Side Chair
Furniture MakerMade by
Unknown
Date1760-1790
MediumCherry, rush
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (overall height x width x depth): 38 7/8 x 20 1/2 x 19 1/2in. (98.7 x 52.1 x 49.5cm)
ClassificationsFurniture
Credit LineBequest of Robert H. Schutz, Jr.
Object number1991.60.17
DescriptionCherry side chair in the Queen Anne, or late baroque, style, with a yoke-shaped crest rail, a vase-shaped splat, turned front legs and stretchers, and a rush seat. The back of the chair is formed by a yoke-shaped crest rail atop two stiles. The center of the crest rail is arched, and each side has an ear that curves up. Centered below the crest rail is a sold, vase-shaped splat, which attaches at the bottom to the stay rail. Above the seat, each stile angles backward. Below the seat, each stile forms a leg that angles backward. Each front leg is turned with a baluster over a straight, tapered leg, over a pad foot. Each front leg has a block at the top that supports the rails of the rush seat, which is trapezoidal in shape. The front stretcher connecting the two front legs is turned with a double-baluster-and-ring form. Each side has two stretchers turned with a tapered, ovoid form in the center. The back of the chair has one stretcher, turned with a tapered, ovoid form in the center.
Condition: The chair is refinished, and the rush is replaced.
Design and Construction Details: The crest rail is supported by a tenon at the top of each stile; each of these joints is secured with a wooden pin. The splat is tenoned into the crest rail above and into the stay rail below. The splat is shaped with a particularly sharp notch. The back of each stile is curved above the stay rail. The stay rail is tenoned and pinned to each stile; each joint has one pin that extends through the stile, and one pin that is only inserted through the back of the stile. Each seat rail is bladelike, with a squared-off outer edge and a tapered inner edge. The seat rails are tenoned into the stiles in the back, and into the separate block at the top of each leg in the front. Each of the blocks is supported by a tenon at the top of the front leg; the top of each block is chamfered on the front and side edges. The stretchers have round tenons that extend into the front or back legs. The interior corner of each back leg is chamfered. A thin, dark line circles each front leg, marking where each side stretcher joins the leg.
NotesHistorical Note: According to the donor's family tradition, this chair came out of Sanford's Tavern in Hartford, Connecticut. This is the tavern from which the Royal Charter of 1662 was surreptitiously removed and hidden in the Charter Oak. (Hudson 5/17/2006)Condition: The chair is refinished, and the rush is replaced.
Design and Construction Details: The crest rail is supported by a tenon at the top of each stile; each of these joints is secured with a wooden pin. The splat is tenoned into the crest rail above and into the stay rail below. The splat is shaped with a particularly sharp notch. The back of each stile is curved above the stay rail. The stay rail is tenoned and pinned to each stile; each joint has one pin that extends through the stile, and one pin that is only inserted through the back of the stile. Each seat rail is bladelike, with a squared-off outer edge and a tapered inner edge. The seat rails are tenoned into the stiles in the back, and into the separate block at the top of each leg in the front. Each of the blocks is supported by a tenon at the top of the front leg; the top of each block is chamfered on the front and side edges. The stretchers have round tenons that extend into the front or back legs. The interior corner of each back leg is chamfered. A thin, dark line circles each front leg, marking where each side stretcher joins the leg.
Status
Not on view
