Walnut side chair with banister back.
Identifier
FPF066
Title
Walnut side chair with banister back.
Date
1720-1730
Description
Walnut side chair with banister back and drop-in seat.
Full Description
This walnut side chair has a tall narrow back with a curved crest rail which has a raised central section and cusped corners. There is a baluster-shaped walnut-veneered splat, curved to fit the human form, which is pierced at the top in the shape of a keyhole, and joined at the base to a ‘shoe’ on the rear seat rail. The square-section back posts are straight and tapering. The seat rail has rounded corners at the front and is tapered towards the back, with a moulded top edge to retain the drop-in seat. The seat frame and upholstery are replaced and the cover is 20th century floral tapestry. The chair is raised on four cabriole legs, all with carved knees and terminating in square pad feet.
The banister-back chair marks a transition in around 1720 from the Chinese-style rectangular back to a more Anglicised version (Bowett, 2009). Another 18th century term for this form was the ‘pedestal’ back, as described in furniture-makers’ bills. Although this chair has straight rather than curved back posts, the splat is curved and as such it could be described as a ‘bended back’ or ‘India back’ chair. The term ‘India’ encompassed the whole of South and South-east Asia, including China; here, the ‘milkmaid’s yoke’ crest rail and curved splat are influenced by Chinese chairs. The use of ‘Indian’ to describe such chairs appears, for example, in the trade card of Thomas Cleare, who worked at the sign of the Indian Chair, St. Paul’s Churchyard, in the 1720s and 30s (Gilbert, 1996). Comparable chairs in the Frederick Parker collection include FPF045 and FPF059, which have similar piercings at the top of the splats.
The reverse-curved or cabriole leg is an innovation that ‘more than any other characterised early Georgian chair design’. It seems likely this had a French origin. Engravings by Pierre Le Pautre (c. 1659-1744) and André-Charles Boulle (1642-1732) incorporated cabriole legs on different types of furniture from around 1700 (ibid.). The earliest documented example of English cabriole leg chairs to survive is a set of six (together with a sofa and firescreen) at Canons Ashby, Northamptonshire; the chairs were supplied in 1715 by Thomas Phill (d. 1727). See Untitled 494468 | National Trust Collections
The banister-back chair marks a transition in around 1720 from the Chinese-style rectangular back to a more Anglicised version (Bowett, 2009). Another 18th century term for this form was the ‘pedestal’ back, as described in furniture-makers’ bills. Although this chair has straight rather than curved back posts, the splat is curved and as such it could be described as a ‘bended back’ or ‘India back’ chair. The term ‘India’ encompassed the whole of South and South-east Asia, including China; here, the ‘milkmaid’s yoke’ crest rail and curved splat are influenced by Chinese chairs. The use of ‘Indian’ to describe such chairs appears, for example, in the trade card of Thomas Cleare, who worked at the sign of the Indian Chair, St. Paul’s Churchyard, in the 1720s and 30s (Gilbert, 1996). Comparable chairs in the Frederick Parker collection include FPF045 and FPF059, which have similar piercings at the top of the splats.
The reverse-curved or cabriole leg is an innovation that ‘more than any other characterised early Georgian chair design’. It seems likely this had a French origin. Engravings by Pierre Le Pautre (c. 1659-1744) and André-Charles Boulle (1642-1732) incorporated cabriole legs on different types of furniture from around 1700 (ibid.). The earliest documented example of English cabriole leg chairs to survive is a set of six (together with a sofa and firescreen) at Canons Ashby, Northamptonshire; the chairs were supplied in 1715 by Thomas Phill (d. 1727). See Untitled 494468 | National Trust Collections
Condition
The chair is in poor condition with extensive repairs and is now fragile.
Both back posts are replaced, faced with walnut veneer (possibly original) and stained at the back. The back of the chair is loose because of the repairs.
Repairs to crest rail at joints with posts and splat.
Both back feet tipped
Back left leg is loose at joint with seat.
Both back posts are replaced, faced with walnut veneer (possibly original) and stained at the back. The back of the chair is loose because of the repairs.
Repairs to crest rail at joints with posts and splat.
Both back feet tipped
Back left leg is loose at joint with seat.
Materials
Walnut.
Upholstery.
Upholstery.
Physical Dimensions
H. 104
W. 56
D. 53
W. 56
D. 53
Parker Numbers
6106, 4957, 8
Provenance
Purchased by Frederick Parker & Sons on 20th June 1927 from Mr H. G. P. for £7 15s.
Notes
A. Bowett, Early Georgian Furniture 1715-1740, Antique Collectors' Club, 2009, pp. 161, 150, 151.
Christopher Gilbert, Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture, Furniture History Society and Maney, 1996, p.145, plate 214.
Christopher Gilbert, Pictorial Dictionary of Marked London Furniture, Furniture History Society and Maney, 1996, p.145, plate 214.
