight or ten tunes, the titles of which appear in illuminated lettering inside the lid. One can still purchase larger pieces too, which play on the insertion of a penny in the slot.
books to read
Clocks and watches
The collectors dictionary of clocks, H Lloyd, Country Life, ,CIO ros
The plain man’s guide to antique clocks, W Bentley, Joseph, x6s
Old clocks,,? Scherer, Hallwag, 8s 6d
18 Old clocks, E Wenham, Spring Books, 12s 6d
Clocks, S Fleet, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Ci ros
Old clocks and watches and their makers, F_7 Britten, Spon, £77s
The story of watches, T P Camerer Cuss, MacGibbon & Kee, I 5S
Chats on old clocks, H A Lloyd,Watches, C Clutton & G Daniels, Batsford,,C7 7s
The grandfather clock, E L Edwards, Sherratt, ios
Barometers
The standard reference on barometers is Old English barometers by G H and E F Bell. This book is like gold dust and virtually impossible to come by. We have it on the best
authority, however, that the authors are now updating this fine work for republication as soon as possible.
Musical boxes
and instruments
Horse brasses and other small items for the collector (singing birds and musical boxes), G B Hughes, ki ros
London and the
Home Counties
Charles Stewart Ltd Wigmore St, London W  probably have the largest barometer stock in England. They ship all over the world and are expert restorers. Specialists in mechanical musical instruments, who will also repair, are rather hard to find. One such is S F Sunley 81 George St W i, himself featured, in fact, in our drawing at the start of this chapter. Singing birds and musical boxes are also an important feature of this stock. Camerer Cuss & Co were estab-
lished in 1788 during the reign of George III, and have an extensive collection of antique clocks and watches at their New Oxford St address. They also carry stock at 5 New Cavendish St. The fact that they have two addresses is an indication of the important stock they carry. Expert repair work to all kinds of automata is also undertaken. Incidentally, if you have bought an early watch such as a Victorian hunter it is much better to take it for repair to a specialist such as Camerer Cuss or in fact to any recognised dealer in such items. It isn’t the fact that the workmanship is necessarily better than a local watchmaker, but such dealers are more likely to have quantities of spare parts available from watches of the same period as yours which have been broken up, whereas it is unlikely that you will have the same luck through a modern silversmith and watch dealer.
Stockists of one of the largest selections of clocks in the United Kingdom is the firm of Huggins & Horsey Ltd 26 Beauchamp Place SW3. They also have a range of barometers.
The name of Aubrey Brocklehurst 124 Cromwell Rd SW7 is a must for the clock collectors’ address book. Close to the West London Air Terminal, a fine selection of mantle and grandfather clocks is offered.
Two more first-class dealers are Charles Frodsham 173 Brompton Rd SW3 and D Bouldstridge 47 Lower Belgrave St SW 1. Both are specialist is antique clocks and the former has been awarded the Royal warranty.
The Regency House Marlow Bucks are specialists in English and French clocks; and grandfather clocks are the metier of Harris & Woodward Amersham Bucks.
Museums to visit i
Gershom-Parkington memorial collection of clocks and watches,
Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk Museum of British Transport, London SW4 Science Museum,
London SW7
Museum of Ironfounding, Coalbrookdale, Staffs(locomotives) Public Museum, Rochester, Kent (clocks)
Snowshil]. Museum,
Broadway, Glos (clocks)
The Tramway Museum, Crick, Derbyshire
Usher Art Gallery, Lincoln (watches)
Whipple Museum of the History of Science, Cambridge (scientific instruments)
Willis Museum, Basingstoke, Hants (clocks)
I de Haan & Son Waltham Cross Herts have an important stock of barometers. Mr de Haan normally deals only with the trade, but will make an exception for the serious collector. First, however, please telephone Waltham Cross 22756.
In Portobello Rd we recommend Graham Webb who has a large stock of musical boxes, including the type you put a penny into and watch the huge brass disc move round whilst playing a gay tune. He can be found at 93, and will also undertake repair work.
Malcolm GardnerBradbourne Vale, Sevenoaks, Kent is a leading specialist on antique watches. He also stocks a large collection of horological reference books.
Some other dealers in London and the Home Counties
E & M Parker, Blackheath SE3 (longcase clocks and barometers)
Daniel Desbois, Carey St WC2 (clocks and barometers)
Prides of London, Sloane StSWi (clocks and barometers)
W A Pinn, Dunstable, Beds (clocks)
Kennet Gallery, Newbury, Berks (clocks)
Southern England
Antiques through the post is the stock in trade of Valentine Ackland, Frome Vauchurch, Maiden Newton, near Dorchester, Dorset. Miss Ackland publishes a mailing list of her complete stock on a regular basis, and undertakes to post goods to any part of the world. As musical boxes is one of her specialities, enthusiasts should certainly write for a copy of her catalogue.
The name of George Bell instantly means barometers and he is the Wing Commander and Mrs
Guy Marsland of Littlebury,
Essex, started their barometer
and antique business after he
retired from the Royal Air Force.
An excellent stock with a
friendly welcome particularly
for the new collector
author of a really reliable reference book on the subject. Mr Bell has a shop in Winchester, next to
the Cathedral. Here he sells antique clocks and barometers and will undertake expert repair work.
Peter Carmichael Brighton, offers a  wide selection of barometers all
working order; and Yellow Lantern Antiques at nearby Hove keep
French clocks in stock.
We have often driven through the village of Nately Scures near Bas-
ingstoke, Hants and have always been filled with curiosity about
how it got the name to say nothing of how to pronounce it. Paul Frank
Ltd Oakfield, Nately Scures has a good stock of clocks and barometers at this address and also at The Green, Brasted, Kent. Gem
Antiques Bournemouth Hants is another happy-hunting-ground for
timepieces.
Martin Hutton of Battle, Sussex is
a ‘must’ visit for the collector of nineteenth century English and
French clocks.
Some other southern dealers Fordharn Mote Antiques,
Lewes, Sussex (scientific instruments) At,W Porter & Son, Hartley
Wintney, Hants (clocks)
A Bird, Potbridge near Odiham, Hants (clocks and barometers) an
authoritative writer on this subject. The Manor House, Byfleet,
Surrey (clocks)
Wales and the west country Whilst driving through the west country recently we took refuge from a cloudburst in what we thought was a bric-a-brac shop. Our rain-sodden spirits turned to delight on finding that we had unwittingly discovered a veritable treasure chest of musical boxes and Victorian automata in the back room. We were offered not one, but a choice of fifteen His Master’s Voice phonographs of early date. Yahn and Yoy Rodber call themselves ,specialists in the unusual’, and have a wide selection of fairground novelties – we were particularly taken with The Drunkard’s Dream-and also some very fine examples of English and continental musical boxes, which the Rodbers also collect. Musical instruments, anything from a harp to a harpsichord, are also stocked. This delightful shop is in Bridport, Dorset. If you’re looking for a particular piece, we suggest you telephone first, Bridport 28oi.
A large stone lion, standing at least fifteen feet high, guards the premises of Sidney Vaux, The Antique Galleries Ilchester, Som. Mr Vaux used to be an important
private collector of automata until he turned his attentions to veteran cars. He always has some good pieces in stock even though he has sold his own collection.
Reginald Andrade somehow finds room for clocks and small items ot automata amongst his vast stock of ceramics and silver plate. At
Plympton, Devon Mr Andrade I p
had at least fifty clocks at my last visit. He also showed me, amongst other unusual items, a brass gadget which pops up a pipeful of tobacco on the insertion of a halfpenny.
Some other dealers in Wales and the west country Edward Nowell, Wells, Som (barometers)
Gilbert Morris, Ffynnongroew, Flint (clocks and barometers)
J Cleverly, Chipping Norton, Glos (longcase clocks)
Curiosity Shop, Portishead, Som (longease clocks)
Roger Warner, Burford, Oxon (scientific instruments)
Midlands and the north Malcolm Anderson of Plum Park Antiques, Paulerspury nr Towcester Northants, is a long-established
40 Mr Porter of Hartley Wintney, Hampshire with just a few of his antique clocks. His family have been clockmakers for 300 years, he is keen to hear from anyone who owns a Porter-made clock dealer who always has barometers in stock. One model I saw was a coach house barometer which had five dials, two of which were detachable. The thermometer dial would be placed on the mantle of an inn bedroom in Georgian times and the hygrometer dial in the bed itself. If either reading were unsatisfactory to the guest the management were obliged to put some more fuel on the fire, or the chambermaid would be sent up to put a copper warming-pan through the bed.
Herbert Sutcliffe Ing Hey Farm, Briercliffe, near Burnley, Lanes, can offer a comprehensive stock of most kinds of automata, and will ship directly to all parts of the world. Just down the road, so to speak, is Brierfield, and the premises of Y H Blakey & Sons who are specialists in clocks and musical boxes.
On the main A4i from Birmingham to Liverpool is Whitchurch (Herefordshire) and F W Hancock who specialise in grandfather clocks. No early closing day there. Patrick Kirk Knaresborough, Yorks, I think might be fairly described as a tuneful dealer, for his speciality is singing birds and musical boxes. Normally closed all day Thursday.
Barron of Stirling offers fine barometers and will also undertake restoration.
Some other dealers in the midlands and north
Mercy jeboult, Pershore, Worcs
(clocks)
T & S Hyde, 59 Scotgate, Stamford, Lines (clocks & watches)
East Anglia
We think the most energetic person we have ever met is Wing Com-
mander Guy Marsland, a prominent dealer in barometers, weapons, naval and military items. He positively staggers other dealers by his ability not only to attend the early morning markets regularly but by the speed at which he covers the country on buying trips. The early bird catches the worm must be his motto, and this philosophy finds its rewards in an excellent stock of barometers which hang round the walls, and in rows on hangers like so many pairs of trousers. His interest doesn’t stop at barometers and his shop, The Old Carpenters Arms, Littlebury, near Saffron Walden, Essex is filled with unusual types of marine automata, and military antiques of which he has a fine personal collection. Wing Commander and Mrs Marsland live on the premises and will be happy to see serious buyers out of hours, by appointment (Saffron Walden 2346).
For a business with a delightful name you can’t beat ‘Riverside Chimes’ Stratford St Mary, Essex, where you will find a good stock of longcase and other antique clocks.

FIRST HALF OF NINETEENTH CENTURY
1800-1850
THE year i800 is a convenient date in the history of furniture only in the sense that it marked the begin-
ning of a new century antique hexagon ladles . Apart from that it showed no sudden change in style any more than the start of any other century countries that art deco was very popular . The same king was on the throne and was to live for another twenty years, although for the last ten the Prince of Wales was to act as regent lion feet table . Furthermore, Sheraton, who published his first furniture book in the last decade of the eighteenth century (see p jennens and bettridge . 181), brought out his Cabinet Dictionary in 1803, and lived until 18o6 elephant mahogany antq . Change was taking place, but no more quickly than at any previous period j s henry furniture .
At the same time, the period 1800-1850 is momentous in that it saw the beginning of the industrial age in which the machine began to replace hand labour hinges leaves antique table . At first its effect was scarcely felt, for the machines themselves were crude and unreliable and had not stood the test of time “holland & sons” cabinet . Furthermore, no one had had sufficient experience in their use to use them to the best advantage hammered flatware crest urn . In any case, their early use was largely confined to Government departments such as shipyards 18th century rococo copper candlesticks . Being individually built, they were necessarily expensive 4 foot walnut drop leaf table .
The use of machines speeds up work and reduces costs, and that was largely the reason for their introduction scottish art nouveau inlay furniture . There was, however, another and, in the long run, a deeper-reaching effect 18th century soup urn . This was the influence on design itself circular extending dining table . When you install a machine its first use is invariably to quicken and ease the more back-breaking jobs, such as converting logs, ripping out parts, rough planing them, and so on wileman ironstone coffee pot . Very soon, however, other possibilities are realised, and you see that it can be used for other work which would be difficult or at least expensive by hand craftsman for wooden vitrine . Then comes the idea of adapting the machine for other operations, so that more and more handwork is avoided sheffield plate candelabra . At last hand work becomes a thing to be avoided, and then is born that insidious idea of making the design to suit the machine silver candlestick dated 1750 . In a broad sense this is inevitable because any change in technique of
FIG french drop front desk . 156 antique table porcelain top . MAHOGANY CHAIR WITH BRASS INLAY pre war veneer antique bureau . 18io-i815-
This is of special Interest in that the back legs are not set square with
the front but line up with the slope of the side rails (see plan) brass frame girandole images . This is a
feature not found in chairs of earlier date anglo-chinese furniture . See also F in Fig first antique table de chevet . 157 decorating with a pie crust antique table . Owing
to the pronounced side curvature this results in the bottoms of the legs
converging value of mahogany marble side table .
manufacture is bound to have its repercussions on design, but the evil comes when sound construction and form are sacrificed to suit the limitations of a machine poole pottery streamline coffee sets .
However, up to 1850 there had not been any serious sacrifice in this sense, and during the fifty years we are speaking about there was a great deal of sound and delightful furniture made, especially in the first twenty years of the century brass sideboard gallery .
For those interested in the subject the following few notes
FIG identifying furniture makers bookcase oak . 158 cassone with pastiglia . BLACK JAPANNED CHAIR WITH INLAY two tier rectangular victorian table . Mid antique square to round drop leaf table . i9th century mahogany tea caddy tripod leg .
The entire back is in papier mficU screwed to the
lower framing early tables . The back, legs, and seat rail are
inlaid with mother of pearl dresser with kneehole .
on early machines may be of value antique wood trestle table with leaves . It should be realised, however, that machines were not of necessity power driven black bone inlay dressing tables . Many of them required human labour to turn them aimone mfg co furniture . Even in 1914 some circular saws and bandsaws were still being made which were fitted with handles, and sometimes pedals, which either the operator or an assistant had to work antique maple desks . Some-times larger saws were propelled by horse labour, the animal being yoked to bar which revolved a centre pillar, which in its turn was geared to the saw rh vase austria . Water and wind power too were used antique sideboard with desk .
As early as the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries machine saws had been devised, these generally being reciprocating saws worked by cranks antique gate leg tables . They were exceptional, however, most cutting being done by pairs of sawyers over a saw pit italian 18th century cabinet makers .
FIG satin birch bow chest . 160 jacobean antique furniture . FULLY UPHOLSTERED COUCH sheraton period cutlery urn . About i85o marquetry tray brass handles .
This sketch was taken from a small model made about the middle
of the 19th century, and is typical of the period 18th century amboyna card table .
No doubt the reason for the development of woodworking machines in the nineteenth century was largely due to the tremendous importance of wood as a basic material for all purposes was there a change in arts in italy between 1920 and 1940 . It was needed for ships, vehicles, houses, some bridges, engineering, agricultural appliances, furniture, and so on antique continental porcelain . It was in fact in Government shipyards that the first serious and really practical machines were made american 19th century side boards .
Samuel Bentham developed the rotary system of cutting as distinct from the reciprocating, and designed saws, planers, boring machines, tenoners, and veneer-cutting machines antique swedish armchairs . These were mostly patented between 1791 and 1793, but it would have been many years after that such machines became generally available to the woodworking industry generally art deco harlequin fine china . Marc Isambard Brunel had also much to do with early machines, and had in fact patents on circular saws in 1805 and i8o8 czechoslovakia vases . A bandsaw was patented by Newberry in 1808, but its success was hampered by poor quality saws, and it did not become really practicable until 1850 when reliable saws were made round oak table dragon legs . Many planing machines were invented in the first fifty years of the nineteenth century, some in U antique gateleg table small .S antique divans .A pictures of expensive antiques . Most early machines had wood frames chinese qing porcelains . It was, in fact, not until the turn of the mid-century that all-metal frames were made 18th century marquetry bow front commode .
The refined and somewhat delicate style as exemplified in Sheraton’s works continued during the opening years of the century craftsman for wooden vitrine . The deterioration in his last designs, as shown in his Encyclopedia, 1804-1807, mentioned in Chapter X, was little more than a pandering to a passing fashion, and it is fortunate that the more grotesque items were not made in greater numbers antique william and mary oak dining room sets .
Other influences were at work, however, and to trace these we have to turn to France, where the Consulate and Empire periods in which Napoleon was the dominant figure was producing a marked style known as Empire russian chair lion . This is dealt with more fully in Chapter XV, but it had its counterpart here in a style sometimes known as English Empire wedgewook stonewear white . Its chief exponent was Thomas Hope, who published his Household Furniture and Interior Decoration in 1807 19th century lion claw pedestal table . This, like the French Empire, went back to Greek and Roman forms for its inspiration, and produced some rather severe designs, mostly in mahogany with brass mounts in the form of vases, laurel wreaths, helmets, honeysuckle, lyres, and so on antique oak draw leaf table . The style owed little to tradition, however, and, although much of it was well made and of good proportions, it seems to strike a foreign and somewhat jarring note antique writing box . Many of the shapes, especially chair and settee legs, seem curiously unsuitable for making in wood antique refectory tables .
An attractive chair of about 1810 is that in Fig french word for chasing . 155, and shows a high degree of skill in its manufacture pedestal dumb waiter . The shaping of the members at the back, which necessarily have compound curvature owing to the plan curving combined with the elevation shaping, is beautifully worked out gate leg vintage drop leaf tables . The back-ward curve of the front legs is characteristic of the period and suggests Hope influence biedermeier antique de .
Another chair of about ten years later in date and of somewhat similar style is that in Fig aristide colotte . 156 and is given because it embodies a feature not found in chairs of earlier date drop leaf table rectangle vintage . If any of the earlier chairs are examined, it will be seen that if a section is taken through the back legs at seat level the wood from which they are cut is invariably square with the front king george iv side board .

FIG bambocci antique . 161 drapery designs for dressing table . CIRCULAR DINING TABLE OF ROSEWOOD, BRASS
MOUNTED antique oval dutch table .
1810-1820 antique dealer furniture iron louis xvi .
The lyre motif of the centre pedestal was a common feature of the period egyptian figurine manufacturer in spain .
The ” strings ” are brass rods drop leaf table gate leg . A brass line is inlaid around the top
an inch or so from the edge antiquevenercoffeettableclawfeet . The latter is cross-veneered; also the
framework edging arabesque vertical plate racks - 2 tier .
Thus the chairs in Fig william france furniture maker . 4o are as shown at A, Fig what antique furniture maker marks under drawer front with number . 157 bureau bookcase writing desk display cabinet 1930s . Even when curved as in Figs 18th century plate racks . 77 or 107 they are still set square as at B and C, Fig fiddleback walnut louis xiv reproduction desk . 157, any convergence at the feet being arranged by reducing the length of the seat rail and cutting the shoulders at an angle sauce boats . Much the same applies to the chairs in Fig antique carved trestle table . 142 and to that in Fig neo-rococco cabinet . 155 tulip porcelain chamber pots . The only exception is in some Adam and Hepplewhite chairs, which have either round, oval, or hooped-shaped seats (see Fig antique half round side table mermaid . 132) chiffonier 19th century . In such chairs, owing to the shape, the rails are tenoned into opposite sides of the leg instead of into adjacent sides as in all other examples sheffield plate candelabra . As a consequence the back legs, owing to their backward curvature, are further apart at the bottom than at seat level forks and spoons in the 18th century . This is made clear at E, Fig french dining draw leaf table stretcher . 157 plain serving table .
Turning now to the chair under discussion, Fig colbolt blue plates and antique . 156, note from the plan that the legs are not square with the front, but are parallel with the sloping sides as at F, Fig marquetry roll top desk . 157 antique refrectory trestle table . As a result the legs are closer together at the feet than at the seat,
FIG chamberpot flap . 162 american oak drop leaf table antique . VICTORIAN DINING TABLE IN WALNUT queen anne antique dressing table . Mid johnstone and jupe table . 19th century 18th century metal chamber pot .
The top is veneered with figured walnut arranged in a quartered pattern cage leg antique table .
A huge bolt passes through the centre, Joining the tripod stand to the
pillar and sub-top framework art deco and exotic leather .
this being produced without any side curvature in the leg antique gothic table grotesque . The shape looks more elaborate than it actually is, the shaping being confined to the side elevation of the back iron and wood refectory tables .
The chair in Fig wedgwood keith murray slip two tone . 158 dates from about I85o and is more interesting than beautiful photo antiquities furniture in france . The entire back is in papier mftche, this being compressed to shape and fixed to the back of the seat, probably with screws antique sheffield piece marked “royal sheffield” . There is in fact considerable dishing and shaping in the back and, when it is realised that it is no more than I in scandinavian art deco furniture . to $9 in antique wrought iron candle sticks . thick in parts, it becomes obvious that such a back would be impracticable in wood “art deco” “dining table” french walnut extension . It is, in fact, an early example of a mass-produced chair and bears the marks of deterioration in design four pillar trestle table . As a matter of passing interest, note how the rails are tenoned into opposite sides of the back legs owing to the hooped shape, hence the divergence at the feet (see also E, Fig age of jazz shelley vases . 157) walnut gaming table with pillar legs .
A couch showing the classical influence of Greece is that in Fig antique replica, french victorian mahogany empire desk writing table . 159 napoleon leather and steel campaign chair . It belongs to the Hope period of the early
FIG heal and russell art deco antique furniture . 163 16th century small tables . SOFA TABLE VENEERED WITH AMBOYNA AND
MARQUETRY hongwu copper red .
About 1815 delatte nancy .
The flaps were invariably supported by brackets pivoted on knuckle or
finger joints cut in wood drop leaf table with pembroke leg value . The legs were usually dovetailed to the base,
and it was common practice to strengthen the joints with metal plates
screwed to the underside 19th century regency dwarf parlor cabinet value .
nineteenth century 19th century leather chest . Fig george speight porcelain . 16o shows the rather heavy and stuffy appearance of a fully-upholstered couch in the middle of the century antique serpentine swedish chest of drawers .
An interesting contrast in dining tables made within about thirty to forty years of each other is shown in Figs drop leaf sofa table . 161 and x62 lyre based sheffield candlesticks . The former, of the Regency period, has a certain grace and charm about it empire sideboard antique value . Here again we see the old classical Tables of the Mid-Nineteenth Century
influence in the lyre motif wooton chest . Light though it looks, the table is strongly built since the lyre-shaped pillar is not pierced right through, but is recessed at the surface only antique red stoneware spittoon . The legs are dovetailed to the base john widdicomb desk . The whole top pivots, so that the table takes up little space when not in use longcaseclocks chinoiserie 18.century .
In Fig vintage wooden handled three tined dinner forks . 162 we pass to a typical Victorian table of about 185o which, whatever one may think of the design, is beautifully made ashtray daum nancy france antique . To us it may lack the refinement and grace of the earlier table, but it is an interesting speculation as to what folk of A daniel quare 1674 tortoiseshell case pocket watches .D pilaster bookstand price . 2oo0 may think of it 17 century english stoneware . For years it has been the practice of people to speak of Victorian furniture with something like contempt (though no one really familiar with it would ever deny its soundness of craftsmanship) furniture canape antiques italian . Already, however, it is appearing in antique shops, especially early Victorian pieces, and it is quite on the cards that folk of the future will see beauty in what we now call heaviness and vulgarity 1925 antique floding desk . Fashions change, and nearly all generations are contemptuous of the works of their immediate forbears “myott son & co”+oriental . Presumably the Victorian designers did not intentionally design things they knew to be ugly—and for a matter of that who are we to talk in these middle years of the twentieth century r
A type of table popular during the period under discussion was the sofa table, an example of which is given in Fig antique pier tables . 163 name a piece of furniture that begins with v . It was a type made popular by Sheraton and had hinged flaps at the ends supported by pivoted brackets furniture + finmar ltd . There were invariably drawers beneath the top standing silver mirror candlestick styles . As the table was intended for use away from the wall the ” back ” frequently had dummy drawer fronts small dressing table with cupboard and drawers . Its form during the Regency period is shown in Fig queen mary mother ship tea dish antiques . 163, which shows the Greek influence of the period in the ornament antique 17th century gentleman’s dresser .
The Regency version of the sideboard generally had cellaret pedestals reaching down to the floor and joined by a centre table portion quite open beneath torror in france . There was generally a drawer beneath the top as in Fig small antique french writing cabinet . 164 yabu furniture . Tapered pedestals too were becoming popular, and the scrolled back shows the beginning of a feature which was often to assume quite gigantic proportions in the late Victorian period, and was often surmounted by an elaborate piece of carving, frequently of extremely fine craftsmanship antique wash stands .
Bedsteads in the late eighteenth century were generally of the four-poster type, but by the turn of the century two SIDEBOARD IN ROSEWOOD WITH BRASS INLAY
1810-X820 staffordshire figure home .
The tapered form of pedestal was popular in the Regency period how much is an oak butler’s tray table worth . The relatively large size of room in which
it would have been used is shown by the great depth, which is 29 in greek neoclassical porcelain . over the centre portion, and 251 in richard ginori doccia 1924 platter .
over the pedestals art deco console table black .
Bedsteads of the Nineteenth Century
kinds developed rectangular drop leaf sofa table . In the one the head-posts with abbreviated tester were retained and the foot-posts eliminated early ming porcelain . Frequently head curtains were used, and these could either be drawn right back or pulled a foot or so down the bed antique tilt top dinner table photos 1800 century . The other type owed its origin to the Empire style of France english refectory table . In this the bed was intended to stand with its side to the wall vintage wooden handled three tined dinner forks . There was a head and foot often sloped and having rather the appearance of a couch—the couch in Fig chinese porcelain shards . 159 is in fact suggestive of the general form, though this is necessarily on a smaller scale 19 century inventions . In some cases curtains were carried on to a shaped tester art nouveau origins .
CABINET WITH BOULLE MARQUETRY empire furniture.com .
Louis XIV antique tea table glass serving tray .
The work is carried out in brass and tortoiseshell, and is
decorated with some particularly fine mounts of brass 19th-century swedish table . The
top is of marble antique chippendale breakfast table . The accommodation consists of a centre
cupboard with door and four drawers at each side 19th century, federal mirror .

BUREAU BOOKCASE AND WRITING TABLE cabinetmakerthomassheraton .
Typical features in the left-hand example are the barred doors and shaped
pediment with fretted detail beneath antique dining table sutherland . The writing table is of a kind that
became popular early In the century scalloped folding antique table .
Gothic was really one of contempt), but it appealed to a passing fancy to pick isolated details here and there and to weave them into the work staffordshire pearlware figures french revolution . At best the result was a mere travesty, and it fell out of favour as quickly as it had come decoupage cabinets .
Our last example of a chair is that in Fig mortlake salt ware stoneware . 112, which shows a small upholstered armchair of about 1755—176o antique spiral leg oak dropleaf table .
Chippendale Period
An interesting feature here are the small fretted corner pieces fitted in the angles of the front legs oval . ‘These were often used on the square leg type of chair and of other pieces having similar legs square walnut and burr elm coffee table .
Settees porcelain table casters .—The Queen Anne settee NN,itb double or triple back has already been mentioned gate leg fold over antique tables . In Fig george i folding card table antique . 113 is its development in the early Chippendale period “biedermeier candelabra” . There is a great deal about it that is strongly reminiscent of the walnut period, especially in the rounded shaping of the back and the arms with their acutely scrolled front corners octagonal oak carved table . The
FIG antique meissen clock . 120 brandt mahogany 2 tier table . SIMPLE MAHOGANY CHEST OF DRAWERS,
1760-,770 collectors of paul frankl .
Although of plain form this simple furniture was thoroughly well made
as a rule gateleg drop leaf table 19th century . It was the sort of thing that the merchant class would have
used spiral legs on drop leaf table .
shell detail, too, is retained in the top rail of the back, and the splats, although pierced, have in their general outline something that can be traced back to the Queen Anne urn shape davenport “pattern numbers” .
It will probably be felt that there is something unsatisfactory about the back marqueterie cabinet . The centre section is well balanced enough, but those at the sides are uneven because the main side uprights are different from the curves of the wide inner uprights identify - shaped pedestal or pillar leg . This difficulty was sometimes overcome, especially in latter Chippendale models, by making the inner uprights double, each part being a replica of the main outer upright refectory wood .
Revival of Veneering
CHIPPENDALE TABLES
We saw in the last chapter that, apart from the William Kent productions, side tables had usually cabriole legs and were often fitted with marble tops antique porceline candle sticks . A tendency was to introduce an elaborate apron piece between the front legs, this being usually pierced right through and carved with acanthus leafNvork intricately scrolled and intertwined art deco inspired bookcase . It rapidly began to grow out of all proportions until the beginning of the Chippendale period why are pier tables called .
Fig kitchen antique furniture deux corps cupboards . 114 shows a small table of simple form, and of special
FIG antique inlaid occasional table . 121 art nouveau porcelain marks . SERPENTINE SHAPED COMMODE telescopic supports for tables .
i76o-1770 antique brass and marble cocktail table 1950 .
This shows strong French influence both in general form and in the detail
of the carving mallard tester bed . It would have been extremely expensive to produce and
be made for only the wealthiest classes antique dressing table 1925 .
interest in that it shows a revival of veneering bernard palissy . In fact it may be mentioned here that a great deal of veneering was done in Chippendale pieces, probably as an economy in the finely-figured woods then being imported century italian provincial cherry bombe armoire . It was, however, usually of a different spirit from that of the Queen Anne period, when the veneer usually hid entirely the construction antique table wooden hinge drop leaf . In Chippendale work no attempt is made as a rule to hide the construction, and any detail is usually subservient to obtaining good strength antique dinner services .
The difference came about in this way antique adams and sons company england ironstone . A Queen Anne cabinet maker would make the framework of, say, a door and would veneer it so that the latter ran right across the joints, concealing them entirely chinese precious stone and laquer cabinets . In Chippendale’s time the
cabinet maker used far thicker veneer (about I in italian nlaid bronze marble table tops .) and 8
generally veneered his parts before jointing and putting them together what is a chamber pot of 1800s . In this way the joints were bound to show, and it involved no practical difficulty because the veneer was thick enough to allow the joints to be levelled with the plane after being put together, a thing which would have been quite impracticable when the veneer was thinner flemish ivory inlay furniture antique .
The table in Fig spode ironstone china . 114 is rather an exception to this general rule in that the top rail was veneered after it had been jointed to the legs george serving table fluted . It is easy to tell this because the veneer runs across both rail and legs what is antique library table worth . Cross-grained veneer is the exception rather than the rule in Chippendale work, though in a case like this advantage was taken of the fine figuring to show it at its best refectorytables . The legs are of the straight moulded type already noted, and are deeply chamfered at the inner corners to lighten the appearance tripod table marble .
Use of Frets black desk curved legs .—Another table showing typical Chippendale features is that in Fig antique crofters cottage antique . 115 antique draw leaf table . It has the square moulded legs with deep chamfer, and the rails are decorated with frets antique cherry dictionary stand . This form of ornament was originally derived from the Chinese style north west antique dresser . In its purely Chinese form it consisted of intersecting straight lines somewhat in the form of lattice work (see the chair back in Fig antique mahogany drum tables library tables writing tables . III), but the idea once prompted soon developed into a purely Western conventional design consisting of curves and scrolls nabeshima antique . On p classic white bombe drawers maker . 157 is given a group of typical Chippendale frets, some still distinctly Chinese in character, and others of the conventional English form empire furniture company .
These frets, where similar positions to that in the table in Fig copper brass tray coffee table . 115, were later applied—that is, they were not carved out of the solid wood, though often enough the ends of scrolls and other small details were touched up with carving tools to give a more realistic appearance of carved work spaanse 17de eeuwse antieke tafel . In some cases the frets had no backing lidded urn with hole underneath . For instance, little galleried edgings were often fitted to small tables george hunzinger chairs . These were pierced right through in the form of a fret meissen whiteware animal . The cabinet makers soon found that these had little strength when cut out of a single thickness because the grain was necessarily short in certain parts small round chippendale center hall table . Consequently they hit upon the idea of glueing together three or more pieces of veener, the grain of the centre layer running at right angles Chippendale Side Tables
to those outside french design desk . Frets cut in this were considerably stronger graduated drawers formula . This is probably the first example of the use of plywood, though of course it had little in common with the large plywood panels produced to-day daghestan prayer rugs .
Side tables, such as that in Fig antique walnut settee chairback . 115, would be placed in

FIG chamber pot . 124 writing table with bookshelf design . CHIPPENDALE FRETS german antique card table .
,760-,775•
A, B and C are conventional patterns of Western form antique book ends . D and E show the Chinese influence dating meissen figures .
the dining-room, and their purpose was to provide a useful standing space for the dishes art nouveau antique drinking cabinet . The day of the sideboard with drawer and cupboard accommodation had yet to come classical column drawing . The reader may care to turn to Fig antique drop dresser with marble top . 116 to see examples of other kinds of legs used in tables of this kind french console table 1830 . The second example is interesting in that it is pierced right through, a detail which came from the Chinese influence what is a chippendale ring . One entirely new form of leg is the fourth example, which is composite, that is, built up of a number of small separate pieces antique gilded table glass . It consists of a series of clusters of turned columns fitted between squares antique chamber pot chair . Quite light tables had this form of leg mallard tester bed .
Many new kinds of occasional tables made their appearance at this time, and amongst them was the small tripod form also shown in Fig chippendale pinecone . I15 regency side chair with brass motif . The simpler examples were quite plain, consisting of three legs (like that at F, Fig antique gateleg table and chairs center drawers . I16), joined to a turned centre upright, and a circular top love seat pietro piffetti . Finer specimens as that in Fig antique vitrine table . 115 had acanthus carving on the knees of the legs and on the turned upright chinese export porcelain wall plaque . The edge of the top, too, was often ” pie-crusted antique book ends .”
BURFAUX AND WRITING TABLES
We saw in Chapter V how the
great increase in writing led to the
introduction of pieces intended
specially for writing antique dressing table w/mirrors . Of these the
bureau (usually with the bookcase
above) and the writing table
remained popular palissy patterns . The secretaire
in its original form, with huge fall
writing top, lapsed, though a certain
number of pieces with compara-
tively small falls were made antique mahogany rent table . These
were similar to the bureau except
that the fall when closed was
upright antique “duncan phyfe side chair” . When opened out flat the
whole writing arrangement was
made so that it could be pulled forward, so giving easy
access to the stationery nest and providing ample knee space harlequin pattern commode for sale .
CHIPPENDALE GRANDFATHER CLOCK checkoslovakian figurines .
1760-1770 red and yellow rose czechoslovakia china .
The domed shape of the hood
with a pediment above was
Invariably used markings on antique candelabra .
Writing ng Bureaux
A simple Chippendale bureau is given in Fig chippendale rosewood table . 117 art deco modern deco antique furniture . It is similar in general form to its predecessor of Queen Anne’s time, though, apart from being in mahogany, the decorative treatment is entirely different tub chair design . Sometimes the sides, drawer fronts, and so on were veneered (about 8 -1 in antique oak table trestle drop leaf . thick), but there was no ruling on the subject duncan phyfe drop leaf buffet table . In any case, when veneer was used the front was simply regarded
as a solid piece with a facing of mahogany ; that is to say, there was no attempt to use the veneer to give a decorative effect as in walnut work collector’s table . No quartering or crossbanding was used lenci artist signature . Drawers were usually surrounded by a cocked bead, as in the present example “lion feet” wardrobes . For interior parts, drawer sides, etc chinese wooden tables with brass leaves inlay ., oak was generally used value susie cooper tea set yellow with blue dots .
Another bureau similar in form, but with bookcase above, is shown in Fig antique jacobean dropleaf desk . iig antique pembrook game tables . The bookcase has many typical features, of which the pediment with carved rosettes and fretted underpart, and the barred doors are the most obvious antique duch east india company plates . These barred doors were a continuation of the Queen Anne type (see Fig elements of art value . 84), whic h probably owed their origin to the comparatively small sizes in which glass was first available fine bohemian china made in czechoslovakia compagnie . All the panes are separate and fit between bars consisting of a moulding, usually an astragal, with a thin flat bar at the back to form rebates for the glass . A few other Chippendale patterns of barred doors are given
in Fig antique upholstered chair curved side . 122 italian wood armchairs . Both these bureaux are Note the use of bracket feet in both flatware 17th century .
almost universally in these pieces, though in finer specimens they were often finely carved chinese influence to rococo . More elaborate specimens had pilasters flanking the doors with fine carving in them, and had altogether more elaborate pediments victorian cherry drop leaf table .
A writing table is shown in Fig antique desks/captain’s davenport . 118 napoleon antique chests . In this we have a variation of the bracket foot, the solid plinth theodore haviland 1958 pattern . Note that POLE
SCREEN parts of chambersticks .
About 1765•
The screen portion was
made so that it could
be adjusted at varying
heights kakiemon bow price .
of simple form delicate trestle table .
certain of the mouldings are carved amakusa candlesticks . This was a revival which took place in the mahogany period recipe for “soft paste porcelain” . In the earlier oak days carving was used to decorate mouldings to a considerable extent, but it lapsed entirely in walnut furniture because in this the mouldings were invariably cross-grained italian inlaid sideboard . This produced a decorative effect in itself, but it was not practical to carve them because the cross-grain was simply a thin layer glued over a solid groundwork spider leg circular dining table . With the return
FIG, 127 15th century chamber pots . TYPICAL MOULDINGS OF THE CHIPPENDALE SCHOOL vizagapatam furniture .
1750-1775•
In his finest work Chippendale invariably used carved mouldings spanish revival walnut console table . It was prob-
ably the result of his being a carver by trade value of 19th century silver apostle spoons .
to the use of solid wood in the first half of the eighteenth century carving was once again possible, though it was on altogether finer lines than that of oak work tambour commode . A smaller writing table with knee hole space is given in Fig vintage wooden handled three tined dinner forks . I ig antique collectors cabinet for sale .
BEDROOM FURNITURE
The chest of drawers, established by Queen Anne’s time, was a recognised part of the furnishing of a Georgian bedroom antique spanish cabinet marble top . In its simplest form it was often severely plain with no decoration 4 foot drop leaf table . The drawers usually had a surrounding French Influence
cocked bead, but even these were primarily utilitarian, since their chief purpose was to protect the edges of the veneer antique walnut writing table with pillar (post) legs . An example of this simple furniture is given in Fig tripod side table . 120 barometre du style directoire . The chamfered front corners are worth noting because, although in this particular example they are quite plain, in better class pieces they were often developed as an important feature, carving, fluting, or frets often being used as decoration antique shop slovakia . A chest of this kind would have been used in the house of one of the middle classes or in one of the lesser bedrooms in an important house burr walnut tallboy with sunburst inlay .
In contrast is the fine chest of drawers or commode shown in Fig marble dining table antique oval modern . 12I antique wooden oval french music stands . A piece of this kind represents the high water mark in cabinet work, and is obviously the product of a first-class workshop silver pillar candlestick . It is distinctly French in character, and is probably taken from a Louis XV commode, except that, whereas the latter would be largely gilded (probably the mountings of the legs would be of metal), in the present example they are entirely in mahogany, showing its natural surface english bone handled knives and silver forks . A feature adding considerably to the difficulty of making such a piece is the fact that it has compound shaping ; that is, in addition to being of serpentine shape in plan, it is shaped in its height antique escritoire desk . This double shaping was often used in Louis XV work for the French were a long way ahead of us in work of this type—possibly because very elaborate work has never specially appealed to us drop leaf walnut table gate legs . Other features in the chest definitely of French origin are the scrolled legs, with their Rococo ornament and the handles daniel quare 1674 tortoiseshell case pocket watches . An enlarged detailed drawing of one of these French type of handles is given on p how much did porcelain cost in the 1500s . 02 antique french drum table .
Bedsteads england biedermeier chest of drawers .—The Queen Anne bedstead was for the most part the four-poster type, entirely covered with soft materials, as in the example given in Fig antique bureau writing desk . 96 candle sticks antique porcelain victorian couple . A few were made with head and foot and no upper tester, these having a typical Queen Anne shaping at the top of the panel and cabriole legs below “jean luce” arzberg . A great many modern reproductions of the type are made to-day 19th century native american pottery . The majority, however, were four-posters, with every part of the woodwork (except possibly the feet) covered entirely up with velvet and other materials 18th century worcester porcelain . It was scarcely a thing fit for everyday use in an average house, though it might be well enough in a palace french chippendale dining table library desk . It was not like a four-poster with curtains only that could be taken down and washed dressoir timber . Once the material became faded Chippendale Bedsteads
or worn nothing short of stripping off the whole would be of the slightest use 18th century french silver makers .
In Georgian times came a return to the all-wood bedsteads burslem yellow trellis ceramics . In a sense these were similar to the four-posters of Jacobean times, but were altogether lighter and were in mahogany instead of oak walnut and glass coffee table, italian . A Chippendale example is given in Fig 19th century. mahogany buffet . io6, P- 136 historismus beakers . In some cases the Chinese character was used entirely writing bureau “sliding” . There stands in the museum at South Kensington a bedstead of this kind, in which the tester follows the form of a pagoda roof, whilst the back is decorated with lattice work drawing furniture by michael thonet . The whole thing is in gold and black lacquer and was probably made in Chippendale’s own workshop name a piece of furniture that begins with v .
The development of the grandfather clock is shown in Fig french/belgian art deco table for sale . 125 where can i buy antique candlesticks in dorset? . Note the scrolled pediment above the rounded heading of the hood door antique coaching table .

CLOCK CASES
Up to the present we have not dealt with clocks, for the good reason that nothing in the way of a clock case was made before the second half of the seventeenth century. Earlier clocks were of what is known as the lantern type, consisting of a brass framework with turned corner pillars and a round dial fixed at the front. Of the movements of clocks there is no space to deal in this book. It would require a book in itself to explain the various kinds and the phases through which the mechanism passed. Suffice it to say that the early type were fitted with the verge movement in which he teeth of a rotating crown wheel engaged the pallets of a balance arbor. The pendulum came into use soon after the middle of the seventeenth century.
A lantern clock is shown in Fig. 89. It was intended to stand on a bracket, the power being supplied by a weight suspended by a chain. A single hour hand was fitted, pointing to numerals engraved on either a brass or silvered dial. A striking mechanism was usually fitted, the bell being mounted upon curved metal bars as in the present example. Just below it a fretted brass pediment was fitted, this being generally of the dolphin device and engraved as shown. At the corners turned brass finials were fitted.
Bracket Clocks.—During the second half of the seventeenth century wooden bracket clock cases became popular, and these were generally of the form shown in Fig. go. They were roughly square in shape and a ” basket ” top was fitted to provide interior space for the bell. Various kinds were made, some being of walnut, cross-grained as in the general run of contemporary furniture, others were veneered with tortoiseshell, elaborate marquetry (this form of decoration is dealt with later), and some were in ebony. In some the basket top was of brass fretted and engraved, the better to allow the sound of the bell to emerge. In most the cases were glazed on all four sides to allow the mechanism to be seen.
Later, during the first half of the eighteenth century, the
bell-top ” clock was introduced, the name arising out of the formation of the top. One example is given in Fig. 91. In this the square front has been heightened and the top of the door is rounded to give space to the small dial which records either the date or enables the clock to be set either to ” strike ” or ” silent.” It should be noted that no bracket clocks of this type were fitted with a seconds hand because a movement of this kind needs a far longer pendulum than could be accommodated in a small case. The fourth clock on p. H3 belongs to an altogether later period, the second half of the eighteenth century, but it is given here so that easy comparison of the styles can be made.
Grandfather Clocks.—Speaking of the long pendulum brings us to the grandfather case introduced during the reign of Charles II. The details in them were similar to those in the furniture of the time, though there was something characteristic in their treatment which seems to belong peculiarly to clock cases. They were mostly of veneered walnut and occasionally ebony, and the hoods were made to slide either forwards or upwards, usually the former. They were generally flat at the top, as in the example in Fig. 88, and twist columns were fitted at the corners, these opening with the door. In many specimens a piece of bottle glass was introduced in the large door in the waist to enable the movement of the pendulum to be seen. This was fitted in either a round or oval frame.
Frets were often introduced in the frieze, these being backed with silk, and the mouldings were of a delicate type, far finer than those usually used in furniture. The workmanship was invariably of a high quality, and this, coupled with the characteristic details, suggests that it became customary for some men to specialise in case making as distinct from the ordinary cabinet making. The late seventeenth century examples were usually veneered with marquetry, whilst the Queen Anne specimens were of plain walnut, decorated with cross-bandings and herring-bone bandings.

TRANSITIONAL PERIOD
WE have already referred to the period beginning with the Restoration in 166o as being very remarkable so far as furniture was concerned. It certainly was. It was not merely that new ideas of form and decoration were evolved, but that a far more advanced technique of craftsmanship was built up, one which belonged essentially to furniture as distinct from joinery and carpentry. In other words, it was the period when the cabinet maker came into being, the man who specialised in furniture making.
The coincidence of many things brought about the change. The austere habits of people during the Commonwealth underwent something like a revolution when Charles II ascended the throne. It was the swing of the pendulum from simplicity to extravagance. Charles had lived for many years on the continent, where conditions (so far as the wealthy classes were concerned) were far more luxurious than here, and it was natural that foreign ideas should spread to this country when he came back as monarch. This influence, coming at the same time as the strong reaction already mentioned, set the stage, as it were, for a new standard of things.
Then again in a closely following reign another powerful foreign influence made itself felt. William III was a Dutchman, and, however good a king he was, he loved the surroundings to which he had been accustomed. Thus in a space of some thirty years two events occurred which laid their mark on the crafts of England.
Thirdly, there was the introduction of walnut as a furniture wood, a material of far finer grain and of a milder nature than oak. It lent itself far more readily to finer workmanship, yet was quite as reliable (though it had not the same durable nature). To make a rough analogy, it was like a mason, who had known no other medium than a coarsesandstone, being given a piece of fine marble to carve. All sorts of possibilities were opened.
Finally, and possibly most important, there was the introduction of the art of veneering. As the reader probably knows, this consists of laying a thin sheet of wood, usually finely marked, upon a groundwork of a less interesting but thoroughly reliable wood. It was something entirely new and presented all sorts of problems of which there was no previous experience. Whilst, on the one hand, it enabled all sorts of decorative effects to be obtained which could not be carried out in the solid, it necessitated methods of construction, the reliability (or otherwise) of which could only be proved by time. The craftsmen learnt much from foreign workmen who were already familiar with veneer, but they had a good deal to find out for themselves, and they undoubtedly did make many mistakes, as the large cracked or twisted panels of some of the work of the period show.
Taken all round, then, there were plenty of circumstances to encourage a new departure in style, and it is a thing that is obvious to anyone who makes a comparison between a cabinet made in the traditional oak style and one of walnut of the same period. Be it remembered that many craftsmen continued to work in oak, especially in country districts, right till the end of the seventeenth century and even later.
NEW METHODS OF CONSTRUCTION
As an example, take Figs. 61 and 62, which show two

cabinets made within forty years of each other, but of which one is in oak and the other in veneered walnut. The oak piece is made in precisely the same way that all woodwork had been made for the past century or two. The maker recognised the inevitability of shrinkage, and he accordingly framed up his parts, working grooves at the edges in which the panels were free to shrink. This is shown in both the doors and the sides, where the panels stand in from the level of the framework in line with the grooves.
The joints of the frames are pegged to hold them together (joints were invariably put together dry, without glue) and, to relieve the plainness, a channelling is worked along practically every rail and stile. The finish of the wood is uneven, many of the panels showing plane marks and the edges being anything but straight.
Now turn to the walnut cabinet and note how impossible it would be to apply these methods of construction. In the first place the doors are flat over their entire surface,
what panelled appearance there is being effected by the application of a crossbanding of veneer. The same thing applies to the sides which are flat. It is obvious that a panel fitting loosely in the grooves of a framework could not possibly be used.
Furthermore, a pegged joint put together dry would not be practical because the slightest movement would cause the veneer to split. Then in regard to the channelling, if this were worked it would necessarily cut right through the veneer and expose the groundwork beneath. As for the finish, it can be taken as essential that the groundwork must be prepared perfectly. The slightest blemish in it shows through to the surface of the veneer, and, even though the latter may be laid to look tolerably well at the time, it will eventually part company with the groundwork and cause all sorts of complications after a year or so. In any case, walnut was given a far more highly polished surface than oak, so that the effect of an uneven surface would be like that of a badly distorted mirror.
It is not possible in one short chapter to give all the reasons why a new technique in furniture construction became necessary, but these few points are sufficient to show the fundamental causes of the change. As we say, these early cabinet makers did make mistakes, the lesson of which their followers of the eighteenth century were to profit by, but when one considers the vastness of the change and the short time in which it was carried out, it was on the whole remarkably successful.
Changes in Design.—Turning to the walnut cabinet in Fig. 62 again, and comparing it with, say, the Court cupboard in Fig. 48, one is struck by the vastly different method by which the decorative appearance is obtained. The oak cupboard is carved and moulded everywhere. The wood is just a medium for the carving, so to speak, and there are no large unbroken surfaces. The doors, for instance, are subdivided into small panels, and, in fact, the whole effect is obtained by the constant change in the level of surfaces. It is probably in a large measure this that hides much of the crudity of old work.
On the other hand, the surfaces of the walnut cabinet are flat everywhere, and the grain of the wood is used to produce the decorative appearance. If the wood were plain slabs of timber the effect would be entirely gone. As it is, the cross-banded edges with the herring-bone strip inside and the centre ovals, although quite flat, produce a rich pattern quite as effective in its way as that of the oak piece. The examples of detailed parts in Fig. 63 help to make the point clearer.
As a further example of these changes the little table in Fig. 68 is given. This was probably made towards the end of the seventeenth century, and the interesting feature about it is that the maker has tried to emulate the new scheme of things but has carried on with the traditional construction. It was most likely the work of a country carpenter who had seen some furniture of the walnut kind but who had had no experience in making it, and had not the materials to use  It is in oak, and the legs, although neatly turned, have the baluster shaping reminiscent of an earlier period. The wide apron rail is shaped similarly to that of typical William and Mary walnut furniture, and has a cocked bead around the edge (another ” walnut ” feature), but the joints are all pegged, a thing never done in true walnut work. Then the top and the drawer have an inlaid banding of fruit wood around the edges in imitation of crossbanding (such as that
in Fig. 62), but the grain runs lengthwise and it is let into the solid oak.
A piece like this would never have been made by a cabinet maker of any standing in a town, and in that sense it is not typical of its period, but it is interesting not only in exemplifying the changes that were taking place, but also in showing the constant lag that maintained in the country districts compared with towns.
Figs. 64, 65, and 66 show the gradual evolution taking place in the chair. A note of special interest in that in Fig. 65 is that the back legs are splayed. This is the first example of this feature to be given, chairs up to this time having straight, upright back legs. The day bed in Fig. 67 is a development of the type mentioned by Shakespeare in Richard HI (see P. 54).

FIG. 68. SMALL SIDE TABLE WITH CURIOUSLY
MIXED FEATURES. PROBABLY OF COUNTRY
ORIGIN.
About 1700.
Although the whole thing is of oak and the legs are typically
Jacobean, there are features which belong to a later period,
for example, the shaped rail with cocked bead edging and
the Inlay around top and drawer front.

FIG. 61. CUPBOARD WITH TYPICAL JACOBEAN CONSTRUCTION.
About 165o.
Note that the whole thing is made up of a framework with recessed
panels fitting in grooves. The construction is obvious, no attempt being
made to conceal it. Compare with the veneered example in Fig. 62
opposite.

FIG. 62. WILLIAM AND MARY CABINET IN WALNUT.
Late 17th century.
Here the construction is concealed. The banding around the doors for
instance has no connection with any framing, but is simply a cross-
banding of veneer.

FIG. 64. CHARLES II CHAIR
WITH CROWN EMBLEM
CARVED IN BACK AND
STRETCHER.
About 166o-070.
There is a definite tendency
to a lighter form of construc-
tion in this chair as compared
with earlier examples in Fig.
40. Note too how much
finer is the section of the
scrolled arms than the square
form in Fig. 38.
The interesting point about these chairs is that, whereas in that above the construction dictates the general form (note the obvious arrangement of rails in the back), in the lower chair the design is considered first and the construction adapted to suit. In the back, for instance, it is difficult to tell where the rails join the uprights.
FIG. 65. WILLIAM AND MARY TALL
BACK CHAIR.
About 1690.
This is the first example in this book
of a chair with back legs splayed back-
wards.

FIG. 66. CHAIRS SHOWING EVIDENCE OF THE TRANSITION.
Late 17th century.
In the left-hand example the germ of the cabriole leg is seen. In the other
the coming of the splat back of walnut times is heralded.

FIG. 67. WALNUT DAY BED OF CHARLES II TIME.
About 167o.
The fact that day beds were in use in Elizabeth’s reign is shown by Shake-
speare’s allusionto them. Early specimens are extremely rare, however,
the majority belonging to the restoration period.

TUDOR GOTHIC PERIOD
S0 few examples of English domestic furniture dating from a period earlier than the accession of Henry VIII exist, that for the purpose of this book there is little purpose served in going back earlier than the end of the fifteenth century, except to see how what had gone before influenced the woodwork that was to come. The longer the period that elapses, the greater the chances of destruction and decay, and the troublous times through which this country went in the Middle Ages certainly enabled destruction to carry out its work of waste. An army marching through an enemy country would spare little that came its way, and even in peaceful times the outbreak of fire must have been an ever-present source of danger. Domestic houses were invariably built of timber, and, as the fire on the open hearth was never or seldom allowed to go out, being just fanned to a flame every morning, the chances of the building catching fire must have been high.
Apart from this, however, furniture was a rare commodity in those days. Even in the larger houses the hall would contain little more than a large table, a chair for the owner of the house, forms and stools for the rest of the household, a cupboard of some sort, and a chest. In the chief sleeping room there would be a bed, a chest to hold clothes, and possibly a cupboard or press. The sleeping rooms for the less important people might contain little more than a mattress or even just a couch of rushes. Smaller houses were furnished on a correspondingly smaller scale, so that it becomes clear that the chances of survival were extremely small.
The closing years of the fifteenth century mark the beginning of a change in conditions. The accession of Henry VII had brought to an end the long period of strife known as the Wars of the Roses, and with the feeling of comparative security men began to find time to turn their attention to their houses. There could have been but little encouragement for a man to beautify his house when he knew that it might be burnt over his head either by the first party of soldiers that came marching through, or by a band of insurgents such as that headed by Jack Cade. His first thought would have been to fortify it against attack. It was not until warfare came to an end that he felt justified in making, or was able to make, himself more comfortable. Not that the change came quickly. The wars had bled the country of its manhood so that many a man who might have spent his life peaceably in making useful things was pressed into the service of his local lord to fight on whichever side happened to be in favour locally.
Coming of the Renaissance.—Nevertheless the coming of peace did encourage the development of the home as distinct from the fortified house, and, what was equally important, it set the stage, as it were, for that remarkable influence, the Renaissance, which was to sweep across the country during the sixteenth century. It is an extraordinary thing that men can be carried off their feet, so to speak, by an intangible thing like this Renaissance. It is hard to find a name by which to call it. It was just a great influence which was to leave its mark on all the arts and crafts, and alter even the very lives of men.
To understand it fully one must realise that hitherto the crafts had been dominated entirely by the Gothic. Men knew no other style. In architecture it had developed from the Norman at the end of the twelfth century, and had become almost a creed, the absolutism of which it were heresy to doubt. It was in fact closely bound up with the church, which had been the seat of learning and the consequent fountain-head of ideas and knowledge ever since the coming of the Normans. Every monastery had its group of stonemasons, carpenters, carvers, and so on.
The carpenters engaged on secular work had only one source from which to draw their ideas, the church, and a man called upon to make, say, a chest simply copied whatever detail he might find in a building, often with the most delightful disregard for its true meaning. Thus one often finds details used in woodwork which belong entirely to the technique of stone masonry.
The point we wish to make clear is that until the coming Tudor Gothic Period
of the Renaissance all the woodwork was entirely Gothic in detail, form, and construction and as a consequence, when new ideas began to filter through, men did not know quite what to make of them, and they became little more than a grafting of Renaissance detail to a groundwork of Gothic.
This will become more obvious when we come to examine individual pieces.
It was a condition that was aggravated by the fact that the early workers did not understand the spirit of the Renaissance. They regarded the details as just so many motifs to be used in any convenient way that suggested itself, and the result was often a curious mixture. It must be remembered that the Renaissance was a thing that filtered through from abroad. It was entirely new. It was not like the Gothic,which was a natural development on lines which were built up on experience. It will be recognised by the use of the
Roman orders of architecture (often wrongly applied), the intricately interwoven strapwork, carved egg and tongue mouldings, and all the many other details that had belonged to Rome in its glory.

OLD CHEST IN CHURCH AT HARBLEDOWN.
Probably 13th century.
The lid is hollowed out of a solid baulk of timber, the curve approximating to that of the tree trunk from which it was cut.
CHEST WITH PIN-HINGED LID.
Probably 15th century.
Although probably made In the fifteenth century, the construction
is typical of an earlier period. All the wood is cleft and finished
with the adze.

FIG. 4. PLANKED CHEST WITH CARVED FRONT
Early 16th century.
This exemplifies the early simple construction in which the front and
back are merely nailed to the sides. The carving is purely Gothic in
character.
FIG. 5. FRAMED-UP CHEST WITH LINENFOLD PANELS.
Early 16th century.
Here the panels are held in the grooves of a framework and are so free to
shrink without danger of their splitting. Compare with chest above.