Bobbin turned side chair - WS229

 

Bobbin-turned side chair, possibly Dutch - WS229

Quite fortuitously I happen to be in Grantham in the middle of January of 2023 and decided to call at Goldings, the Grantham auctioneers, even though it was not a day designated for viewing. I asked if it was possible to view the furniture for the forthcoming sale and luckily my wish was granted. The chair pictured above immediately caught my attention and a few days later, after a bidding battle during the auction, I was delighted to purchase it. 

There is absolutely nothing that I would associate with Lincolnshire incorporated into this chair, indeed I cannot remember seeing another remotely like it before. I had been instantly struck by the amount of work that had gone into its production: the wood used was either cherry or some other fruitwood. Every component was contemporary, though there were two metal brackets to help support the seat rails where they met the back legs. In terms of dating the chair, my initial impression was mid-18th century. The finials at the top of the back legs pointed towards Holland and the Low Countries as chairs made there almost invariably have this feature. However, more research needs to be done to establish its origin.

© William Sergeant 2023

Typical Lincolnshire spindleback chair - WS228

 

WS228 Lincolnshire Windsor armchair with 9 long spindles attributed to Roger and Sophia Taylor workshop

The county of Lincolnshire has a great tradition of making spindleback Windsor chairs. Their understated elegance, economy of design and pleasing proportions make them timeless items of furniture which would grace any room. There are plenty on my Flickr feed to choose from and after many years of researching the tradition, I still find chairs which are new to me. Please take a moment to study this one.

It was while visiting a Newark antique centre that I spotted this one for sale at a very reasonable price. There is no maker's name stamp, every component is fashioned from ashwood and it's in remarkably good condition. Everything points to a standard Lincolnshire spindleback Windsor chair, produced at the beginning of the nineteenth century. But which workshop did it come out of? I knew that I had seen those underarm supports before and after a little bit of research I realised that they were the same as picture WS160, which is signed TAYLOR Grantham. 

What surprised me was the fact that every other signed TAYLOR spindleback chairs have only 8 long spindles and 6 short ones. This is, I believe, the very first time that a 9 long and 8 short spindle pattern has ever been recorded.

I have little doubt that it was manufactured in the workshop of Roger and Sophia Taylor during the period 1801 - 1810.

© William Sergeant 2023