,,the ,,brochure ,,series ,chippendale ,chairs ,,may1 #aijj ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xxxv ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,,the ,,brochure ,,series ,,of ,,architectural ,,illustration4 #aijj4 ,,may ,no4 #e4 ,,chippendale ,,chairs4 ,it is only within recent times that movable chairs have become common and indispensable4 ,seats of some kind must have been used from the time when houses were first built1 but it is not until the civilization of the last two or three centuries had transformed the old ways of living that we begin to find them in common use4 ,representations of seats are found in the sculptures and paintings of ,egypt1 ,greece and ,rome1 and all through the middle ages--many of them elaborate and luxurious--but their use was confined to the noble and wealthy4 ,in church furniture chairs are familiar throughout the middle ages1 but they were usually fixed parts of the building4 ,the seats of the common people were probably constructed of rude blocks1 or of single planks joined together with little finish or skill4 ,in ,england1 even so late as the sixteenth century1 chairs as we know them were of so rare occurrence as to be handed down from generation to generation1 and of such importance as to be frequently mentioned in wills and deeds4 ,such chairs were of the rudest forms1 ornamented1 however1 with embroideries and costly stuffs4 ,in the middle of the seventeenth century it was customary even at royal banquets for all but the king and queen to be seated upon benches without cushions4 ,in the reign of ,charles ,i41 however1 with the encouragement of luxurious living1 chairs became more common among the favored classes1 and under the ,commonwealth1 with its levelling of class distinctions1 their use was extended4 ,but in the latter period the revulsion against unnecessary ornament and display simplified the models4 ,with the ,restoration there was a return to the opposite extreme4 ,the growing taste for ease and luxury brought into requisition the richest fabrics obtainable1 and we find stuffed seats and backs1 with ,turkish embroideries and heavily brocaded velvets4 ,chairs were elaborately carved and gilded4 ,french furniture was imported and copied1 and the influence of ,indian art1 through the recent acquisition of ,bombay1 can be easily traced4 ,of the simpler patterns1 those made of turned spindles became common at the beginning of the eighteenth century4 ,forms were borrowed and adapted from many sources1 from ,france1 ,spain and ,holland4 ,in the time of ,william and ,mary1 under ,dutch influence1 the seats and backs were broadened1 colored inlay introduced1 and the cabriole legs commonly employed1 suggesting the forms later adopted in the ,chippendale period4 ,the strong point of ,english furniture was not its originality1 but its catholicity4 ,it was a mirror which reflected the outcome of other times and countries in a frame of its own4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xxxvi ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,the period when ,chippendale appeared on the scene seems to have been one very favorable to the success of his enterprise4 ,the middle classes were already accumulating wealth and beginning to assume numerical and political importance4 ,the troubles of civil war were over1 the reigning dynasty had successfully overcome the last attempt at revolution1 and the situation promised an age wherein the comforts of life might again be enjoyed in security4 ,english trade with ,holland1 doubtless very largely fostered by the ,dutch proclivities of ,william ,,iii41 had helped to disseminate a love for pottery and lacquer work of the ,east2 artificial works were multiplying1 and the middle classes1 above all1 wanted for the furnishing of their rapidly rising1 substantial dwellings something more sumptuous than the humble simplicity of the common ,jacobean--something which would have a taste1 at least1 of the luxurious extravagances of the ,french reigning style4 ,illustration ,english furniture of the time of ,chippendale had profited by the best of the past and of the present4 ,it closely resembled the ,french work of ,louis ,,xiv41 but it had reached such a stage of perfection1 though still made up of heterogeneous elements1 that it was for the first time valued above the productions of other countries1 and was even taken abroad to be copied1 while the books of designs published by the ,english cabinet-makers were translated into other languages4 ,in the preface to ,hepplewhite's book of designs1 published in #aghi1 there is this statement1 which is of interest as indicating the esteem in which ,english cabinet work was held abroad1 viz43 ,english taste and workmanship have of late years been much sought for by surrounding nations2 and the mutability of all things1 but more especially of fashions1 has rendered the labours of our predecessors in this line of little use2 nay1 in this day can only tend to mislead those foreigners who seek a knowledge of ,english taste in the various articles of household furniture4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xxxvii ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,oak had been the prevailing material up to this time1 but now mahogany took its place4 ,an interesting account of the introduction of mahogany for furniture is given by ,frederick ,litchfield in his ,history of ,furniture4 ,he says1 ,mahogany may be said to have come into general use subsequent to #agbj1 and its introduction is asserted to have been due to the tenacity of purpose of a ,dr4 ,gibbon1 whose wife wanted a candle-box1 an article of common domestic use at the time4 ,the doctor1 who had laid by in the garden of his house in ,king ,street1 ,covent ,garden1 some planks sent to him by his brother1 a ,west ,indian captain1 asked the joiner to use a part of the wood for this purpose2 it was found too tough and hard for the tools of the period1 but the doctor was not to be thwarted1 and insisted on harder-tempered tools being found1 and the task completed4 ,the result was the production of a candle-box which was admired by every one4 ,he then ordered a bureau of the same material1 and when it was finished invited his friends to see the new work2 amongst others the ,duchess of ,buckingham begged a small piece of the precious wood1 and it soon became the fashion4 ,illustration ,the ,jacobean and cognate styles1 consisting fundamentally of framing based on rectangular forms and decorated with characteristic carving and turning1 may be described as essentially suitable for oak1 of which the open character of the grain forbids any extreme minuteness of detail4 ,the particular qualities of the work of ,chippendale and his successors demanded1 on the other hand1 the use of a very different material4 ,chippendale's delicate carving and his free use of curves1 even in constructive members of his design1 could have only been satisfactorily wrought out in a wood of fine1 hard and close grain1 and one which also possessed great lateral tenacity1 such as mahogany4 ,it is scarcely too much to say that1 but for the introduction of this beautiful wood the specialty in the work of the cabinet-makers of the eighteenth century would have been impossible4 ,together with the refinement of design came a perfection of construction and workmanship which has rendered the furniture of this period practically indestructible4 ,it is said that ,chippendale never carved a fret without gluing together three thicknesses of wood with opposing grain1 and his work is so joined with tenons and pegs that it stands as well today as when first put together4 ,sheraton devoted whole pages of his book to constructive directions for the most simple table4 ,this excellence of construction1 and the eminently practical and usable character of the best of the eighteenth century work have been potent factors in helping to preserve the many examples of it which we fortunately possess today4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xxxviii ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,it will probably be a surprise to the reader who has had no occasion to inquire especially into the history of household furniture to know that a century and a half ago furniture makers1 in ,england and elsewhere1 resorted to much the same method of securing customers1 by publishing illustrated catalogues1 as do our own enterprising manufacturers4 ,among the earliest of these trade catalogues1 as we now call them1 was that of ,thomas ,chippendale1 the first edition of which was published about #agej 7the exact date is in doubt71 and two later editions are known4 ,this catalogue has been reproduced in recent years and many of the plates have been frequently copied1 until the ,chippendale designs have become familiar1 and the name applied broadly but loosely to all of the work of the period1 including a great deal which by right has no connection whatever with ,chippendale4 ,the illustrations in this catalogue were elaborately engraved on copper1 and it was entitled ,the ,gentleman and ,cabinet ,maker's ,director4 ,it contained over two hundred engravings of useful and decorative designs1 some of which1 however1 were probably never executed4 ,it included designs in the most fashionable taste for a great variety of furniture calculated to improve and refine the present taste1 and suited to the fancy and circumstances of persons in all degrees of life4 ,a great deal of the design is traceable to ,french influence1 and may have been borrowed directly from similar books by ,french cabinet-makers4 ,illustration ,illustration3 ,,chinese ,,pattern ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,of ,chippendale himself little of a personal nature is known4 ,both he and his father were carvers1 and it is no doubt true that to the repute established by his father as a basis1 he added superior skill and taste1 and the shrewdness of a tradesman4 ,it is by no means certain1 however1 that in his time1 or immediately after it1 his reputation was greater than that of other cabinet-makers4 ,his present celebrity depends more upon the survival and later reproduction of his book of designs than upon any contemporary fame4 ,that he had refinement of taste is proved by his designs2 but that he was anxious1 above all1 to secure patrons is hardly open to question4 ,mr4 ,j4 ,a4 ,heaton 7,furniture and ,decoration in ,england during the ,eighteenth ,century7 calls him a vulgar hawker ready to make anything that would fill his purse4 ,his book1 the text of which is written in the bombastic style of the period1 begins with an explanation of the classical orders of architecture1 holding them up as the only basis of true design in furniture2 but he later refers to certain designs in the ,chinese manner--which were made1 quite certainly1 in response to the fashion introduced in ,england by ,sir ,william ,chambers1--as the most appropriate and successful of his whole collection4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xxxix ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,although much of the furniture of the middle and latter part of the eighteenth century is wrongly attributed to ,chippendale1 and he is now popularly held responsible for many excellencies as well as many faults which do not belong to him1 the evidence of his book goes to prove that his work at its best was superior to that of his contemporaries1 and vastly superior to that which either preceded or followed it4 ,illustration ,illustration ,chippendale's ordinary furniture may be conveniently classified under three heads of very various artistic value4 ,the first is the pure rococo4 ,in this class of work we find1 as ,mr4 ,basil ,champneys has happily described it1 intemperately flowing lines1 wantonly twisting volutes1 fantastic and unmeaning forms1 suggestive about equally of organic and inorganic nature1 bursting here into a gryphon's or sphynx's head1 or there into a bunch of flowers2 writhing into a mermaid1 or culminating in a trophy2 here the volutes are propped with an utterly dissipated and abandoned ,gothic shaft1 there is the ghost of a classic pediment2 here a whole piece of ruin is bodily foisted in2 a fortuitous interval is occupied by a sportsman or a flirtation1 or by the conventional ,chinaman1 with an impossible mustache and inconceivable hat4 ,the two sides of the design are seldom alike2 symmetry is ostentatiously avoided2 everything twists1 twirls1 writhes1 changes1 gets distorted like the images in a dyspeptic dream over a book of travels1 from which the reader will be glad to awake4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xl ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,fortunately for ,chippendale's fame this class of work forms but an insignificant portion of the remains of his furniture now extant--a fact which is owing in some measure to its constructive weakness4 ,its merits are purely those of a skilful carver4 ,illustration ,a second important characteristic style was that which may be described as fret work4 ,some pieces coming under this description1 shelves and cabinets for china1 amongst others1 are constructed almost wholly of thin slabs of wood pierced with a great variety of small patterns1 many of them very intricate4 ,these are dainty pieces of furniture1 well suited for the drawing-room and boudoir2 and it speaks volumes for the care and finish in the workmanship that any of them have been handed down to us in a perfect state during so long an existence4 ,what is sound of the reputation that ,chippendale has earned1 however1 apart from the excellence of his workmanship1 lies in the furniture coming under the last head of our division--in pieces wherein we find the decoration applied1 a little lavishly it is true1 with a certain admixture of straight lines and plain surfaces with which to contrast it4 ,in these1 members otherwise square and straight are enriched with delicate and shallow sunk carved work1 sometimes based on geometrical patterns4 ,the backs of chairs1 although consisting of curved forms1 have commonly a rectilinear disposition of the principal lines1 and the curvatures of the constructional members are so subtle and restrained that the impression of strong wooden construction is not wholly destroyed4 ,the supporting members1 such as legs of tables and chairs1 are often kept straight1 and the carving1 where applied1 is kept so shallow that it does not interfere with the apparent or real capacity of the parts for the function for which they are designed4 ,in appraising his merits it must always be remembered that ,chippendale was pre-eminently a carver2 and as a carver producing work applied to objects of utility he holds an unchallenged position4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xli ,,chippendale ,,chairs ,mr4 ,k4 ,warren ,clouston1 describing the work of this period 7,the ,architectural ,record1 ,vol4 ,,viii471 says3 ,chippendale1 above all things1 was a chairmaker1 and his chairs are full of variety1 at first with the high back1 cabriole leg and claw-and-ball foot of the so-called ,dutch taste2 then rising to lighter fancies1 either with vase-shaped ornament1 flowing ribbon bows1 interlacing frets of ,gothic tracery4 ,but what matters it whether the rococo ornament then prevailing on the continent1 the ,chinese leanings of ,sir ,william ,chambers1 or ,strawberry ,hill ,gothic were adopted1 when the different sources are blended in one harmonious whole8 ,we give ,chippendale the first place simply from his book1 for the squat backs and ungainly chairs of ,manwaring and the ,society of ,upholsterers1 and the badly designed seats of ,ince and ,mayhew only serve to accentuate the work of the master hand4 ,illustration ,the chairs chosen for illustration in this number are of the simpler patterns4 ,it will be seen that they have very little ornament1 and that this is almost entirely confined to the backs1 the legs being in most cases square and plain4 ,in the backs the same lines occur as in those made in the time of ,william ,,iii41 but instead of the frame of the back being covered with silk1 tapestry or other material1 ,chippendale's are cut open with fanciful patterns4 ,those with cabriole legs usually have claw feet and a shell or leaf at the top4 ,the chairs in ,chippendale's book are much more elaborate than those here illustrated or than those he ordinarily produced4 ,this is naturally accounted for by the desire to induce customers to purchase the more expensive pieces4 ,the simple square leg without taper is one of the distinctive marks of ,chippendale's time4 ,later in the century1 in the work of ,hepplewhite and others1 the legs were made more tapering and the whole chair much lighter and more elaborately ornamented to correspond with the ,renaissance forms then in vogue4 ,the turned leg is rarely found1 although much used later4 ,the shaping and ornamentation is generally confined to the front legs4 ,mahogany1 as has been stated1 was the wood most used1 and the ornamentation was confined as a rule to carving4 ,inlay and marquetry1 brass and ormolu were employed on other articles of furniture1 but the chairs rarely have such ornament4 ,the rococo of ,chippendale's earlier work1 corresponding to the ,french of ,louis ,,xv4 and ,,xvi41 was succeeded by a modification tending towards the severer ,renaissance1 influenced by the designs of the architects1 ,robert and ,james ,adam1 who gave their attention to the minutest details of interior decoration and furnishing1 as well as the larger problems of architecture4 ,of ,chippendale's contemporaries1 ,ince and ,mayhew1 who also published a book of designs1 are now looked upon as most deserving to share his fame1 although there are records of many others4 ,hepplewhite forms a connecting link between this period and that of the more severe lines of ,sheraton and ,shearer4 ,sheraton was a skilled and cultivated man and an excellent draughtsman4 ,among the subscribers to his book1 ,the ,cabinet ,maker and ,upholsterer's ,drawing ,book1 published in #agic1 are the names and addresses of no less than four hundred and fifty cabinet-makers1 chairmakers and carvers1 not including musical instrument makers1 upholsterers and other kindred trades4 ,this gives some idea of the extent to which such books were then employed1 and the number of makers whose work is not now distinguishable and whose names are lost in oblivion4 ,following the work of these men came the ,empire style introduced in ,france after the ,french ,revolution4 ,readers interested in the subject of the furniture of the ,georgian period are referred to the recently published large collection of photographic plates1 entitled ,english ,household ,furniture 7see announcement in our advertising pages7 from which our present illustrations have been reproduced4 ,,note4--,the illustrations in this issue are reduced from large photographic plates in the recently published work1 entitled ,,english ,,household ,,furniture1 ,,mainly ,,designed ,,by ,,chippendale1 ,,sheraton1 ,,adam ,,and ,,others ,,of ,,the ,,georgian ,,period4 #ajj ,,plates1 ,,illustrating #cdh ,,examples4 ,bates ,guild ,company1 publishers1 ,boston4 ,see advertisement on another page4 ,illustration3 ,,plate ,,xlii ,,chippendale ,,settee ,,and ,,chair ,transcriber's ,note3 ,italics are indicated by underscores4 ,small capitals have been rendered in full capitals4 ,a number of minor spelling errors have been corrected without note4