Zitierlink:
https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/lempertz1954_04_28/0009
FOREWORD
English furniture, particularly of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, has a character of
its own. Although craftsmen in England often sought for Inspiration from Continental styles.
they never directly copied a foreign piece of furniture. The foreign design was adapted to
the English idiom and the result was an englished Version of a French or Dutch design: it
was usually plainer and simpler.
In the last half of the eighteenth Century, Continental craftsmen copied English designs,
mainly through the circulation abroad of the pattem books of Thomas Chippendale, George
Hepplewhite and Thomas Sheraton.
Now that collectors have realised the merit of the simple, and often exceedingly elegant,
design of English furniture, its appreciation and, as a consequence of this, its value have
increased considerably.
Between the two world wars, English furniture was mainly sought after by English and
American collectors; now it is finding its way into collectors’ homes on the Continent as
well — Portugal, Italy, Holland and Belgium. Hence the English furniture in this catalogue is
of more than usual interest, particularly as sonie of the pieces are of a kind that collectors
want so much.
The pair of cane chairs (numbers 3 & 4) were originally part of a set of dining-room chairs
which consisted of two elbowchairs and half a dozen or more side-chairs. The idea of caning
the Seat of a chair to make it resilient and comfortable was copied in England during the
second half of the seventeenth Century from imported Indo-Portuguese cane-seated chairs
with ebony frames. Soon they were being produced in large quantities, for home consumption
and for export "to all parts of the world". The crown and cherubim carved on the cresting
rails of cane chairs are not, as is often thought, a Symbol of the Restoration, but an ancient
and general symbol of the monarchy being sent "from Heaven".
The walnut veneered bureau (number 5) which is only 3 feet wide is of particular interest
to collectors to-day. During the last fifteen years, no other piece of furniture has increased
so much in value. This example has in addition the particularly pleasing feature of its original
handles. So many pieces of walnut furniture have been married by handles of wrong design.
The tallboy with its oval panels of floral marquetry is also of much interest (see number 7).
Only two floral designs are used in all, but variety is obtained by reversing the two panels on
each drawer, and staggering the two designs over the six layers of drawers. What is arresting
about this piece of furniture is that although its date is about 1730, the floral marquetry
is in the late seventeenth Century männer. One concludes that it must have been made to a
customer’s special Order, someone who was more interested in getting what he or she liked
than of being in the latest fashion. The proof that these panels were not taken from an
earlier piece, and inlaid in the veneer of this piece, lies in the fact that the tallboy was
especially designed for the panels; for the drawer fronts are of the same depth. Fürther proof
is supplied by the fact that this is the only recorded example of an English tallboy with
equal measurements of the drawer fronts; for all tallboys (with the sole exception of this
example) have the upper drawers shailower than the lower drawers.
The pair of hoop-backed chairs, (number 8) are particularly noteworthy for they have features
which are to be found on a small number of other hoop-backed chairs. All the chairs of this
group have these unusual concave sides and bow-fronted seats (the more ordinary hoop-
backed English chair has a rounded, or what is known as a "compass", seat), the same
shaping to the underneath edge of the front seat-rail, and the applied shallow carving in the
English furniture, particularly of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, has a character of
its own. Although craftsmen in England often sought for Inspiration from Continental styles.
they never directly copied a foreign piece of furniture. The foreign design was adapted to
the English idiom and the result was an englished Version of a French or Dutch design: it
was usually plainer and simpler.
In the last half of the eighteenth Century, Continental craftsmen copied English designs,
mainly through the circulation abroad of the pattem books of Thomas Chippendale, George
Hepplewhite and Thomas Sheraton.
Now that collectors have realised the merit of the simple, and often exceedingly elegant,
design of English furniture, its appreciation and, as a consequence of this, its value have
increased considerably.
Between the two world wars, English furniture was mainly sought after by English and
American collectors; now it is finding its way into collectors’ homes on the Continent as
well — Portugal, Italy, Holland and Belgium. Hence the English furniture in this catalogue is
of more than usual interest, particularly as sonie of the pieces are of a kind that collectors
want so much.
The pair of cane chairs (numbers 3 & 4) were originally part of a set of dining-room chairs
which consisted of two elbowchairs and half a dozen or more side-chairs. The idea of caning
the Seat of a chair to make it resilient and comfortable was copied in England during the
second half of the seventeenth Century from imported Indo-Portuguese cane-seated chairs
with ebony frames. Soon they were being produced in large quantities, for home consumption
and for export "to all parts of the world". The crown and cherubim carved on the cresting
rails of cane chairs are not, as is often thought, a Symbol of the Restoration, but an ancient
and general symbol of the monarchy being sent "from Heaven".
The walnut veneered bureau (number 5) which is only 3 feet wide is of particular interest
to collectors to-day. During the last fifteen years, no other piece of furniture has increased
so much in value. This example has in addition the particularly pleasing feature of its original
handles. So many pieces of walnut furniture have been married by handles of wrong design.
The tallboy with its oval panels of floral marquetry is also of much interest (see number 7).
Only two floral designs are used in all, but variety is obtained by reversing the two panels on
each drawer, and staggering the two designs over the six layers of drawers. What is arresting
about this piece of furniture is that although its date is about 1730, the floral marquetry
is in the late seventeenth Century männer. One concludes that it must have been made to a
customer’s special Order, someone who was more interested in getting what he or she liked
than of being in the latest fashion. The proof that these panels were not taken from an
earlier piece, and inlaid in the veneer of this piece, lies in the fact that the tallboy was
especially designed for the panels; for the drawer fronts are of the same depth. Fürther proof
is supplied by the fact that this is the only recorded example of an English tallboy with
equal measurements of the drawer fronts; for all tallboys (with the sole exception of this
example) have the upper drawers shailower than the lower drawers.
The pair of hoop-backed chairs, (number 8) are particularly noteworthy for they have features
which are to be found on a small number of other hoop-backed chairs. All the chairs of this
group have these unusual concave sides and bow-fronted seats (the more ordinary hoop-
backed English chair has a rounded, or what is known as a "compass", seat), the same
shaping to the underneath edge of the front seat-rail, and the applied shallow carving in the