Chippendale and his Contemporaries.
Chinese style--Sir William Chambers--The Brothers Adams'
work--Pergelesi, Cipriani, and Angelica Kauffmann--Architects of the
time--Wedgwood and Flaxman--Chippendale's Work and his
Contemporaries--Chair in the Barbers' Hall--Lock, Shearer, Hepplewhite,
Ince, Mayhew, Sheraton--Introduction of Satinwood and Mahogany--Gillows
of Lancaster and London--History of the Sideboard--The Dining
Room--Furniture of the time.
Soon after the second half of the eighteenth century had set in, during
the latter days of the second George, and the early part of his
successor's long reign, there is a distinct change in the design of
English decorative furniture.
Sir William Chambers, R.A., an architect, who has left us Somerset House
as a lasting monument of his talent, appears to have been the first to
impart to the interior decoration, of houses what was termed "the Chinese
style," after his visit to China, of which a notice was made in the
chapter on Eastern furniture: and as he was considered an "oracle of
taste" about this time, his influence was very powerful. Chair backs
consequently have the peculiar irregular lattice work which is seen in the
fretwork of Chinese and Japanese ornaments, and Pagodas, Chinamen and
monsters occur in his designs for cabinets. The overmantel which had
hitherto been designed with some architectural pretension, now gave way to
the larger mirrors which were introduced by the improved manufacture of
plate glass: and the chimney piece became lower. During his travels in
Italy, Chambers had found some Italian sculptors, and had brought them to
England, to carve in marble his designs; they were generally of a free
Italian character, with scrolls of foliage and figure ornaments: but being
of stone instead of woodwork, would scarcely belong to our subject, save
to indicate the change in fashion of the chimney piece, the vicissitudes
of which we have already noticed. Chimney pieces were now no longer
specially designed by architects, as part of the interior fittings, but
were made and sold with the grates, to suit the taste of the purchaser,
often quite irrespective of the rooms for which they were intended. It may
be said that Dignity gave way to Elegance.
Robert Adam, having returned from his travels in France and Italy, had
designed and built, in conjunction with his brother James, Adelphi Terrace
about 1769, and subsequently Portland Place, and other streets and houses
of a like character; the furniture being made, under the direction of
Robert, to suit the interiors. There is much interest attaching to No. 25,
Portland Place, because this was the house built, decorated and furnished
by Robert Adam for his own residence, and, fortunately, the chief
reception rooms remain to shew the style then in vogue. The brothers Adam
introduced into England the application of composition ornaments to
woodwork. Festoons of drapery, wreaths of flowers caught up with rams'
heads, or of husks tied with a knot of riband, and oval pateroe to mark
divisions in a frieze, or to emphasize a break in the design, are
ornaments characteristic of what was termed the Adams style.
Robert Adam published between 1778 and 1822 three magnificent volumes,
"Works on Architecture." One of these was dedicated to King George III.,
to whom he was appointed architect. Many of his designs for furniture were
carried out by Gillows; there is a good collection of his original
drawings in the Soane Museum, Lincoln's Inn Fields.
The decoration was generally in low relief, with fluted pilasters, and
sometimes a rather stiff Renaissance ornament decorating the panel; the
effect was neat and chaste, and a distinct change from the rococo style
which had preceded it.
The design of furniture was modified to harmonize with such decoration.
The sideboard had a straight and not infrequently a serpentine-shaped
front, with square tapering legs, and was surmounted by a pair of
urn-shaped knife cases, the wood used being almost invariably mahogany,
with the inlay generally of plain flutings relieved by fans or oval
pateroe in satin wood.
Pergolesi, Cipriani and Angelica Kaufmann had been attracted to England by
the promise of lucrative employment, and not only decorated the panels of
ceilings and walls which were enriched by Adams' "_compo_'" (in reality a
revival of the old Italian gesso work), but also painted the ornamental
cabinets, occasional tables, and chairs of the time.
[Illustration: Fac-simile of Original Drawings by Robert Adam (Reduced).]
Towards the end of the century, satin wood was introduced into England
from the East Indies; it became very fashionable, and was a favourite
ground-work for decoration, the medallions of figure subjects, generally
of cupids, wood-nymphs, or illustrations of mythological fables on darker
coloured wood, formed an effective relief to the yellow satin wood.
Sometimes the cabinet, writing table, or spindle-legged occasional piece,
was made entirely of this wood, having no other decoration beyond the
beautiful marking of carefully chosen veneers; sometimes it was banded
with tulipwood or harewood (a name given to sycamore artificially
stained), and at other times painted as just described. A very beautiful
example of this last named treatment is the dressing table in the South
Kensington Museum, which we give as an illustration, and which the
authorities should not, in the writer's opinion, have labelled
"Chippendale."
Besides Chambers, there were several other architects who designed
furniture about this time who have been almost forgotten. Abraham Swan,
some of whose designs for wooden chimney pieces in the quasi-classic style
are given, flourished about 1758. John Carter, who published "Specimens of
Ancient Sculpture and Painting"; Nicholas Revitt and James Stewart, who
jointly published "Antiquities of Athens" in 1762; J.C. Kraft, who
designed in the Adams' style; W. Thomas, M.S.A., and others, have left us
many drawings of interior decorations, chiefly chimney pieces and the
ornamental architraves of doors, all of them in low relief and of a
classical character, as was the fashion towards the end of the eighteenth
century.
Josiah Wedgwood, too, turned his attention to the production of plaques in
relief, for adaptation to chimney pieces of this character. In a letter
written from London to Mr. Bentley, his partner, at the works, he deplores
the lack of encouragement in this direction which he received from the
architects of his day; he, however, persevered, and by the aid of
Flaxman's inimitable artistic skill as a modeller, made several plaques of
his beautiful Jasper ware, which were let in to the friezes of chimney
pieces, and also into other wood-work. There can be seen in the South
Kensington Museum a pair of pedestals of this period (1770-1790) so
ornamented.
It is now necessary to consider the work of a group of English cabinet
makers, who not only produced a great deal of excellent furniture, but who
also published a large number of designs drawn with extreme care and a
considerable degree of artistic skill.
The first of these and the best known was Thomas Chippendale, who appears
to have succeeded his father, a chair maker, and to have carried on a
large and successful business in St. Martin's Lane, which was at this time
an important Art centre, and close to the newly-founded Royal Academy.
[Illustration: English Satinwood Dressing Table. With Painted Decoration.
End of XVIII. Century.]
[Illustration: Chimneypiece and Overmantel. Designed by W. Thomas,
Architect. 1783. Very similar to Robert Adam's work.]
Chippendale published "The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director," not,
as stated in the introduction to the catalogue to the South Kensington
Museum, in 1769, but some years previously, as is testified by a copy of
the "third edition" of the work which is in the writer's possession and
bears date 1762, the first edition having appeared in 1754. The title page
of this edition is reproduced in _fac simile_ on page 178.
[Illustration: Chairs, With ornament in the Chinese style, by Thomas
Chippendale.]
This valuable work of reference contains over two hundred copperplate
engravings of chairs, sofas, bedsteads, mirror frames, girandoles,
torchéres or lamp stands, dressing tables, cabinets, chimney pieces,
organs, jardiniéres, console tables, brackets, and other useful and
decorative articles, of which some examples are given. It will be observed
from these, that the designs of Chippendale are very different from those
popularly ascribed to him. Indeed, it would appear that this maker has
become better known than any other, from the fact of the designs in his
book being recently republished in various forms; his popularity has thus
been revived, while the names of his contemporaries are forgotten. For the
last fifteen or twenty years, therefore, during which time the fashion has
obtained of collecting the furniture of a bygone century, almost every
cabinet, table, or mirror-frame, presumably of English manufacture, which
is slightly removed from the ordinary type of domestic furniture, has
been, for want of a better title, called "Chippendale." As a matter of
fact, he appears to have adopted from Chambers the fanciful Chinese
ornament, and the rococo style of that time, which was superseded some
five-and-twenty years later by the quieter and more classic designs of
Adam and his contemporaries.
[Illustration: _Fac-Simile of the Title Page of Chippendale's "Director."
(Reduced by Photography.) The Original is in Folio Size_.
THE
GENTLEMAN and CABINET-MAKER'S
DIRECTOR:
Being a large COLLECTION of the
Most ELEGANT and USEFUL DESIGNS
OF
HOUSEHOLD FURNITURE,
In the Most FASHIONABLE TASTE.
Including a great VARIETY of
CHAIRS, SOFAS, BEDS, and COUCHES; CHINA-TABLES,
DRESSING-TABLES, SHAVING-TABLES,
BASON-STANDS, and TEAKETTLE-STANDS;
FRAMES for MARBLE-SLABS, BUREAU-DRESSING-TABLES,
and COMMODES;
WRITING-TABLES, and LIBRARY-TABLES;
LIBRARY-BOOK-CASES, ORGAN-CASES for
private Rooms, or Churches, DESKS, and
BOOK-CASES; DRESSING and WRITING-TABLES
with BOOK-CASES, TOILETS, CABINETS,
and CLOATHS-PRESSES; CHINA-CASES,
CHINA-SHELVES, and BOOK-SHELVES;
CANDLE-STANDS, TERMS for BUSTS, STANDS
for CHINA JARS, and PEDESTALS; CISTERNS
for WATER, LANTHORNS, and CHANDELIERS;
FIRE-SCREENS, BRACKETS, and CLOCK-CASES;
PIER-GLASSES, and TABLE-FRAMES; GIRANDOLES,
CHIMNEY-PIECES, and PICTURE-FRAMES;
STOVE-GRATES, BOARDERS, FRETS,
CHINESE-RAILING, and BRASS-WORK, for
Furniture,
AND OTHER
ORNAMENTS,
TO WHICH IS PREFIXED,
A Short EXPLANATION of the Five ORDERS of ARCHITECTURE;
WITH
Proper DIRECTIONS for executing the most difficult Pieces, the
Mouldings being exhibited at large, and the Dimensions of each DESIGN
specified.
The Whole comprehended in Two HUNDRED COPPER-PLATES, neatly engraved.
Calculated to improve and refine the present TASTE, and suited to the
Fancy and Circumstances of Persons in all Degrees of Life.
By THOMAS CHIPPENDALE,
CABINET-MAKER and UPHOLSTERER, in St. Martin's Lane, London.
THE THIRD EDITION.
LONDON:
Printed for the AUTHOR, and sold at his House, in St. Martin's Lane;
Also by T. BECKET and P.A. DeHONDT, in the Strand.
MDCCLXII.
]
[Illustration: Fac-simile of a Page in Chippendale's "Director." (The
original is folio size.)]
[Illustration: Tea Caddy, Carved in the French style. (From Chippendale's
"Director.")]
In the chapter on Louis XV. and Louis XVI. furniture, it has been shewn
how France went through a similar change about this same period. In
Chippendale's chairs and console tables, in his state bedsteads and his
lamp-stands, one can recognise the broken scrolls and curved lines, so
familiar in the bronze mountings of Caffieri. The influence of the change
which had occurred in France during the Louis Seize period is equally
evident in the Adams' treatment. It was helped forward by the migration
into this country of skilled workmen from France, during the troubles of
the revolution at the end of the century. Some of Chippendale's designs
bear such titles as "French chairs" or a "Bombé-fronted Commode." These
might have appeared as illustrations in a contemporary book on French
furniture, so identical are they in every detail with the carved woodwork
of Picau, of Cauner, or of Nilson, who designed the flamboyant frames of
the time of Louis XV. Others have more individuality. In his mirror frames
he introduced a peculiar bird with a long snipe-like beak, and rather
impossible wings, an imitation of rockwork and dripping water, Chinese
figures with pagodas and umbrellas; and sometimes the illustration of
Aesop's fables interspersed with scrolls and flowers. By dividing the
glass unequally, by the introduction into his design of bevelled pillars
with carved capitals and bases, he produced a quaint and pleasing effect,
very suitable to the rather effeminate fashion of his time, and in harmony
with three-cornered hats, wigs and patches, embroidered waistcoats, knee
breeches, silk stockings, and enamelled snuff-boxes. In some of the
designs there is a fanciful Gothic, to which he makes special allusion in
his preface, as likely to be considered by his critics as impracticable,
but which he undertakes to produce, if desired--
"Though some of the profession have been diligent enough to represent
them (espescially those after the Gothick and Chinese manner) as so
many specious drawings impossible to be worked off by any mechanick
whatsoever. I will not scruple to attribute this to Malice, Ignorance,
and Inability; and I am confident I can convince all Noblemen,
Gentlemen, or others who will honour me with their Commands, that every
design in the book can be improved, both as to Beauty and Enrichment,
in the execution of it, by
"Their most obedient servant,
"THOMAS CHIPPENDALE."
[Illustration: A Bureau, From Chippendale's "Director."]
The reader will notice that in the examples selected from Chippendale's
book there are none of those fretwork tables and cabinets which are
generally termed "Chippendale." We know, however, that besides the designs
which have just been described, and which were intended for gilding, he
also made mahogany furniture, and in the "Director" there are drawings of
chairs, washstands, writing-tables and cabinets of this description.
Fretwork is very rarely seen, but the carved ornament is generally a
foliated or curled endive scroll; sometimes the top of a cabinet is
finished in the form of a Chinese pagoda. Upon examining a piece of
furniture that may reasonably be ascribed to him, it will be found of
excellent workmanship, and the wood, always mahogany without any inlay, is
richly marked, shewing a careful selection of material.
[Illustration: Fac-simile of a Page In Chippendale's "Director." (The
original is folio size.)]
[Illustration: "French" Commode and Lamp Stands. Designed by T.
Chippendale, and Published in His "Director."]
[Illustration: Fac-simile of a Page in Chippendale's "Director." (The
original is folio size.)]
[Illustration: Chimneypiece and Mirror. Designed By T. Chippendale, and
Published in His "Director."]
[Illustration: PARLOUR CHAIRS BY CHIPPENDALE.]
The chairs of Chippendale and his school are very characteristic. If the
outline of the back of some of them be compared with the stuffed back of
the chair from Hardwick Hall (illustrated in Chap. IV.) it will be seen
that the same lines occur, but instead of the frame of the back being
covered with silk, tapestry, or other material--as in William III.'s
time--Chippendale's are cut open into fanciful patterns; and in his more
highly ornate work, the twisted ribands of his design are scarcely to be
reconciled with the use for which a dining room chair is intended. The
well-moulded sweep of his lines, however, counterbalances this defect to
some extent, and a good Chippendale mahogany chair will ever be an elegant
and graceful article of furniture.
One of the most graceful chairs of about the middle of the century, in the
style of Chippendale's best productions, is the Master's Chair in the Hall
of the Barbers' Company. Carved in rich Spanish mahogany, and upholstered
in morocco leather, the ornament consists of scrolls and cornucopiæ, with
flowers charmingly disposed, the arms and motto of the Company being
introduced. Unfortunately, there is no certain record as to the designer
and maker of this beautiful chair, and it is to be regretted that the date
(1865), the year when the Hall was redecorated, should have been placed in
prominent gold letters on this interesting relic of a past century.
[Illustration: Clock Case, by Chippendale.]
Apart from the several books of design noticed in this chapter, there were
published two editions of a work, undated, containing many of the drawings
found in Chippendale's book. This book was entitled, "Upwards of One
Hundred New and Genteel Designs, being all the most approved patterns of
household furniture in the French taste. By a Society of Upholders and
Cabinet makers." It is probable that Chippendale was a member of this
Society, and that some of the designs were his, but that he severed
himself from it and published his own book, preferring to advance his
individual reputation. The "sideboard" which one so generally hears called
"Chippendale" scarcely existed in his time. If it did, it must have been
quite at the end of his career. There were side tables, sometimes called
"Side-Boards," but they contained neither cellaret nor cupboard: only a
drawer for table linen.
The names of two designers and makers of mahogany ornamental furniture,
which deserve to be remembered equally with Chippendale, are those of W.
Ince and J. Mayhew, who were partners in business in Broad Street, Golden
Square, and contemporary with him. They also published a book of designs
which is alluded to by Thomas Sheraton in the preface to his "Cabinet
Maker and Upholsterer's Drawing Book," published in 1793. A few examples
from Ince and Mayhew's "Cabinet Maker's Real Friend and Companion" are
given, from which it is evident that, without any distinguishing brand, or
without the identification of the furniture with the designs, it is
difficult to distinguish between the work of these contemporary makers.
It is, however, noticeable after careful comparison of the work of
Chippendale with that of Ince and Mayhew, that the furniture designed and
made by the latter has many more of the characteristic details and
ornaments which are generally looked upon as denoting the work of
Chippendale; for instance, the fretwork ornaments finished by the carver,
and then applied to the plain mahogany, the open-work scroll-shaped backs
to encoignures or china shelves, and the carved Chinaman with the pagoda.
Some of the frames of chimney glasses and pictures made by Ince and Mayhew
are almost identical with those of Chippendale.
Other well known designers and manufacturers of this time were
Hepplewhite, who published a book of designs very similar to those of his
contemporaries, and Matthias Lock, some of whose original drawings were on
view in the Exhibition of 1862, and had interesting memoranda attached,
giving the names of his workmen and the wages paid: from these it appears
that five shillings a day was at that time sufficient remuneration for a
skilful wood carver.
Another good designer and maker of much excellent furniture of this time
was "Shearer," who has been unnoticed by nearly all writers on the
subject. In an old book of designs in the author's possession, "Shearer
delin" and "published according to Act of Parliament, 1788," appears
underneath the representations of sideboards, tables, bookcases, dressing
tables, which are very similar in every way to those of Sheraton, his
contemporary.
A copy of Hepplewhite's book, in the author's possession (published in
1789), contains 300 designs "of every article of household furniture in
the newest and most approved taste," and it is worth while to quote from
his preface to illustrate the high esteem in which English cabinet work
was held at this time.
[Illustration: China Shelves, Designed by W. Ince. (Reproduced by
Photography from an old Print in the Author's Possession.)]
[Illustration: Girandoles and Pier Table, Designed by W. Thomas,
Architect, 1783. (Reproduced by Photography from an old Print in the
Author's possession.)]
"English taste and workmanship have of late years been much sought for by
surrounding nations; and the mutability of all things, but more especially
of fashions, has rendered the labours of our predecessors in this line of
little use; nay, in this day can only tend to mislead those foreigners who
seek a knowledge of English taste in the various articles of household
furniture."
It is amusing to think how soon the "mutabilities of fashion" did for a
time supersede many of his designs.
A selection of designs from his book is given, and it will be useful to
compare them with those of other contemporary makers. From such a
comparison it will be seen that in the progress from the rococo of
Chippendale to the more severe lines of Sheraton, Hepplewhite forms a
connecting link between the two.
[Illustration: Toilet Glass.
Urn Stand.
(_From "Hepplewhite's Guide"._)]
The names given to some of these designs appear curious; for instance:
"Rudd's table or reflecting dressing table," so called from the first one
having been invented for a popular character of that time.
"Knife cases," for the reception of the knives which were kept in them,
and used to "garnish" the sideboards.
"Cabriole chair," implying a stuffed back, and not having reference, as it
does now, to the curved form of the leg.
"Bar backed sofa," being what we should now term a three or four chair
settee, i.e., like so many chairs joined and having an arm at either
end.
"Library case" instead of Bookcase.
"Confidante" and "Duchesse," which were sofas of the time.
"Gouty stool," a stool having an adjustable top.
"Tea chest," "Urn stand," and other names which have now disappeared from
ordinary use in describing similar articles.
[Illustration: Ladies' Secretaires, Designed by W. Ince. (Reproduced by
Photography from an old Print in the Author's possession.)]
[Illustration: Parlour Chairs, Designed by W. Ince.]
[Illustration: Desk and Bookcase, Designed by W. Ince. (Reproduced by
Photography from an old Print in the Author's possession.)]
[Illustration: China Cabinet, Designed by J. Mayhew. (Reproduced from an
old Print in the Author's possession).]
[Illustration: "Dressing Chairs," Designed by J. Mayhew. These shew the
influence of Sir W. Chamber's Chinese style.]
Hepplewhite had a _specialité_, to which he alludes in his book, and of
which he gives several designs. This was his japanned or painted
furniture: the wood was coated with a preparation after the manner of
Chinese or Japanese lacquer, and then decorated, generally with gold on a
black ground, the designs being in fruits and flowers: and also medallions
painted in the style of Cipriani and Angelica Kauffmann. Subsequently,
furniture of this character, instead of being japanned, was only painted
white. It is probable that many of the chairs of this time which one sees,
of wood of inferior quality, and with scarcely any ornament, were
originally decorated in the manner just described, and therefore the
"carving" of details would have been superfluous. Injury to the enamelling
by wear and tear was most likely the cause of their being stripped of
their rubbed and partly obliterated decorations, and they were then
stained and polished, presenting an appearance which is scarcely just to
the designer and manufacturer.
In some of Hepplewhite's chairs, too, as in those of Sheraton, one may
fancy one sees evidence of the squabbles of two fashionable factions of
this time, "the Court party" and the "Prince's party," the latter having
the well known Prince of Wales' plumes very prominent, and forming the
ornamental support of the back of the chair. Another noticeable enrichment
is the carving of wheat ears on the shield shape backs of the chairs.
"The plan of a room shewing the proper distribution of the furniture,"
appears on p. 193 to give an idea of the fashion of the day; it is evident
from the large looking glass which overhangs the sideboard that the
fashion had now set in to use these mirrors. Some thirty or forty year
later this mirror became part of the sideboard, and in some large and
pretentious designs which we have seen, the sideboard itself was little
better than a support for a huge glass in a heavily carved frame.
The dining tables of this period deserve a passing notice as a step in the
development of that important member of our "Lares and Penates." What was
and is still called the "pillar and claw" table, came into fashion towards
the end of last century. It consisted of a round or square top supported
by an upright cylinder, which rested on a plinth having three, or
sometimes four, feet carved as claws. In order to extend these tables for
a larger number of guests, an arrangement was made for placing several
together. When apart, they served as pier or side tables, and some of
these--the two end ones, being semi-circular--may still be found in some
of our old inns.[17]
[Illustration: Tea Tray.]
[Illustration: Girandole.]
[Illustration: Tea Tray.]
[Illustration: Parlour Chair, with Prince Of Wales' Plumes.]
[Illustration: Pier Table.]
[Illustration: Parlour Chair.]
[Illustration: Designs of Furniture. From Hepplewhite's "Guide," Published
1787.]
[Illustration: Fac-simile of a Page in Hepplewhite's "Cabinet Maker's
Guide." Published In 1787.]
It was not until 1800 that Richard Gillow, of the well-known firm in
Oxford Street, invented and patented the convenient telescopic contrivance
which, with slight improvements, has given us the table of the present
day. The term still used by auctioneers in describing a modern extending
table as "a set of dining tables," is, probably, a survival of the older
method of providing for a dinner party. Gillow's patent is described as
"an improvement in the method of constructing dining and other tables
calculated to reduce the number of legs, pillars and claws, and to
facilitate and render easy, their enlargement and reduction."
[Illustration: Inlaid Tea Caddy and Top of Pier Tables. (_From
"Hepplewhite's Guide"_)]
As an interesting link between the present and the past it may be useful
here to introduce a slight notice of this well-known firm of furniture
manufacturers, for which the writer is indebted to Mr. Clarke, one of the
present partners of Gillows. "We have an unbroken record of books dating
from 1724, but we existed long anterior to this: all records were
destroyed during the Scottish Rebellion in 1745." The house originated in
Lancaster, which was then the chief port in the north, Liverpool not being
in existence at the time, and Gillows exported furniture largely to the
West Indies, importing rum as payment, for which privilege they held a
special charter. The house opened in London in 1765, and for some time the
Lancaster books bore the heading and inscription, "Adventure to London."
On the architect's plans for the premises now so well-known in Oxford
Street, occur these words, "This is the way to Uxbridge." Mr. Clarke's
information may be supplemented by adding that from Dr. Gillow, whom the
writer had the pleasure of meeting some years ago, and was the thirteenth
child of the Richard Gillow before mentioned; he learnt that this same
Richard Gillow retired in 1830, and died as late as 1866 at the age of 90.
Dowbiggin, founder of the firm of Holland and Sons, was an apprentice to
Richard Gillow.
Mahogany may be said to have come into general use subsequent to 1720,
and its introduction is asserted to have been due to the tenacity of
purpose of a Dr. Gibbon, whose wife wanted a candle box, an article of
common domestic use of the time. The Doctor, who had laid by in the garden
of his house in King Street, Covent Garden, some planks sent to him by his
brother, a West Indian captain, asked the joiner to use a part of the wood
for this purpose; it was found too tough and hard for the tools of the
period, but the Doctor was not to be thwarted, and insisted on
harder-tempered tools being found, and the task completed; the result was
the production of a candle box which was admired by every one. He then
ordered a bureau of the same material, and when it was finished invited
his friends to see the new work; amongst others, the Duchess of Buckingham
begged a small piece of the precious wood, and it soon became the fashion.
On account of its toughness, and peculiarity of grain, it was capable of
treatment impossible with oak, and the high polish it took by oil and
rubbing (not French polish, a later invention), caused it to come into
great request. The term "putting one's knees under a friend's mahogany,"
probably dates from about this time.
[Illustration: Kneehole Table, by Sheraton.]
Thomas Sheraton, who commenced work some 20 years later than Chippendale,
and continued it until the early part of the nineteenth century,
accomplished much excellent work in English furniture.
The fashion had now changed; instead of the rococo or rock work (literally
rock-scroll) and shell (_rocquaille et cocquaille_) ornament, which had
gone out, a simpler and more severe taste had come in. In Sheraton's
cabinets, chairs, writing tables, and occasional pieces we have therefore
no longer the cabriole leg or the carved ornament; but, as in the case of
the brothers Adam, and the furniture designed by them for such houses as
those in Portland Place, we have now square tapering legs, severe lines,
and quiet ornament. Sheraton trusted almost entirely for decoration to his
marqueterie. Some of this is very delicate and of excellent workmanship.
He introduced occasionally animals with foliated extremities into his
scrolls, and he also inlaid marqueterie trophies of musical instruments;
but as a rule the decoration was in wreaths of flowers, husks, or drapery,
in strict adherence to the fashion of the decorations to which allusion
has been made. A characteristic feature of his cabinets was the
swan-necked pediment surmounting the cornice, being a revival of an
ornament fashionable during Queen Anne's reign. It was then chiefly found
in stone, marble, or cut brickwork, but subsequently became prevalent in
inlaid woodwork.
[Illustration: Chairs, by Sheraton.]
Sheraton was apparently a man very well educated for his time, whether
self taught or not one cannot say; but that he was an excellent
draughtsman, and had a complete knowledge of geometry, is evident from the
wonderful drawings in his book, and the careful though rather verbose
directions he gives for perspective drawing. Many of his numerous designs
for furniture and ornamental items, are drawn to a scale with the
geometrical nicety of an engineer's or architect's plan: he has drawn in
elevation, plan, and minute detail, each of the five architectural orders.
[Illustration: Chair Backs, from Sheraton's "Cabinet Maker."]
The selection made here from his designs for the purposes of illustration,
is not taken from his later work, which properly belongs to a future
chapter, when we come to consider the influence of the French Revolution,
and the translation of the "Empire" style to England. Sheraton published
"The Cabinet Maker and Upholsterer's Drawing Book" in 1793, and the list
of subscribers whose names and addresses are given, throws much light on
the subject of the furniture of his time.[18] Amongst these are many of
his aristocratic patrons and no less than 450 names and addresses of
cabinet makers, chair makers and carvers, exclusive of harpsichord
manufacturers, musical instrument makers, upholsterers, and other kindred
trades. Included with these we find the names of firms who, from the
appointments they held, it may be inferred, had a high reputation for good
work and a leading position in the trade, but who, perhaps from the
absence of a taste for "getting into print" and from the lack of any brand
or mark by which their work can be identified, have passed into oblivion
while their contemporaries are still famous. The following names taken
from this list are probably those of men who had for many years conducted
well known and old established businesses, but would now be but poor ones
to "conjure" with, while those of Chippendale, Sheraton, or Hepplewhite,
are a ready passport for a doubtful specimen. For instance:--France,
Cabinet Maker to His Majesty, St. Martin's Lane; Charles Elliott, Upholder
to His Majesty and Cabinet Maker to the Duke of York, Bond Street;
Campbell and Sons, Cabinet Makers to the Prince of Wales, Mary-le-bone
Street, London. Besides those who held Royal appointments, there were
other manufacturers of decorative furniture--Thomas Johnson, Copeland,
Robert Davy, a French carver named Nicholas Collet, who settled in
England, and many others.
In Mr. J.H. Pollen's larger work on furniture and woodwork, which includes
a catalogue of the different examples in the South Kensington Museum,
there is a list of the various artists and craftsmen who have been
identified with the production of artistic furniture either as designers
or manufacturers, and the writer has found this of considerable service.
In the Appendix to this work, this list has been reproduced, with the
addition of several names (particularly those of the French school)
omitted by Mr. Pollen, and it will, it is hoped, prove a useful reference
to the reader.
* * * * *
Although this chapter is somewhat long, on account of the endeavour to
give more detailed information about English furniture of the latter half
of last century, than of some other periods, in consequence of the
prevailing taste for our National manufacture of this time, still, in
concluding it, a few remarks about the "Sideboard" may be allowed.
The changes in form and fashion of this important article of domestic
furniture are interesting, and to explain them a slight retrospect is
necessary. The word "Buffet," sometimes translated "Sideboard," which was
used to describe continental pieces of furniture of the 15th and 16th
centuries, does not designate our Sideboard, which may be said to have
been introduced by William III.; and of which kind there is a fair
specimen in the South Kensington Museum; an illustration of it has been
given in the chapter dealing with that period.
The term "stately sideboard" occurs in Milton's "Paradise Regained," which
was published in 1671, and Dryden, in his translation of Juvenal,
published in 1693, when contrasting the furniture of the classical period
of which he was writing with that of his own time, uses the following
line:--
"No sideboards then with gilded plate were dressed."
The fashion in those days of having symmetrical doors in a room, that is,
false doors to correspond with the door used for exit, which one still
finds in many old houses in the neighbourhood of Portland Place, and
particularly in the palaces of St. James' and of Kensington, enabled our
ancestors to have good cupboards for the storage of glass, crockery, and
reserve wine. After the middle of the eighteenth century, however, these
extra doors and the enclosed cupboard gradually disappeared, and soon
after the mahogany side table came into fashion it became the custom to
supplement this article of furniture by a pedestal cupboard on either side
(instead of the cupboards alluded to), one for hot plates and the other
for wine. Then, as the thin legs gave the table rather a lanky appearance,
the _garde de vin_, or cellaret, was added in the form of an oval tub of
mahogany with bands of brass, sometimes raised on low feet with castors
for convenience, which was used as a wine cooler. A pair of urn-shaped
mahogany vases stood on the pedestals, and these contained--the one hot
water for the servants' use in washing the knives, forks and spoons, which
being then much more valuable were limited in quantity, and the other held
iced water for the guests' use.
A brass rail at the back of the side table with ornamental pillars and
branches for candles was used, partly to enrich the furniture, and partly
to form a support to the handsome pair of knife and spoon cases, which
completed the garniture of a gentleman's sideboard of this period.
The full page illustrations will give the reader a good idea of this
arrangement, and it would seem that the modern sideboard is the
combination of these separate articles into one piece of furniture--at
different times and in different fashions--first the pedestals joined to
the table produced our "pedestal sideboard," then the mirror was joined to
the back, the cellarette made part of the interior fittings, and the
banishment of knife cases and urns to the realms of the curiosity hunter,
or for conversion into spirit cases and stationery holders. The
sarcophagus, often richly carved, of course succeeded the simpler cellaret
of Sheraton's period.
Before we dismiss the furniture of the "dining room" of this period, it
may interest some of our readers to know that until the first edition of
"Johnson's Dictionary" was published in 1755, the term was not to be found
in the vocabularies of our language designating its present use. In
Barrat's "Alvearic," published in 1580, "parloir," or "parler," was
described as "a place to sup in." Later, "Minsheu's Guide unto Tongues,"
in 1617, gave it as "an inner room to dine or to suppe in," but Johnson's
definition is "a room in houses on the first floor, elegantly furnished
for reception or entertainment."
[Illustration: Urn Stand.]
To the latter part of the eighteenth century--the English furniture of
which time has been discussed in this Chapter--belong the quaint little
"urn stands" which were made to hold the urn with boiling water, while the
tea pot was placed on the little slide which is drawn out from underneath
the table top. In those days tea was an expensive luxury, and the urn
stand, of which there is an illustration, inlaid in the fashion of the
time, is a dainty relic of the past, together with the old mahogany or
marqueterie tea caddy, which was sometimes the object of considerable
skill and care. One of these designed by Chippendale is illustrated on p.
179, and another by Hepplewhite will be found on p. 194. They were fitted
with two and sometimes three bottles or tea-pays of silver or Battersea
enamel, to hold the black and green teas, and when really good examples of
these daintily-fitted tea caddies are offered for sale, they bring large
sums.
[Illustration: A Sideboard in Mahogany with Inlay of Satinwood. In the
Style of Robert Adam.]
The "wine table" of this time deserves a word. These are now somewhat
rare, and are only to be found in a few old houses, and in some of the
Colleges at Oxford and Cambridge. These were found with revolving tops,
which had circles turned out to a slight depth for each glass to stand in,
and they were sometimes shaped like the half of a flat ring. These latter
were for placing in front of the fire, when the outer side of the table
formed a convivial circle, round which the sitters gathered after they had
left the dinner table.
One of these old tables is still to be seen in the Hall of Gray's Inn, and
the writer was told that its fellow was broken and had been "sent away."
They are nearly always of good rich mahogany, and have legs more or less
ornamental according to circumstances.
A distinguishing feature of English furniture of the last century was the
partiality for secret drawers and contrivances for hiding away papers or
valued articles; and in old secretaires and writing tables we find a great
many ingenious designs which remind us of the days when there were but few
banks, and people kept money and deeds in their own custody.
[Illustration: Carved Jardiniere, by Chippendale.]
[Illustration: A China Cabinet, and a Bookcase With Secretaire. Designed
by T. Sheraton, and published in his "Cabinet Maker and Upholsterer's
Drawing Book," 1793.]