Side Chair
Furniture MakerMade by
Elijah Tracy
(American, about 1766 - 1807)
Date1789-1795
MediumYellow poplar, maple, other woods
DimensionsPrimary Dimensions (overall height x width x depth): 38 3/16 x 18 3/4 x 18 11/16in. (97 x 47.6 x 47.5cm)
ClassificationsFurniture
Credit LineBequest of George H. Gilman, Jr.
Object number1985.14.27
DescriptionSide chair in the Windsor style, with a hook-type crest rail, a fan-back, a plank seat, and turned stiles, legs, and stretchers. The fan-back consists of a crest rail supported by nine spindles; the spindles are arranged close together at the bottom then separate further up the back of the chair. The hook-type crest rail has a shaped upper edge, consisting of an arch in the center flanked by rounded ear with a flat top. The two side spindles, or posts, are turned with ring and baluster forms. The center spindles are slender and swelled; each has a bulge in the lower half and is tapered up to the top. The spindles are slanted back and joined to the seat in a semi-circular arrangement. The poplar plank seat has contoured sides, front and a contoured upper surface with a flat section at the back where the spindles join the seat. Below the seat are four turned legs that are raked, or slanted out from top to bottom; each leg is turned with wide baluster and ring forms over a tapered ankle and foot. Each side of the chair has a stretcher with an ovoid turning in the center flanked by tapered sections. Between the chairs is a single medial stretcher with the same turnings.
Condition: The top of the plank seat has some light scratches and some partial dark circular stains. The chair is refinished.
Design and Construction Details: The posts and center spindle are tenoned and pinned into the crest rail; the remaining spindles are just tenoned up into the crest rail. The posts are tenoned down through the seat at the sides of the spindle platform; a wooden pin is inserted through the back corner of the seat to secure this joint. The spindles are tenoned down into the spindle platform. A narrow groove outlines the back edge of the spindle platform. The seat is constructed of a solid plank of wood and supported on a tenon at the top of each leg. The side stretchers are tenoned into the lower legs. The medial stretcher is tenoned into the side stretchers. All the tenons are inserted at an angle, where necessary, to give the proper slant to the bow and each of the spindles and legs. A faint groove circles each lower leg to mark the placement of the stretchers.
Condition: The top of the plank seat has some light scratches and some partial dark circular stains. The chair is refinished.
Design and Construction Details: The posts and center spindle are tenoned and pinned into the crest rail; the remaining spindles are just tenoned up into the crest rail. The posts are tenoned down through the seat at the sides of the spindle platform; a wooden pin is inserted through the back corner of the seat to secure this joint. The spindles are tenoned down into the spindle platform. A narrow groove outlines the back edge of the spindle platform. The seat is constructed of a solid plank of wood and supported on a tenon at the top of each leg. The side stretchers are tenoned into the lower legs. The medial stretcher is tenoned into the side stretchers. All the tenons are inserted at an angle, where necessary, to give the proper slant to the bow and each of the spindles and legs. A faint groove circles each lower leg to mark the placement of the stretchers.
Status
On view
