CHAIRS — corner, 1700-1750 (also known as writing chairs)
A fine quality chair, mostly solid walnut but with veneered seat rail and splats. The turned uprights are well shaped. c. 1715
An interesting country version of 132, with cabriole legs ending in pad feet. Only the front cabriole has a shell carved on the knee; the turned uprights under the arms are not embellished with any shaping as in 132; the cabrioles do not flow as boldly, but the maker has added the precaution of stretchers between them for strength, and these are shaped where they join the leg just like the uprights of example 132. The decoration of a triangular inlay of boxwood on the seat rail and alternating box and ebony on found on wainscot chairs.
c. 1715
A simple solid walnut corner chair with straight legs which belie the earlier date suggested by the shape of the splats. c. 1745
An oak variation with only the front leg a cabriole which has simple thread and flower decoration on the
cross-stretchers and pierced splats of the knee.
Pre-Chippendale type. c. 1730
A mahogany chair with high quality cabriole legs ending in ball-and-claw feet. The carved decoration on the knee makes good use of the design possibilities of shoulder support which would not be out of place on a Chippendale chair but, despite its evident quality, the back has a straight cut splat which is still in the walnut period.
c. 1740
This chair might well be criticised on the basis of the exaggerated, heavy curls to the ends of the top rail but, to those who like it, the vigour of the workmanship gives a spring-like quality to the scrolling (which looks as if it might be uncoiled given a means of softening the wood!) The back is a bit heavy but the design sources of the chair would be evident (if you have read this book, that is). c. 1735
A country chair, whose back design belongs to the examples of 1710-30, but this chair is, in fact, 1740-50 with simple square legs and stretchers of the ‘Chippendale’ type. c. 1740-1750
Finally a top quality piece in walnut with a highly individual design of back and superbly decorated cabriole legs and ball-andclaw feet. It predates Chippendale’s design by only a few years but shows clearly that richness of decoration and the overall shape were already well understood. It remained only for the designer to offer a variety of splats and personalised decorative design for his name to become the most famous in British furniture design. Much copied in the •Victorian period. c. 1750
A walnut example with a splat whose design is common to the first three chairs in this group, with slight variations. This chair is more restrained and the ankle of the cabrioles rather tentative. c. 1735