Detail of WS 202 inscription "17 W*H 55" |
When I was looking through David Knell's English Country Furniture 1500 - 1900, (1st published 1992, 2nd edition 2000) I came across two virtually identical chairs on p. 291, though they are dated 1742 and 1739. Of those chairs, Knell says:
"Incised dates can occasionally be authenticated by subtle variations in the shape of numerals at different periods. The style certainly suggests contemporaneity in this case."
The style and positioning of the numerals on the 1739 chair shown at p. 291 is identical to that above and that chair has a six-pointed star in the middle as well, though no initials.
Knell attributes these chairs to the north in general and possibly to Lincolnshire, but the one pictured above has a firm association with the county. It can be said with a fair degree of confidence that this chair is at least 264 years old. Even though the condition is very poor, with loose joints, broken rushing rail and some shortening of the legs, the ash wood used to make the chair is in sound condition.
The chair was in my house for some time, during which time I was able to assess and photograph it; on returning it to the owner, I stressed the importance of the preservation of this remarkable survivor and asked that it was not to be sat upon. Indeed I took another armchair along to take its place in the kitchen, so that this one could be positioned in the house where no one could use it.
The chair was in my house for some time, during which time I was able to assess and photograph it; on returning it to the owner, I stressed the importance of the preservation of this remarkable survivor and asked that it was not to be sat upon. Indeed I took another armchair along to take its place in the kitchen, so that this one could be positioned in the house where no one could use it.
© William Segeant 2019 and Julian Parker 2020
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