From 1851 to the Present Time.
THE GREAT EXHIBITION: Exhibitors and contemporary Cabinet
Makers--Exhibition of 1862, London; 1867, Paris; and
subsequently--Description of Illustrations--Fourdinois, Wright, and
Mansfield--The South Kensington Museum--Revival of
Marquetry--Comparison of Present Day with that of a Hundred Years
ago--Æstheticism--Traditions--Trades-Unionism--The Arts and Crafts
Exhibition Society--Independence of Furniture--Present
Fashions--Writers on Design--Modern Furniture in other
Countries--Concluding Remarks.
[Illustration]
In the previous chapter attention has been called to the success of the
National Exhibition in Paris of 1849; in the same year the competition of
our manufacturers at Birmingham gave an impetus to Industrial Art in
England, and there was about this time a general forward movement, with a
desire for an International Exhibition on a grand scale. Articles
advocating such a step appeared in newspapers and periodicals of the time,
and, after much difficulty, and many delays, a committee for the promotion
of this object was formed. This resulted in the appointment of a Royal
Commission, and the Prince Consort, as President of this Commission, took
the greatest personal interest in every arrangement for this great
enterprise. Indeed, there can be no doubt, that the success which crowned
the work was, in a great measure, due to his taste, patience, and
excellent business capacity. It is no part of our task to record all the
details of an undertaking which, at the time, was a burning question of
the day, but as we cannot but look upon this Exhibition of 1851 as one of
the landmarks in the history of furniture, it is worth while to recall
some particulars of its genesis and accomplishment.
The idea of the Exhibition of 1851 is said to have been originally due to
Mr. F. Whishaw, Secretary of the Society of Arts, as early as 1844, but no
active steps were taken until 1849, when the Prince Consort, who was
President of the Society, took the matter up very warmly. His speech at
one of the meetings contained the following sentence:--
"Now is the time to prepare for a great Exhibition--an Exhibition worthy
of the greatness of this country, not merely national in its scope and
benefits, but comprehensive of the whole world; and I offer myself to the
public as their leader, if they are willing to assist in the undertaking."
[Illustration: Lady's Escritoire, In White Wood, Carved with Rustic
Figures. Designed and Manufactured by M. Wettli, Berne, Switzerland. 1851
Exhibition, London.]
To Mr. (afterwards Sir) Joseph Paxton, then head gardener to the Duke of
Devonshire, the general idea of the famous glass and iron building is due.
An enterprising firm of contractors. Messrs. Fox and Henderson, were
entrusted with the work; a guarantee fund of some £230,000 was raised by
public subscriptions; and the great Exhibition was opened by Her Majesty
on the 1st of May, 1851. At a civic banquet in honour of the event, the
Prince Consort very aptly described the object of the great
experiment:--"The Exhibition of 1851 would afford a true test of the point
of development at which the whole of mankind had arrived in this great
task, and a new starting point from which all nations would be able to
direct their further exertions."
The number of exhibitors was some 17,000, of whom over 3,000 received
prize and council medals; and the official catalogue, compiled by Mr.
Scott Russell, the secretary, contains a great many particulars which are
instructive reading, when we compare the work of many of the firms of
manufacturers, whose exhibits are therein described, with their work of
the present day.
The _Art Journal_ published a special volume, entitled "The Art Journal
Illustrated Catalogue," with woodcuts of the more important exhibits, and,
by the courtesy of the proprietors, a small selection is reproduced, which
will give the reader an idea of the design of furniture, both in England
and the chief Continental industrial centres at that time.
With regard to the exhibits of English firms, of which these illustrations
include examples, little requires to be said, in addition to the remarks
already made in the preceding chapter, of their work previous to the
Exhibition. One of the illustrations, however, may be further alluded to,
since the changes in form and character of the Pianoforte is of some
importance in the consideration of the design of furniture. Messrs.
Broadwood's Grand Pianoforte (illustrated) was a rich example of
decorative woodwork in ebony and gold, and may be compared with the
illustration on p. 172 of a harpsichord, which the Piano had replaced
about 1767, and which at and since the time of the 1851 Exhibition
supplies evidence of the increased attention devoted to decorative
furniture. In the Appendix will be found a short notice of the different
phases through which the ever-present piano has passed, from the virginal,
or spinette--of which an illustration will be found in "A Sixteenth
Century Room," in Chapter III.--down to the latest development of the
decoration of the case of the instrument by leading artists of the present
day. Mr. Rose, of Messrs. Broadwood, whose firm was established at this
present address in 1732, has been good enough to supply the author with
the particulars for this notice.
Other illustrations, taken from the exhibits of foreign cabinet makers, as
well as those of our English manufacturers, have been selected, being
fairly representative of the work of the time, rather than on account of
their own intrinsic excellence.
It will be seen from these illustrations that, so far as figure carving
and composition are concerned, our foreign rivals, the Italians, Belgians,
Austrians, and French, were far ahead of us. In mere construction and
excellence of work we have ever been able to hold our own, and, so long as
our designers have kept to beaten tracks, the effect is satisfactory. It
is only when an attempt has been made to soar above the conventional, that
the effort is not so successful.
[Illustration: Lady's Work Table and Screen. In Papier-maché. 1851
Exhibition, London.]
In looking over the list of exhibits, one finds evidence of the fickleness
of fashion. The manufacture of decorative articles of furniture of
_papier-maché_ was then very extensive, and there are several specimens of
this class of work, both by French and English firms. The drawing-room of
1850 to 1860 was apparently incomplete without occasional chairs, a screen
with painted panel, a work table, or some small cabinet or casket of this
decorative but somewhat flimsy material.
[Illustration: Sideboard. In Carved Oak, with subjects taken from Sir
Walter Scott's "Kenilworth." Designed And Manufactured by Messrs. Cookes,
Warwick 1851 Exhibition, London.]
[Illustration: A State Chair. Carved and Gilt Frame, upholstered in Ruby
Silk, Embroidered with the Royal Coat of Arms and the Prince of Wales'
Plumes. Designed and Manufactured by M. Jancowski, York. 1851 Exhibition,
London.]
[Illustration: Sideboard in Carved Oak. Designed And Manufactured by M.
Durand, Paris. 1851 Exhibition, London.]
[Illustration: Bedstead in Carved Ebony. Renaissance Style. Designed and
Manufactured by M. Roulé, Antwerp. 1851 Exhibition, London.]
[Illustration: Pianoforte. In Rosewood, inlaid with Boulework, in Gold,
Silver, and Copper. Designed and Manufactured by M. Leistler, Vienna. 1851
Exhibition, London.]
[Illustration: Bookcase, In Carved Lime Tree, with Panels of Satinwood.
Designed and Manufactured by M. Leistler, Vienna. 1851 Exhibition,
London.]
[Illustration: Cabinet. In Tulipwood, ornamented with bronze, and inlaid
with Porcelain. Manufactured by M. Games, St. Petersburg, 1851
Exhibition.]
The design and execution of mountings of cabinets in metal work,
particularly of the highly-chased and gilt bronzes for the enrichment of
_meubles de luxe_, was then, as it still to a great extent remains, the
specialite of the Parisian craftsman, and almost the only English exhibits
of such work were those of foreigners who had settled amongst us.
[Illustration: Casket of Ivory, With Ormolu Mountings. Designed and
Manufactured by M. Matifat, Paris. 1851 Exhibition, London.]
[Illustration: Table, In the Classic Style, inlaid with Ivory,
Manufactured for the King of Sardinia by M. G. Capello, Turin. 1851
Exhibition, London.]
[Illustration: Chair, In the Classic Style, inlaid with Ivory.
Manufactured for the King of Sardinia by M. G. Capello, Turin. 1851
Exhibition, London.]
Amongst the latter was Monbro, a Frenchman, who established himself in
Berners Street, London, and made furniture of an ornamental character in
the style of his countrymen, reproducing the older designs of "Boule" and
Marqueterie furniture. The present house of Mellier and Cie. are his
successors, Mellier having been in his employ. The late Samson Wertheimer,
then in Greek Street, Soho, was steadily making a reputation by the
excellence of the metal mountings of his own design and workmanship, which
he applied to caskets of French style. Furniture of a decorative character
and of excellent quality was also made some forty years ago by Town and
Emanuel, of Bond Street, and many of this firm's "Old French" tables
and cabinets were so carefully finished with regard to style and detail,
that, with the "tone" acquired by time since their production, it is not
always easy to distinguish them from the models from which they were
taken. Toms was assistant to Town and Emanuel, and afterwards purchased
and carried on the business of "Toms and Luscombe," a firm well-known as
manufacturers of excellent and expensive "French" furniture, until their
retirement from business some ten years ago.
[Illustration: Cabinet of Ebony, in the Renaissance Style. With Carnelions
inserted. Litchfield and Radclyffe. 1862 Exhibition.]
Webb, of Old Bond Street, succeeded by Annoot, and subsequently by Radley,
was a manufacturer of this class of furniture; he employed a considerable
number of workmen, and carried on a very successful business.
The name of "Blake," too, is one that will be remembered by some of our
older readers who were interested in marqueterie furniture of forty years
ago. He made an inlaid centre table for the late Duke of Northumberland,
from a design by Mr. C. P. Slocornbe, of South Kensington Museum; he also
made excellent copies of Louis XIV. furniture.
The next International Exhibition held in London was in the year 1862,
and, though its success was somewhat impaired by the great calamity this
country sustained in the death of the Prince Consort on 14th December,
1861, and also by the breaking out of the Civil War in the United States
of America, the exhibitors had increased from 17,000 in '51 to some 29,000
in '62, the foreign entries being 16,456, as against 6,566.
Exhibitions of a National and International character had also been held
in many of the Continental capitals. There was in 1855 a successful one in
Paris, which was followed by one still greater in 1867, and, as every one
knows, they have been lately of almost annual occurrence in various
countries, affording the enterprising manufacturer better and more
frequent opportunities of placing his productions before the public, and
of teaching both producer and consumer to appreciate and profit by every
improvement in taste, and by the greater demand for artistic objects.
The few illustrations from these more recent Exhibitions of 1862 and 1867
deserve a passing notice. The cabinet of carved ebony with enrichments of
carnelian and other richly-colored minerals (illustrated on previous
page), received a good deal of notice, and was purchased by William, third
Earl of Craven, a well-known virtuoso of thirty years ago.
The work of Fourdinois, of Paris, has already been alluded to, and in the
1867 Exhibition his furniture acquired a still higher reputation for good
taste and attention to detail. The full page illustration of a cabinet of
ebony, with carvings of boxwood, is a remarkably rich piece of work of its
kind; the effect is produced by carving the box-wood figures and
ornamental scroll work in separate pieces, and then inserting these bodily
into the ebony. By this means the more intricate work is able to be more
carefully executed, and the close grain and rich tint of Turkey boxwood
(perhaps next to ivory the best medium for rendering fine carving) tells
out in relief against the ebony of which the body of the cabinet is
constructed. This excellent example of modern cabinet work by Fourdinois,
was purchased for the South Kensington Museum for £1,200, and no one who
has a knowledge of the cost of executing minute carved work in boxwood and
ebony will consider the price a very high one.
The house of Fourdinois no longer exists; the names of the foremost makers
of French _meubles de luxe_, in Paris, are Buerdeley, Dasson, Roux,
Sormani, Durand, and Zwiener. Some mention has already been made of
Zwiener, as the maker of a famous bureau in the Hertford collection, and a
sideboard exhibited by Durand in the '51 Exhibition is amongst the
illustrations selected as representative of cabinet work at that time.
[Illustration: Cabinet of Ebony with Carvings of Boxwood. Designed and
Manufactured by M. Fourdenois, Paris. 1867 Exhibition, Paris. (Purchased
by S. Kensington Museum for £1,200.)]
[Illustration: Cabinet in Satinwood, With Wedgwood plaques and inlay of
various woods in the Adams' style. Designed and Manufactured by Messrs.
Wright & Mansfield, London. 1867 Exhibition, Paris. Purchased by the S.
Kensington Museum.]
[Illustration: Ebony And Ivory Cabinet. In The Style of Italian
Renaissance by Andrea Picchi, Florence, Exhibited Paris, 1867.
NOTE.--A marked similarity in this design to that of a 17th Century
cabinet, illustrated in the Italian section of Chapter iii., will be
observed.]
The illustration of Wright and Mansfield's satin-wood cabinet, with
Wedgewood plaques inserted, and with wreaths and swags of marqueteric
inlaid, is in the Adams' style, a class of design of which this firm made
a specialité. Both Wright and Mansfield had been assistants at Jackson and
Graham's, and after a short term in Great Portland Street, they removed to
Bond Street, and carried on a successful business of a high class and
somewhat exclusive character, until their retirement from business a few
years since. This cabinet was exhibited in Paris in 1867, and was
purchased by our South Kensington authorities. Perhaps it is not generally
known that a grant is made to the Department for the purchase of suitable
specimens of furniture and woodwork for the Museum. This expenditure is
made with great care and discrimination. It may be observed here that the
South Kensington Museum, which was founded in 1851, was at this time
playing an important part in the Art education of the country. The
literature of the day also contributed many useful works of instruction
and reference for the designer of furniture and woodwork.[21]
One noticeable feature of modern design in furniture is the revival of
marquetry. Like all mosaic work, to which branch of Industrial Art it
properly belongs, this kind of decoration should be quite subordinate to
the general design; but with the rage for novelty which seized public
attention some forty years ago, it developed into the production of all
kinds of fantastic patterns in different veneers. A kind of minute mosaic
work in wood, which was called "Tunbridge Wells work," became fashionable
for small articles. Within the last ten or fifteen years the reproductions
of what is termed "Chippendale," and also Adam and Sheraton designs in
marqueterie furniture, have been manufactured to an enormous extent.
Partly on account of the difficulty in obtaining the richly-marked and
figured old mahogany and satin-wood of a hundred years ago, which needed
little or no inlay as ornament, and partly to meet the public fancy by
covering up bad construction with veneers of marquetry decoration, a great
deal more inlay has been given to these reproductions than ever appeared
in the original work of the eighteenth century cabinet makers. Simplicity
was sacrificed, and veneers, thus used and abused, came to be a term of
contempt, implying sham or superficial ornament. Dickens, in one of his
novels, has introduced the "Veneer" family, thus stamping the term more
strongly on the popular imagination.
The method now practised in using marquetry to decorate furniture is very
similar to the one explained in the description of "Boule" furniture given
in Chapter VI., except that, instead of shell, the marquetry cutter uses
the veneer, which he intends to be the groundwork of his design, and as
in some cases these veneers are cut to the thickness of 1/16 of an inch,
several layers can be sawn through at once. Sometimes, instead of using so
many different kinds of wood, when a very polychromatic effect is
required, holly wood and sycamore are stained different colours, and the
marquetry thus prepared, is glued on to the body of the furniture, and
subsequently prepared, engraved, and polished.
This kind of work is done to a great extent in England, but still more
extensively and elaborately in France and Italy, where ivory and brass,
marble, and other materials are also used to enrich the effect. This
effect is either satisfactory or the reverse according as the work is well
or ill-considered and executed.
It must be obvious, too, that in the production of marquetry the processes
are attainable by machinery, which saves labour and cheapens productions
of the commoner kinds; this tends to produce a decorative effect which is
often inappropriate and superabundant.
Perhaps it is allowable to add here that marquetry, or _marqueterie_, its
French equivalent, is the more modern survival of "Tarsia" work to which
allusion has been made in previous chapters. Webster defines the word as
"Work inlaid with pieces of wood, shells, ivory, and the like," derived
from the French word _marqueter_ to checker and _marque_ (a sign), of
German origin. It is distinguished from parquetry (which is derived from
"_pare_," an enclosure, of which it is a diminutive), and signifies a kind
of joinery in geometrical patterns, generally used for flooring. When,
however, the marquetry assumes geometrical patterns (frequently a number
of cubes shaded in perspective) the design is often termed in Art
catalogues a "parquetry" design.
In considering the design and manufacture of furniture of the present day,
as compared with that of, say, a hundred years ago, there are two or three
main factors to be taken into account. Of these the most important is the
enormously increased demand, by the multiplication of purchasers, for some
classes of furniture, which formerly had but a limited sale. This enables
machinery to be used to advantage in economising labour, and therefore one
finds in the so-called "Queen Anne" and "Jacobean" cabinet work of the
well furnished house of the present time, rather too prominent evidence of
the lathe and the steam plane. Mouldings are machined by the length, then
cut into cornices, mitred round panels, or affixed to the edge of a plain
slab of wood, giving it the effect of carving. The everlasting spindle,
turned rapidly by the lathe, is introduced with wearisome redundance, to
ornament the stretcher and the edge of a shelf; the busy fret or band-saw
produces fanciful patterns which form a cheap enrichment when applied to a
drawer-front, a panel, or a frieze, and carving machines can copy any
design which a century ago were the careful and painstaking result of a
practised craftsman's skill.
Again, as the manufacture of furniture is now chiefly carried on in large
factories, both in England and on the Continent, the sub-division of
labour causes the article to pass through different hands in successive
stages, and the wholesale manufacture of furniture by steam has taken the
place of the personal supervision by the master's eye of the task of a few
men who were in the old days the occupants of his workshop. As a writer on
the subject has well said, "the chisel and the knife are no longer in such
cases controlled by the sensitive touch of the human hand." In connection
with this we are reminded of Ruskin's precept that "the first condition of
a work of Art is that it should be conceived and carried out by one
person."
Instead of the carved ornament being the outcome of the artist's educated
taste, which places on the article a stamp of individuality--instead of
the furniture being, as it was in the seventeenth century in England, and
some hundred years earlier in Italy and in France, the craftsman's
pride--it is now the result of the rapid multiplication of some pattern
which has caught the popular fancy, generally a design in which there is a
good deal of decorative effect for a comparatively small price.
The difficulty of altering this unsatisfactory state of things is evident.
On the one side, the manufacturers or the large furnishing firms have a
strong case in their contention that the public will go to the market it
considers the best: and when decoration is pitted against simplicity,
though the construction which accompanies the former be ever so faulty,
the more pretentious article will be selected. When a successful pattern
has been produced, and arrangements and sub-contracts have been made for
its repetition in large quantities, any considerable variation made in the
details (even if it be the suppression of ornament) will cause an addition
to the cost which those only who understand something of a manufacturer's
business can appreciate.
During the present generation an Art movement has sprung up called
Æstheticism, which has been defined as the "Science of the Beautiful and
the Philosophy of the Fine Arts," and aims at carrying a love of the
beautiful into all the relations of life. The fantastical developments
which accompanied the movement brought its devotees into much ridicule
about ten years ago, and the pages of _Punch_ of that time will be found
to happily travesty its more amusing and extravagant aspects. The great
success of Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta, "Patience," produced in 1881,
was also to some extent due to the humorous allusions to the
extravagances of the "Aesthetetes." In support of what may be termed a
higher Æstheticism, Mr. Ruskin has written much to give expression to his
ideas and principles for rendering our surroundings more beautiful. Sir
Frederic Leighton and Mr. Alma Tadema are conspicuous amongst those who
have in their houses carried such principles into effect, and amongst
other artists who have been and are, more or less, associated with this
movement, may be named Rossetti, Burne Jones, and Holman Hunt. As a writer
on Æstheticism has observed:--"When the extravagances attending the
movement have been purged away, there may be still left an educating
influence, which will impress the lofty and undying principles of Art upon
the minds of the people."
For a time, in-spite of ridicule, this so-called Æstheticism was the
vogue, and considerably affected the design and decoration of furniture of
the time. Woodwork was painted olive green; the panels of cabinets,
painted in sombre colors, had pictures of sad-looking maidens, and there
was an attempt at a "dim religious" effect in our rooms quite
inappropriate to such a climate as that of England. The reaction, however,
from the garish and ill-considered colourings of a previous decade or two
has left behind it much good, and with the catholicity of taste which
marks the furnishing of the present day, people see some merit in every
style, and are endeavouring to select that which is desirable without
running to the extreme of eccentricity.
Perhaps the advantage thus gained is counterbalanced by the loss of our
old "traditions," for amongst the wilderness of reproductions of French
furniture, more or less frivolous--of Chippendale, as that master is
generally understood--of what is termed "Jacobean" and "Queen Anne"--to
say nothing of a quantity of so-called "antique furniture," we are
bewildered in attempting to identify this latter end of the nineteenth
century with any particular style of furniture. By "tradition" it is
intended to allude to the old-fashioned manner of handing down from father
to son, or master to apprentice, for successive generations, the skill to
produce any particular class of object of Art or manufacture. Surely
Ruskin had something of this in his mind when he said, "Now, when the
powers of fancy, stimulated by this triumphant precision of manual
dexterity, descend from generation to generation, you have at last what is
not so much a trained artist, as a new species of animal, with whose
instinctive gifts you have no chance of contending."
Tradition may be said to still survive in the country cartwright, who
produces the farmer's wagon in accordance with custom and tradition,
modifying the method of construction somewhat perhaps to meet altered
conditions of circumstances, and then ornamenting his work by no
particular set design or rule, but partly from inherited aptitude and
partly from playfulness or fancy. In the house-carpenter attached to some
of our old English family estates, there will also be found, here and
there, surviving representatives of the traditional "joyner" of the
seventeenth century, and in Eastern countries, particularly in Japan, we
find the dexterous joiner or carver of to-day is the descendant of a long
line of more or less excellent mechanics.
It must be obvious, too, that "Trades Unionism" of the present day cannot
but be, in many of its effects, prejudicial to the Industrial Arts. A
movement which aims at reducing men of different intelligence and ability,
to a common standard, and which controls the amount of work done, and the
price paid for it, whatever are its social or economical advantages, must
have a deleterious influence upon the Art products of our time.
Writers on Art and manufactures, of varying eminence and opinion, are
unanimous in pointing out the serious drawbacks to progress which will
exist, so long as there is a demand for cheap and meretricious imitations
of old furniture, as opposed to more simply made articles, designed in
accordance with the purposes for which they are intended. Within the past
few years a great many well directed endeavours have been made in England
to improve design in furniture, and to revive something of the feeling of
pride and ambition in his craft, which, in the old days of the Trade
Guilds, animated our Jacobean joiner. One of the best directed of these
enterprises is that of the "Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society," of which
Mr. Walter Crane, A.R.W.S., is president, and which numbers, amongst its
committee and supporters, a great many influential names. As suggested in
the design of the cover of their Exhibition Catalogue, drawn by the
President, one chief aim of the society is to link arm in arm "Design and
Handicraft," by exhibiting only such articles as bear the names of
individuals who (1) drew the design and (2) carried it out: each craftsman
thus has the credit and responsibility of his own part of the work,
instead of the whole appearing as the production of Messrs. A.B. or C.D.,
who may have known nothing personally of the matter, beyond generally
directing the affairs of a large manufacturing or furnishing business.
In the catalogue published by this Society there are several short and
useful essays in which furniture is treated, generally and specifically,
by capable writers, amongst whom are Mr. Walter Crane, Mr. Edward Prior,
Mr. Halsey Ricardo, Mr. Reginald T. Blomfield, Mr. W.R. Letharby, Mr. J.H.
Pollen, Mr. Stephen Webb, and Mr. T.G. Jackson, A.R.A., the order of names
being that in which the several essays are arranged. This small but
valuable contribution to the subject of design and manufacture of
furniture is full of interest, and points out the defects of our present
system. Amongst other regrets, one of the writers (Mr. Halsey Ricardo)
complains, that the "transient tenure that most of us have in our
dwellings, and the absorbing nature of the struggle that most of us have
to make to win the necessary provisions of life, prevent our encouraging
the manufacture of well wrought furniture. We mean to outgrow our
houses--our lease expires after so many years, and then we shall want an
entirely different class of furniture--consequently we purchase articles
that have only sufficient life in them to last the brief period of our
occupation, and are content to abide by the want of appropriateness or
beauty, in the clear intention of some day surrounding ourselves with
objects that shall be joys to us for the remainder of our life."
Many other societies, guilds, and art schools have been established with
more or less success, with the view of improving the design and
manufacture of furniture, and providing suitable models for our young wood
carvers to copy. The Ellesmere Cabinet (illustrated) was one of the
productions of the "Home Arts and Industries Association," founded by the
late Lady Marian Alford in 1883, a well known connoisseur and Art patron.
It will be seen that this is virtually a Jacobean design.
In the earlier chapters of this book, it has been observed that as
Architecture became a settled Art or Science, it was accompanied by a
corresponding development in the design of the room and its furniture,
under, as it were, one impulse of design, and this appropriate concord may
be said to have obtained in England until nearly the middle of the present
century, when, after the artificial Greek style in furniture and woodwork
which had been attempted by Wilkins, Soane, and other contemporary
architects, had fallen into disfavour, there was first a reaction, and
then an interregnum, as has been noticed in the previous chapter. The
Great Exhibition marked a fresh departure, and quickened, as we have seen,
industrial enterprise in this country; and though, upon the whole, good
results have been produced by the impetus given by these international
competitions, they have not been exempt from unfavorable accompaniments.
One of these was the eager desire for novelty, without the necessary
judgment to discriminate between good and bad. For a time, nothing
satisfied the purchaser of so-called "artistic" products, whether of
decorative furniture, carpets, curtains or merely ornamental articles,
unless the design was "new." The natural result was the production either
of heavy and ugly, or flimsy and inappropriate furniture, which has been
condemned by every writer on the subject. In some of the designs selected
from the exhibits of '51 this desire to leave the beaten track of
conventionality will be evident: and for a considerable time after the
exhibition there is to be seen in our designs, the result of too many
opportunities for imitation, acting upon minds insufficiently trained to
exercise careful judgment and selection.
[Illustration: The Ellesmere Cabinet, In the Collection of the late Lady
Marian Alford.]
The custom of appropriate and harmonious treatment of interior decorations
and suitable furniture, seems to have been in a great measure abandoned
during the present century, owing perhaps to the indifference of
architects of the time to this subsidiary but necessary portion of their
work, or perhaps to a desire for economy, which preferred the cheapness of
painted and artificially grained pine-wood, with decorative effects
produced by wall papers, to the more solid but expensive though less
showy wood-panelling, architectural mouldings, well-made panelled doors
and chimney pieces, which one finds, down to quite the end of the last
century, even in houses of moderate rentals. Furniture therefore became
independent and "beginning to account herself an Art, transgressed her
limits" ... and "grew to the conceit that it could stand by itself, and,
as well as its betters, went a way of its own." [22] The interiors, handed
over from the builder, as it were, in blank, are filled up from the
upholsterer's store, the curiosity shop, and the auction room, while a
large contribution from the conservatory or the nearest florist gives the
finishing touch to a mixture, which characterizes the present taste for
furnishing a boudoir or a drawing room.
There is, of course, in very many cases an individuality gained by the
"omnium gatherum" of such a mode of furnishing. The cabinet which reminds
its owner of a tour in Italy, the quaint stool from Tangier, and the
embroidered piano cover from Spain, are to those who travel, pleasant
souvenirs; as are also the presents from friends (when they have taste and
judgment), the screens and flower-stands, and the photographs, which are
reminiscences of the forms and faces separated from us by distance or
death. The test of the whole question of such an arrangement of furniture
in our living rooms, is the amount of judgment and discretion displayed.
Two favorable examples of the present fashion, representing the interior
of the Saloon and Drawing Room at Sandringham House, are here reproduced.
[Illustration: The Saloon at Sandringham House. (_From a Photo by Bedford
Lemère & Co., by permission of H. R. H. the Prince of Wales_).]
[Illustration: The Drawing Room at Sandringham House. (_From a Photo by
Bedford Lemère & Co., by permission of H. R. H. the Prince of Wales_).]
There is at the present time an ambition on the part of many well-to-do
persons to imitate the effect produced in houses of old families where,
for generations, valuable and memorable articles of decorative furniture
have been accumulated, just as pictures, plate and china have been
preserved; and failing the inheritance of such household gods, it is the
practice to acquire, or as the modern term goes, "to collect," old
furniture of different styles and periods, until the room becomes
incongruous and overcrowded, an evidence of the wealth, rather than of the
taste, of the owner. As it frequently happens that such collections are
made very hastily, and in the brief intervals of a busy commercial or
political life, the selections are not the best or most suitable; and
where so much is required in a short space of time, it becomes impossible
to devote a sufficient sum of money to procure a really valuable specimen
of the kind desired; in its place an effective and low priced reproduction
of an old pattern (with all the faults inseparable from such conditions)
is added to the conglomeration of articles requiring attention, and
taking up space. The limited accommodation of houses built on ground which
is too valuable to allow spacious halls and large apartments, makes this
want of discretion and judgment the more objectionable. There can be no
doubt that want of care and restraint in the selection of furniture, by
the purchasing public, affects its character, both as to design and
workmanship.
These are some of the faults in the modern style of furnishing, which have
been pointed out by recent writers and lecturers on the subject. In "Hints
on Household Taste," [23] Mr. Eastlake has scolded us severely for running
after novelties and fashions, instead of cultivating suitability and
simplicity, in the selection and ordering of our furniture; and he has
contrasted descriptions and drawings of well designed and constructed
pieces of furniture of the Jacobean period with those of this century's
productions. Col. Robert Edis, in "Decoration and Furniture of Town
Houses," has published designs which are both simple and economical, with
regard to space and money, while suitable to the specified purpose of the
furniture or "fitment."
This revival in taste, which has been not inappropriately termed "The New
Renaissance," has produced many excellent results, and several well-known
architects and designers in the foremost rank of art, amongst whom the
late Mr. Street, R.A.; Messrs. Norman Shaw, R.A.; Waterhouse, R.A.; Alma
Tadema, R.A.; T. G. Jackson, A.R.A.; W. Burgess, Thomas Cutler, E. W.
Godwin, S. Webb, and many others, have devoted a considerable amount of
attention to the design of furniture.
The ruling principle in the majority of these designs has been to avoid
over ornamentation, and pretension to display, and to produce good solid
work, in hard, durable, and (on account of the increased labour) expensive
woods, or, when economy is required, in light soft woods, painted or
enamelled. Some manufacturing firms, whom it would be invidious to name,
and whose high reputation renders them independent of any recommendation,
have adopted this principle, and, as a result, there is now no difficulty
in obtaining well designed and soundly constructed furniture, which is
simple, unpretentious, and worth the price charged for it. Unfortunately
for the complete success of the new teaching, useful and appropriate
furniture meets with a fierce competition from more showy and ornate
productions, made to sell rather than to last: furniture which seems to
have upon it the stamp of our "three years' agreement," or "seven years'
lease." Of this it may be said, speaking not only from an artistic, but
from a moral and humane standpoint, it is made so cheaply, that it seems a
pity it is made at all.
The disadvantages, inseparable from our present state of society, which we
have noticed as prejudicial to English design and workmanship, and which
check the production of really satisfactory furniture, are also to be
observed in other countries; and as the English, and English-speaking
people, are probably the largest purchasers of foreign manufacturers,
these disadvantages act and re-act on the furniture of different nations.
In France, the cabinet maker has ever excelled in the production of
ornamental furniture; and by constant reference to older specimens in the
Museums and Palaces of his country, he is far better acquainted with what
may be called the traditions of his craft than his English brother. With
him the styles of Francois Premier, of Henri Deux, and the "three Louis"
are classic, and in the beautiful chasing and finishing of the mounts
which ornament the best _meubles de luxe_, it is almost impossible to
surpass his best efforts, provided the requisite price be paid; but this
amounts in many cases to such considerable sums of money as would seem
incredible to those who have but little knowledge of the subject. As a
simple instance, the "copy" of the "Bureau du Louvre" (described in
Chapter vi.) in the Hertford House collection, cost the late Sir Richard
Wallace a sum of £4,000.
As, however, in France, and in countries which import French furniture,
there are many who desire to have the effect of this beautiful but
expensive furniture, but cannot afford to spend several thousand pounds in
the decoration of a single room, the industrious and ingenious Frenchman
manufactures, to meet this demand, vast quantities of furniture which
affects, without attaining, the merits of the better made and more highly
finished articles.
In Holland, Belgium, and in Germany, as has already been pointed out, the
manufacture of ornamental oak furniture, on the lines of the Renaissance
models, still prevails, and such furniture is largely imported into this
country.
Italian carved furniture of modern times has been already noticed; and in
the selections made from the 1851 Exhibition, some productions of
different countries have been illustrated, which tend to shew that,
speaking generally, the furniture most suitable for display is produced
abroad, while none can excel English cabinet makers in the production of
useful furniture and woodwork, when it is the result of design and
handicraft, unfettered by the detrimental, but too popular, condition that
the article when finished shall appear to be more costly really than it
is.
[Illustration: Carved Frame, by Radspieler, Munich.]
The illustration of a carved frame in the rococo style of Chippendale,
with a Chinaman in a canopy, represents an important school of wood
carving which has been developed in Munich; and in the "Künst
Gewerberein," or "Workman's Exhibition," in that city, the Bavarians have
a very similar arrangement to that of the Arts and Crafts Exhibition
Society of this country, of which mention has already been made. Each
article is labelled with the name of the designer and maker.
In conclusion, it seems evident that, with all the faults and shortcomings
of this latter part of the nineteenth century--and no doubt they are many,
both of commission and omission--still, speaking generally, there is no
lack of men with ability to design, and no want of well trained patient
craftsmen to produce, furniture which shall equal the finest examples of
the Renaissance and Jacobean periods. With the improved means of
inter-communication between England and her Colonies, and with the chief
industrial centres of Europe united for the purposes of commerce, the
whole civilized world is, as it were, one kingdom: merchants and
manufacturers can select the best and most suitable materials, can obtain
photographs or drawings of the most distant examples, or copies of the
most expensive designs, while the public Art Libraries of London, and
Paris, contain valuable works of reference, which are easily accessible to
the student or to the workman. It is very pleasant to bear testimony to
the courtesy and assistance which the student or workman invariably
receives from those who are in charge of our public reference libraries.
There needs, however, an important condition to be taken into account.
Good work, requiring educated thought to design, and skilled labour to
produce, must be paid for at a very different rate to the furniture of
machined mouldings, stamped ornament, and other numerous and inexpensive
substitutes for handwork, which our present civilization has enabled our
manufacturers to produce, and which, for the present, seems to find favour
with the multitude. It has been well said that, "Decorated or sumptuous
furniture is not merely furniture that is expensive to buy, but that which
has been elaborated with much thought, knowledge, and skill. Such
furniture cannot be cheap certainly, but _the real cost is sometimes borne
by the artist who produces, rather than by the man who may happen to buy
it_." [24] It is often forgotten that the price paid is that of the lives
and sustenance of the workers and their families.
Conclusion.
A point has now been reached at which our task must be brought to its
natural conclusion; for although many collectors, and others interested in
the subject, have invited the writer's attention to numerous descriptions
and examples, from an examination of which much information could, without
doubt, be obtained, still, the exigencies of a busy life, and the limits
of a single volume of moderate dimensions, forbid the attempt to add to a
story which, it is feared, may perhaps have already overtaxed the reader's
patience.
As has already been stated in the preface, this book is not intended to be
a guide to "_collecting,"_ or "_furnishing";_ nevertheless, it is possible
that, in the course of recording some of the changes which have taken
place in designs and fashions, and of bringing into notice, here and
there, the opinions of those who have thought and written upon the
subject, some indirect assistance may have been given in both these
directions. If this should be the case, and if an increased interest has
been thereby excited in the surroundings of the Home, or in some of those
Art collections--the work of bye-gone years--which form part of our
National property, the writer's aim and object will have been attained,
and his humble efforts amply rewarded.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: A Sixteenth Century Workshop.]
Index.
NOTE.--The Names of several Designers and Makers, omitted from the
Index, will be found in the List in the Appendix, with references.
Academy (French) of the Arts founded
Adam, Robert and James
Æstheticism
Ahashuerus, Palace of
Alcock, Sir Rutherford, collection of
Angelo, Michael
Anglo-Saxon Furniture
Arabesque Ornament, origin of
Arabian Woodwork
Ark, reference to the
Armoires, mention of
Art Journal, The
Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society
Aspinwall, of Grosvenor Street
Assyrian Furniture
Aubusson Tapestry
Audley End
Austrian Work
Barbers' Company, Hall of the
Baroque, The style
Barry, Sir Charles, R.A.
Beauvais Tapestry
Bedroom Furniture
Bedstead of Jeanne d'Albret
Bedstead in the Cluny Museum
Bellows, Italian
Benjamin, Mr., referred to
Berain, Charles, French artist
Bethnal Green Museum
Biblical references
Birch, Dr., reference to
Birdwood, Sir George, referred to
Black, Mr. Adam, reference to
Blomfield, Mr. Reginald T.
Boards and Trestles
Boleyn, Anna, chair of
Bombay Furniture
Bonnaffé, referred to
Boucher, artist
Boudoir
Boule, André Charles
Brackets, Wall
British Museum, references to specimens in the
Brittany Furniture
Broadwood, Messrs
Bronze Mountings
Bruges, Chimney-piece at
Bryan, Michael, referred to
Buffet, The
Bureau du Roi
Burgess, Mr. W
Burleigh
Byzantine-Gothic, discarded
Byzantine style
Caffieri, work of
Cairo Woodwork
Canopied Seats
Canterbury Cathedral
Carpenters' Company
Cashmere Work
Cauner, French carver
Cellaret, The
Cellini, B.
Chambers, Sir William, R.A.
Chair of Dagobert
Chairs of St. Peter
Chardin, reference to
Charlemagne, reference to
Charles I.
reference to
Charles II.
reference to
Charlton, Little
Charterhouse, The
Chaucer quoted
Chippendale's Work
Chippendale's "Gentleman and Cabinetmakers' Director"
Christianity
influence of
Christie, Manson, & Wood, Messrs
reference to old catalogues of
Cicero's Tables
Cipriani
Clapton, Dr. Edward, reference to
Club Houses of London
Cluny Museum, reference to
Colbert, Finance Minister
Coliards' predecessors
Collinson & Lock
Collman, L.W., work of
Constantinople, capture of
Coronation Chair, The
Correggio
Grace, work of
Crane, Mr. Walter
Cromwell referred to
Crusades, influence of the
Cutler, Mr. T
Cypselus of Corinth, Chest of
Dado, the, described
Dagobert Chair
Dalburgia or Blackwood
Damascus, Room from a house in
Davillier, Baron
"Dining Room," the, various definitions
Divan, derivation of
Dowbiggin (Gillow's apprentice)
Dryden quoted
Dürer, A., referred to
D'Urbino Bramante
Du Sommerard referred to
Dutch Furniture
Eastlake, Mr. C., reference to
Edinburgh, H.R.H. the Duke of, Art Collection
Edis, Col. Robert, referred to,
Elgin and Kincardine, Earl of, Collection of
Elizabethan Work
Empire Furniture
English Work
Evelyn's Diary
Exhibiton, The Colonial
The Great (1851)
Inventions
Exhibitions, Local
Falké, Dr., reference to
Faydherbe, Lucas
Fitzcook, H., designer
Flaxman's Work
Flemish Renaissance
Flemish Work
Florentine Mosaic Work
Folding Stool
Fontainebleau, Chateau of
Fourdinois, Work of
Fragonard, French artist, reference to
Frames for pictures and mirrors
Franks, Mr. A.W.
Fretwork Ornament
Gavard's, C., Work on Versailles
German Work
Gesso Work
Ghiberti, L
Gibbon, Dr., story of
Gilding, methods of
Gillow, Richard,
extending table patented
work of
Gillow's Records
Gillow's Work
Glastonbury Chair
Gobelins Tapestry
Godwin, Mr. G., referred to
Godwin, Mr. E.W.
Goodrich Court
Gore House, Exhibition at
Gothic Architecture
Gothic Work
French
German
Chippendale's
Gough, Viscount, collection of
Gouthière, Pierre
Gray's Inn Hall
Greek Furniture
Greuze, reference to
Hamilton Palace Collection
Hampton Court Palace
Hardwick Hall
Harpsichord, the
Harrison quoted
Hatfield House
Hebrew Furniture
Henri II.
time of
Henri IV.
style of Art in France
Henry VIII
Hepplewhite, work of
Herculaneum and Pompeii
discovery of
Herbert's "Antiquities"
Hertford House Collection
Holbein
Holland House
Holland & Sons
Holmes, W., designer
Home Arts and Industries Association
Hope, Thomas, design by
Hopkinson's Pianos
Hotel de Bohême
Howard & Sons, firm of, founded
Ince W., contemporary of Chippendale
Indian Furniture
Indian Museum, The
Indo-Portuguese Furniture
Intarsia Work, or Tarsia
Inventories, old
Italian Carved Furniture
Italian Renaissance
Jackson, Mr. T.G., A.R.A., referred to
Jackson & Graham
Jacobean Furniture
Jacquemart, M., reference to
Japan, the Revolution in
Japanese Joiner, the
Japanned Furniture
Jeanne d'Albret, Bedstead of
Jones, Inigo
Jones Collection, The
Kauffmann, Angelica
Kensington, South, Museum, foundation of
Kensington, South, Museum, reference to specimens in the
Khorsabad, reference to
Kirkman's exhibit
Knife cases
Knole
Lacquer Work, Chinese and Japanese
Indian
Persian
Lacroix, Paul, reference to
Lancret, artist
Layard, Sir Austen, reference to
Lebrun, artist
Leighton, Sir F., referred to
Leo X., Pope
Letharby, Mr. W.R.
Litchfield & Radclyffe
Livery cupboards
Longford Castle Collection
Longman & Broderip
Longleat
Louis XIII. Furniture
Louis XIV
death of
Louis XV
death of
Louis XVI
Louvre, The
Macaulay, Lord, quoted
Machine-made Furniture
Madrid, French Furniture in
Mahogany, introduction of
Mansion House, Furniture of the
Marie Antionette
Marie Louise, Cabinet designed for
Marqueterie
Maskell, Mr., reference to
Mayhew, J., contemporary of Chippendale
Medicis Family, influence of the
Meyrick, S.
Middle Temple Hall
Miles and Edwards
Milton quoted
Mirror, Mosaic
Mirrors, introduction of
"Mobilier National," the collection of
Modern fashion of Furnishing
Mogul Empire, The
Monbro
Morant's Furniture
Mounting of Furniture
Munich, Work and Exhibition of
Napoleon alluded to
Nilson, French carver
Norman civilization, influence of
North Holland, Furniture of
Notes and Queries
Nineveh, Discoveries in
Oak Panelling
Oriental Conservatism
Ottoman, derivation of
Panelling (oak)
Papier-maché Work
Passe, C. de
Paxton, Sir Joseph
Penshurst Place
Pergolesi
Perkins, Mr. C. translator of "Kunst im Hause"
Persian Designs
Pianoforte, the
Picau, French carver
Pietra-dura introduced
Pinder, Sir Paul, house of
Pollen, Mr. J. Hungerford, references to
Portuguese Work
Prie Dieu Chair, the
Prignot, Designs of
Prior, Mr. Edward, essay on Furniture
Pugin, Mr. A.W., work of
Queen Anne Furniture
Queen's Collection, The
Racinet's Work, "Le Costume Historique"
Radspieler of Munich (manufacturer)
Raffaele, referred to
Raleigh, Sir W.
Regency, Period of the, in France
Renaissance
Renaissance in England
France
Germany
Italy
The Netherlands
Spain
Revolution, The French
Revival of Art in France
Ricardo, Mr. Halsey
Richardson's "Studies"
Riesener, Court Ebeniste
Robinson, Mr. G.T., quoted
Rococo Style, the
Rogers, Harry, work of
Roman Furniture
Ruskin, Mr., quoted
Russian Woodwork
St. Augustine's Chair
St. Giles', Bloomsbury
St. Peter's Chairs
St. Peter's Church
St. Saviour's Chapel
Sallust, House of
Salting, Mr., collection of
Salzburg, Bishop's Palace at
Sandringham House, referred to
Saracenic Art
Sarto, Andrea del
Satinwood, introduction of
Scandinavian Woodwork
Science and Art Department, The
Scott, Sir Walter, reference to
Screens, Louis XV. period
Secret Drawers, etc., in Furniture
Sedan Chair, the
Seddon, Thomas, and his Sons, Work of
Serilly. Marquise de, Boudoir of
Sêvres Porcelain, introduction of
Shakespeare's Chair
Shakespeare, quoted
Shaw, Mr. Norman, R.A.
Shaw's "Ancient Furniture"
Sheraton, Thomas, Work of
Shisham Wood
Sideboard, reference to the
Skinners' Company, The
Smith, Major General Murdoch, reference to
Smith, Mr. George, explorer, reference to
Smith, George, manufacturer
Snell, Work of
Soane Museum, The
Society of Arts, The
Society of Upholsterers and Cabinet Makers
Sofa, derivation of
South Kensington. See Kensington
Spanish Furniture
Speke Hall, Liverpool
Spoon Cases
Stationers' Hall
Steam power applied to manufactures
Stephens, Mr., referred to
Stockton House
Stone, Mr. Marcus
Strawberry Hill Sale
Street, Mr., R.A.
Strudwick, J., designer
Sydney, Sir Philip
Tabernacle, The
Table, "Dormant"
"Drawings"
Extending
Folding
Framed
Kneehole
Pier
Side
Joined
Standing
Wine
Tables and Trestles
Tadema, Mr. Alma, R.A., design by
Tarsia Work, or Intarsia
Tea Caddies
Thackeray, quoted
Theebaw, King, Bedstead of
Thyine Wood
"Times" Newspaper, The, quoted
Titian
Toms & Luscombe
Town & Emanuel
Trades Unionism
Traditions, loss of old
Transition period
Trianon, The
Trollopes founded
Ulm, Cathedral of
Urn Stands, the
Veeners
Venice, importance of
Venice, referred to
Verbruggens, the
Vernis Martin
Versailles, Palace of
Victorian (early) Furniture
Vinci, L. da
Viollet-le-Duc
Vriesse, V. de
Wales, H.R.H. Prince of, Art Collection of
Wallace, Sir Richard, Collection of
Walpole, Horace
Ware, Great Bed of
Waterhouse, Mr., R.A.
Watteau
Webb, Mr. Stephen
Wedgwood, Josiah
Wertheimer, S.
Westminster Abbey
Wilkinson, of Ludgate Hill
Williamson (Mobilier National)
Wine Tables
Woods used for Furniture
Wootton, Sir Henry, quoted
Wren, Sir Christopher, referred to
Wright, Mr., F.S.A, referred to
Wyatt, Sir Digby, paper read by
York House, described in the "Art Journal"
York Minster, Chair in
List of Subscribers.
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BALFOUR, CAPTAIN J. E. H., 3, Berkeley Square, London.
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DALRYMPLE, Hon. H.E.W., Bargany, Girvan, Ayrshire.
DARMSTAEDTER, DR., Berlin.
DAVENPORT, HENRY, C.C., Woodcroft, Leek.
DAVIES, REV. GERALD S., Charterhouse, Godalming.
DAVIS, COLONEL JOHN, Sifrons, Farnboro', Hants.
DAVIS, JAMES W., F.S.A., Chevinedge, Halifax.
DE BATHE, GENERAL SIR HENRY, BART.
DE L'ISLE & DUDLEY, RT. HON. LORD, Penshurst Place, Tonbridge.
DE TRAFFORD, HUMPHREY F., 36, Charles Street, Berkeley Square, London.
DE SAUMAREZ, RT. HON. LORD.
DEBENHAM & FREEBODY, Wigmore Street, London.
DERBY, RT, HON. EARL OF., K.G.
DORMER, ROLAND, Ministry of Finance, Cairo.
DOUGLAS, GRENVILLE.
DOWNING, WILLIAM, Afonwan, Acock's Green, Birmingham.
DOVESTON'S, Manchester.
DREY, A.S., Munich.
DRUCE & Co., Baker Street, London.
DRURY-LAVIN, MRS.
DULAU & Co., 37, Soho Square, London.
DUNDEE FREE LIBRARY.
DURHAM, RT. HON. EARL OF.
DUVEEN, J.J., Oxford Street, London.
EASTER, GEORGE, Free Library, Norwich,
EDIS, COLONEL, F.S.A., F.R.I.B.A., 14, Fitzroy Square, London.
EDWARDS & ROBERTS, Wardour Street, London.
EGGINTON, JOHN, Milverton Erleigh, Reading.
ELLIOT, ANDREW, 17, Princes Street, Edinburgh.
ELLIOTT, HORACE, 18, Queen's Road, Bayswater, London.
ELWES, H. T., Fir Bank, East Grimstead.
EMPSON, C. W., Palace Court, Bayswater, London.
EVANS, COLONEL JOHN, Horsham.
FANE, W. D., Melbourne Hall, Derby.
FENWICK, J. G., Moorlands, Newcastle-on-Tyne.
FERRIER, GEORGE STRATON, R.S.W., 41, Heriot Row, Edinburgh.
FFOOLKES, His HONOUR JUDGE WYNNE, Old Northgate House, Chester.
FIRBANK, J. T., D.L., J.P., Coopers, Chislehurst.
FISHER, EDWARD, F.S.A. Scot., Abbotsbury, Newton-Abbot.
FISHER, SAMUEL T., The Grove, Streatham.
FLEMING, MRS. ROBERT, Walden, Chislehurst.
FLETCHER, W., Tottenham Court Road, London.
FORD, ONSLOW, A.R.A., 62, Acacia Road, Regent's Park, N.W.
FORRESTER, ROBERT, Glasgow.
FOSTER, CAPTAIN, J.P., D.L., Apley Park, Bridgnorth.
FOSTER, J. COLLIE, 44a, Gutter Lane, London.
FOX & JACOBS, 69, Wigmore Street, London.
FRAEUR, FREDERICK, Greek Street, Soho, London.
FRAIN, WILLIAM, Dundee.
FRANCIS, JOHN H., 17, Regent Place, Birmingham.
FRANKAU, Mrs., Weymouth Street, Portland Place, London.
FRASER & Co., A., 7, Union Street, Inverness.
FRITH, MISS LOUISE, 18, Fulham Road, London.
FULLER, B. FRANKLIN, 16, Great Eastern Street, London.
FUZZEY, J. & A. J., Penzance.
GRAINER, J. W., M.B. Edin., Belmont House, Thrapstone, Northampton.
GALLOWAY, JOHN, Aberdeen.
GARDNER, GEORGE, 209, Brompton Road, London.
GARNETT, ROBERT, J. P., Warrington.
GARROD, TURNER & SON, Ipswich.
GIBBONS, DR., 29, Cadogan Place, London.
GIBSON, ROBERT, Pitt Street, Portobello.
GILBERT, GEORGE RALPH, Dunolly, Torquay.
GILLILAN, WM., 6, Palace Gate, Bayswater, London.
GILLOW & Co., Lancaster.
GILLOWS, Messrs., 406, Oxford Street, London.
GODFREE, A. H., 18, Holland Villas Road, Bayswater, London.
GOOCH, SIR ALFRED SHERLOCK.
GOODALL, E. & Co., Limited, Manchester.
GOLDSMID, SIR JULIAN, BART., M.P.
GOSFORD, RIGHT HON. EARL OF, K.P.,
GOW, JAMES M., 66, George Street, Edinburgh.
GRAND HOTEL, Northumberland Avenue, London.
GREEN, J. L., 64, King's Road, Camden Road, London.
GREENALL, LADY, Walton Hall, Warrington.
GREENWOOD & SONS, Stonegate, York.
GREGORY & Co., Regent Street, London.
GUILD, The Decorative Arts, Limd., 2, Hanover-Square, London.
GURNEY, RICHARD, Northrepps Hall, Norwich.
GUTHRIE, D. C.
HALL, MRS. DICKINSON, Whatton Manor, Nottingham.
HAMBURGER BROS., Utrecht.
HAMER, WILLIAM, Mayfield, Knutsford.
HAMILTON, THOMAS, Manchester.
HAMPTON & SONS, Pall Mall East, London.
HANNAY, A. A., 80, Coleman Street, London.
HANSELL, P. E., Wroxharn House, Norwich.
HARDING, GEORGE, Charing Cross Road, London.
HARDY, E. MEREDITH, 9, Sinclair Gardens, Kensington.
HARRISON, H.E.B., Devonshire Road, Liverpool.
HARVEY, REV. CANON, Vicar's Court, Lincoln.
HAWES, G. E., Duke's Palace Joinery Works, Norwich.
HAWKINS, A. P., New York.
HAWKINS, THOMAS, Bridge House, Newbury.
HAWSELL, P. E., Wroxham, Norfolk.
HAYNE, CHARLES SEALE, M.P., 6, Upper Belgrave Street, London
HAYWARD, MRS., Mossley Hill, Liverpool.
HEADFORT, THE MOST NOBLE MARCHIONESS OF.
HEMS, HARRY, Exeter.
HERRING, DR. HERBERT T., 50, Harley Street, London.
HESSE, Miss, The Lodge, Haslemere, Surrey.
HEWITSON, MILNER & THEXTON, Tottenham Court Road, London.
HILLHOUSE, JAMES, 50, Lincoln's Inn Fields, W.C.
HIND, JOHN, Manchester.
HOBSON, RICHARD, J. P., D.L, etc., The Marfords, Bromborough, Cheshire.
HOCKLIFFE, T. H., High Street, Bedford.
HODGES, W.D., 249, Brompton Road, London.
HODGES, Figgis & Co. 104, Grafton Street, Dublin.
HODGKINS, E. M., King Street, St. James's Square, London.
HOGG & COUTTS, 61, North Frederick Street, Edinburgh
HOLMES, W. & R., Dunlop Street, Glasgow.
HOPWOOD, W., Scarborough.
HORLOCK, REV. GEORGE, St. Olave's Vicarage, Hanbury Street, London.
HORNBY, ADMIRAL SIR G. PHIPPS.
HOTEL METROPOLIS, London.
HOUGHTON, CEDRIC, 17, Ribblesdale Place, Preston.
HOZIER, SIR WILLIAM W., Bart.
HUMBERT, SON & FLINT, Watford and Lincoln's Inn.
HUNT, WILLIAM, 5, York Buildings, Adelphi.
HUNTER, REV. CHARLES, Helperby, Yorks.
HUNTER, FREDERICK, 75, Portland Place, London.
HUNTER, R. W., 19, George IV. Bridge, Edinburgh
IVEAGIE, Rt. Hon. Lord.
JACKSON, W. L., M.P., Chief Secretary for Ireland.
JACOB, W. HEATON, 29, Sinclair Gardens, London.
JARROLD & SONS, Norwich.
JENKINS, JOHN J., The Grange, Swansea.
JEROME, JEROME K., Alpha Place, St. John's Wood.
JOICEY, MRS. E., Haltwhistle.
JOHNSTON, WILLIAM, 43, Cambridge Road, Hove.
JONES, YARRELL & CO., 8, Bury Street, Jermyn Street, London.
JOSEPH, EDWARD, 25, Dover Street, Piccadilly, London.
JOSEPH, FELIX, Eastbourne.
Jowers, Alfred, A.R.I.B.A., 7, Gray's Inn Square, London.
KEATES, DR. W. COOPER, 2, Tredegar Villas, East Dulwich Road, London.
KELVIN, RT. HON. LORD.
KEMP-WELCH, CHARLES DURANT, Brooklands, Ascot.
KENDAL, MILNE & CO., Manchester.
KENNETT, W. B., 89, High Street, Sandgate.
KENT, A. T.
KENYON, GEORGE, 35, New Bond Street, London.
KING, ALFRED, Kensington Court Mansions, London.
Knight, J. W., 33, Hyde Park Square, London,
KNOX, JAMES, 31, Upper Kensington Lane, London.
LAINSON, TH., & Son, 170, North Street, Brighton.
LANGFORD, RT. HON. LORD.
LANDSBERG, H. & SON, 1, Gordon Place, London.
LARKINS-WALKER, LT. COLONEL, 201, Cromwell Road, London.
LAURIE, THOMAS & SON, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow.
LAW, CHARLES A., 53, Highgate Hill, London.
LEE, A. G., Alexander House, Solent Road, W. Hampstead.
LEIGH, MRS., Tabley House, Knutsford.
LEIGHTON, Sir Frederic P.R.A.
LEIGHTON, Captain F., Parsons Green, Fulham, London.
LENNOX, D., M. D., 144, Nethergate, Dundee.
LETHBRIDGE, CAPTAIN E., 20, St. Peter Street, Winchester.
LEWIS, MISS WYNDHAM, 33, Hans Place, London.
LITCHFIELD, SAMUEL, The Lordship, Cheshunt.
LITCHFIELD, T. G., Bruton Street, London.
LINDSAY-CARNEGIE, J. P., D.L., Co. Forfar.
LODER, R. B., 47, Grosvenor Square, London.
LONG, NATHANIEL, Tuckey Street, Cork.
LORD & CO., W. TURNER, 120, Mount Street, Grosvenor Square, London.
LONGDEN, H., London and Sheffield.
LOWE, J. W., Ridge Hall, Chapel-En-Le-Frith.
LUCAS, SEYMOUR, A.R.A., Woodchurch Road, West Hampstead.
LYNAM, C., F.R.I.B.A., Stoke-On-Trent.
MCANDREW, JOHN.
MACDONALD, A. R., 10, Chester Street, S.W.
MACDONALD, DUDLEY WARD, 15, Earls' Terrace, Kensington, W.
MACK, THOMAS, Manchester.
MCKIE, MISS, Dumfries, N.B
MACKINTOSH, J. R., St. Giles Street, Edinburgh.
MANCHESTER FREE LIBRARY.
MANN, J. P., Adamson Road, N.W.
MANNERING, E. H., Hillside, Arkwright Road, Hampstead.
MANT, Rev. Newton, The Vicarage, Hendon, N.W.
MAPLE, J. Blundell, M.P.
MARKS, H. Stacy, R.A.
MARSHALL, ARTHUR, A.R.I.B.A., Cauldon Place, Long Row, Nottingham.
MARSHAM, MAJOR G. A., J.P., Thetford.
MART, ALFRED, 22, Carleton Road, Tufnell Park, London.
MARTIN, SIR THEODORE, K.C.B.
MELVILLE, RT. HON. VISCOUNT.
MENZIES, JOHN & Co., 12, Hanover Street, Edinburgh.
MIALL, G. C., Bouverie Street, London.
MILFORD, THE LADY.
MILLER, ALFRED, Queen's Road, Weybridge.
MILLAR, DAVID, 8, Fitzroy Street, London.
MILLS, R. MASON, Bourne, Lincolnshire.
MILNE, ROBERT O., Oakfield, Leamington.
MILNER, JOHN, 180, Great Portland Street, London.
MITCHELL LIBRARY, Miller Street, Glasgow.
MITCHELL, SYDNEY & WILSON, 13, Young Street, Edinburgh.
MORGAN & SONS, Hanway Street, W.
MORRISON, H., Public Library, Edinburgh.
MORTON, THOMAS H., M.D., C.M., Don House, Brightside, Sheffield.
MOUNTSTEPHEN, THE LADY.
MURRAY, WILLIAM, F.S.I., 81, Wood Green Shepherds Bush, London.
MURPHY, JOHN, 215, Brompton Road, London.
NELSON, RT. HON. EARL.
NETTLEFOLD, HUGH, Hallfield, Edgbaston, Birmingham.
NEVILL, CHARLES H., Bramall Hall, Cheshire.
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE PUBLIC LIBRARIES.
NICOL, ROBERT E., 94, Morningside Road, Edinburgh.
NIND, P. H., Lashlake House, Thame, Oxon.
NORMAN, JAMES T., 57, Great Eastern Street, London.
NOTTINGHAM MECHANICS' INSTITUTION.
NUTTALL, JOHN R., Market Place, Lancaster.
NYBURG & Co., 17, Hanway Street, W.
OAKELEY, REV. W. BAGNALL, Newland, Coleford, Gloucester.
OAKLEY, FRANK P., Hanging Bridge Chambers, Cathedral Yard, Manchester.
OLIVER & LEESON, Bank Chambers, Mosley Street, Newcastle-on-Tyne.
OSBORNE, WILLIAM, 30, Reform Street, Beith, N.B.
OVEY, RICHARD, J.P., Badgemore, Henley-on-Thames.
PALMER, THE REV. FRANCIS, 17, New-Cavendish-Street, W.
PARLANE, JAMES, Rusholme, Manchester.
PARR, T. KNOWLES, Isthmian Club, S.W.
PATERSON, SMITH & INNES, 77, South Bridge, Edinburgh.
PATTERSON, W. G., 54, George Street, Edinburgh.
PATTISON, ROBERT P., Seacliffe, Trinity.
PAUL, ALFRED S. H., Tetbury.
PEARCE, S. S., 4, Victoria Parade, Ramsgate.
PEARSE, H., Rochdale.
PEARSON, JOHN L., R.A., 13, Mansfield Street, London.
PECKITT, LIEUT.-COLONEL R. WM., Thornton-le-Moor, Northallerton.
PENNEY, J. CAMPBELL, 15, Gloucester Place, Edinburgh.
PENTY, WALTER, G., F.R.I.B.A., Clifford Chambers, York.
PHILIP, G. STANLEY, 32, Fleet Street, London.
PHILLIPS, F. W., The Manor House, Hitchin.
PHILLIPS, MORO, West Street House, Chichester.
PIGGOT, REVD. ALEXANDER, Leven, Fife.
PITT-RIVERS, GENERAL, F.S.A., 4, Grosvenor Gardens, S.W.
POLLARD, JOSEPH, Nicholas Street, Truro.
POLLEN, J. HUNGERFORD, South Kensington Museum.
PONSONBY, HON. GERALD, 57, Green Street, London.
PORTAL, MELVILLE, J.P., Micheldever, Hants.
POTT, HARRY KERBY, The Cedars, Sunninghill, Ascot.
POWEL, H. PENRY, Castle Madoc, Brecknock.
POWELL & POWELL, 18, Old Bond Street, Bath.
POWELL & SONS, JAMES, 31, Osborn Street, Hull.
POWIS, RIGHT HON. EARL OF.
PROPERT, J. LUMSDEN, 112, Gloucester Terrace, London.
PRUYN, MRS. JOHN V.L., Albany, New York.
QUANTRELL, A. & S.S., 203, Wardour Street, London.
RABBITS, W. T., 6, Cadogan Gardens, S.W.
RADCLIFFE, H. MILES, Summerlands, Kendal.
RADCLIFFE, R. D., M.A., F.S.A., Darley, Old Swan, Liverpool.
RADNOR, THE RT. HON. THE COUNTESS OF
RAMSAY, ROBERT, 33/437--Greendyke Street, Glasgow.
RAMSEY, THE HON. MRS. CHARLES, 48, Grosvenor Street, W.
RICHARDS, S., Hounds Gate, Nottingham.
RIGDEN, JOHN, J. P., Surrey House, Brixton Hill, S.W.
RILEY, ATHELSTAN, L.C.C., 2, Kensington Court.
RILEY, JOHN, 20, Harrington Gardens, S.W.
RIVINGTON, CHARLES ROBERT, F.S.A., Stationers' Hall, London.
ROBERTS, D. LLOYD, M.D., F.R.C.P., Broughton Park, Manchester.
ROBSON, EDWARD R., F.S.A., 9, Bridge Street, Westminster.
ROBSON, R., 16, Old Bond Street, W.
ROBSON.& SONS, 42, Northumberland Street, Newcastle-on-Tyne.
ROGERSON, ARTHUR, Fleurville, Cheltenham.
ROMAINE-WALKER, W. H., A.R.I.B.A., Buckingham Street, Strand, London.
ROSE, ALGERNON, F.R.G.S., Great Pulteney Street, London.
ROTHSCHILD, THE LADY.
ROTHSCHILD, LEOPOLD DE, 5, Hamilton Place, W.
RUSSELL, JOHN, M. B., 142, Waterloo Road, Burslem.
SACKVILLE, RT. HON. LORD, Knole Park, Sevenoaks.
SALMON, W. FORREST, F.R.I.B.A., 197, St. Vincent, Street, Glasgow.
SAITER, S. JAMES A., F.R.S., Basingfield, near Basingstoke.
SANDERS, T. R. H., Old Fore Street, Sidmouth.
SANDERSON, JOHN, 52, Berners Street, London.
SAVORY, HORACE R., 11, Cornhill, London.
SAWERS, JOHN, Gothenburg, Sweden.
SCIENCE AND ART DEPARTMENT of South Kensington.
SCOTT, A. & J., Glasgow.
SCOTT, J. & T., 10, George Street, Edinburgh.
SCULLY, W. C., 32, Earl's Court Square, London.
SHARP, J., Fernwood Road, Newcastle-on-Tyne.
SHERBORNE, RT. HON. LORD.
SHIELL, JOHN, 5, Bank Street, Dundee.
SIMKIV, W. R., North Hill, Colchester.
SIMPSON, THOMAS & SONS, Silver Street, Halifax.
SIMS, F. MANLEY, F.R.C.S., 12, Hertford Street, London.
SION COLLEGE LIBRARY, Thames Embankment, London.
SLESSOR, REV. J. H., The Rectory, Headbourne, Worthy, Winchester.
SMILEY, HUGH H., Gallowhill, Paisley.
SMITH, CHARLES, 12, Gloucester Terrace, Hyde Park, London.
SMITH, EDWARD ORFORD, Council House, Birmingham.
SMITH, F. BENNETT, 17, Brazenose Street, Manchester.
SMITH, W. J., 41 & 43, North Street, Brighton.
SOPWITH, H. T., Newcastle-on-Tyne.
SPENCE, C. J., South Preston Lodge, North Shields.
STENHOUSE & SON, 4, Alexandra Gardens, Folkestone.
STEPHENS, E. GEORGE, 5, Portman Street, Whalley Range, Manchester.
STEPHENS, J. WALLACE, Belph, Whitmell, Nr. Chesterfield.
STONE, J. H., J.P., Handsworth.
STORR, J. S., 26, King Street, Covent Garden.
TALBOT, LIEUT. COLONEL GERALD.
TALBOT, Miss, 3, Cavendish Square, London.
TANNER, ROBERT R.S., 9, Montagu Street, Portman Square, London.
TANNER, SLINGSBY, 1046, Mount Street, Berkeley Square, London.
TAPLIN, JOHN, 8, Blomfield Road, Maida Vale, London.
TASKER, G. S., Glen-Ashton, Wimbourne, Dorset.
TATE, JOHN, Oaklands, Alnwick.
TAYLOR, JOHN & SONS, 109, Princes Street, Edinburgh.
TEMPEST, SIR ROBERT T., BART.
TEMPEST, MAJOR A.C., Coleby Hall, near Lincoln.
THOMASON, YEOVILLE, F.R.I.B.A., 9, Observatory Gardens, Kensington, London.
THOMPSON, THE LADY MEYSEY.
THOMPSON, J. C.
THOMPSON, RICHARD, Dringcote, The Mount, York.
THONET BROS., 68, Oxford Street, London.
THYNNE, J. C., Cloisters, Westminster, London.
TRAILL, JAMES CHRISTIE, J.P, D.L., Rattan, Caithness; and Hobbister, Orkney.
TAPNALL, C., 60, St. John's Road, Clifton.
TUNISSEN, G., 64, Noordeinde, The Hague.
TURNER, R. D., Roughway, Tonbridge.
TURNER, WILLIAM, Manchester.
VANDERBYL, MRS. PHILIP, Porchester Terrace, London.
VAUGHAN & Co., 18, Gt. Eastern Street, London.
VINCE, A. S., 14, Gt. Pulteney Street, London.
VINEY, JOHN P., 26, Charlotte Street, Portland Place, London.
VOST & FISHER, Halifax.
WADE, MISS, Royal School of Art Needlework, South Kensington.
WALLACE, MRS., French Hall, Gateshead.
WALLIS & Co., Limited, Holborn Circus, London.
WALTERS, FREDERICK A., A.R.I.B.A, 4, Great Queen Street, Westminster.
WARBURTON, SAMUEL, 10, Witton Polygon, Cheetham Hill, Manchester.
WARING, S. J. & SONS, Bold Street, Liverpool.
WARNER & SONS, Newgate Street, E.C.
WATKINS, REV. H. G., Lilliput Hill, Parkstone, Dorset.
WATNEY, VERNON J., Berkeley Square, London.
WATTERSON, WILLIAM CRAVEN, Hill Carr, Altrincham.
WATTS, G. F., R.A., Little Holland House, Kensington, London.
WATTS, JAMES, Old Hall, Cheadle, near Manchester.
WEBB, R. BARRETT, Bristol.
WEEKES, J.E., 19, Sinclair Gardens, W.
WELLARD, CHARLES, St. Leonard Street, Bromley-by-Bow.
WERTHEIMER, ASHER, 154, New Bond Street, W.
WERTHEIMER, CHARLES, 21, Norfolk Street, Park Lane, W.
WESTMINSTER, HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF.
WESTON, MRS. E., Ashbank, Penrith.
WHARTON, THE REV. GEORGE, Radley College, Abingdon.
WHARTON, W. H. B., London Road, Manchester.
WHEATLEY, COLONEL.
WHEELER, WILLIAM, George Row, York Road, City Road, London.
WHITAKER, WALTER, Combe Down, Bath.
WHITAKER, W. W., Cornbrook House, Manchester.
WIGAN PUBLIC LIBRARY.
WILKINSON & SON, 8, Old Bond Street, London.
WILLIAMS, MRS., Parcian, Anglesey.
WILLS, GEORGE, Park Street, Bristol.
WILSON, SAMUEL, 7, King Street, St. James's Square.
WOLFSOHN, HELENA, Dresden.
WOOD, ALEXANDER, Saltcoats.
WOOD, HERBERT S., A.R.I.B.A., 16, Basinghall Street, London.
WOOD, T. A., 67, Berners Street, London.
WORCESTER PUBLIC LIBRARY.
WORNUM, R. S., 26, Bedford Square, London.
WORTHINGTON, HENRY H., Sale Old Hall, Manchester.
WRIGHT, A. O., 25, Low Skellgate, Ripon.
WRIGHT, E., 144, Wardour Street, London.
WYLIE, S., Glasgow.
WYLLIK & SONS, D., Aberdeen.
YORKE, THE HON. MRS. ELIOT.
RECEIVED TOO LATE FOR CLASSIFICATION.
ANDERSON, MRS. J. H., Palewell, East Sheen, S.W.
BETHELL, WILLIAM, Derwent Bank, Malton.
EDWARDS, THOMAS & SONS, Wolverhampton.
EMSLIE, A., Rothay, Border Crescent, Sydenham.
GOSFORD, THE RT. HONBLE. THE COUNTESS OF.
LARKING, T. J., 28, New Bond Street, W.
MRS. HARRY POLLOCK.
SIDNEY, T. H., Wolverhampton.
[Illustration]
Footnotes
[1] Gopher is supposed to mean cypress wood. See notes on Woods
(Appendix).
[2] See also Notes on Woods (Appendix).
[3] Folding stool--Faldistory or Faldstool--a portable seat, similar to a
camp stool, of wood or metal covered with silk or other material. It was
used by a Bishop when officiating in other than his own cathedral church.
[4] Those who would read a very interesting account of the history of this
stone are referred to the late Dean Stanley's "Historical Memorials of
Westminster Abbey."
[5] The sous, which was but nominal money, may be reckoned as representing
20 francs, the denier 1 franc, but allowance must be made for the enormous
difference in the value of silver, which would make 20 francs in the
thirteenth century represent upwards of 200 francs in the present century.
[6] The panels of the high screen or back to the stalls in "La Certosa di
Pavia" (a Carthusian Monastery suppressed by Joseph II.), are famous
examples of early intarsia. In an essay on the subject written by Mr. T.G.
Jackson, A.R.A., they are said to be the work of one Bartolommeo, an
Istrian artist, and to date from 1486. The same writer mentions still more
elaborate examples of pictorial "intarsia" in the choir stalls of Sta.
Maria, Maggiore, in Bergamo.
[7] Writers of authority on architecture have noticed that the chief
characteristic in style of the French Renaissance, as contrasted with the
Italian, is that in the latter the details and ornament of the new school
were imposed on the old foundations of Gothic character. The Chateau of
Chambord is given as an instance of this combination.
[8] Dr. Jacob von Falké states that the first mention of glass as an
extraordinary product occurs in a register of 1239.
[9] "Holland House," by Princess Marie Liechtenstein, gives a full account
of this historic mansion.
[10] The following passage occurs in one of Beaumont and Fletcher's plays:
"Is the great couch up, the Duke of Medina sent?" to which the duenna
replies, "'Tis up and ready;" and then Marguerite asks, "And day beds
in all chambers?" receiving in answer, "In all, lady."
[11] This tapestry is still in the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace.
[12] [PG Note] The original text said "gods".
[13] The present decorations of the Palace of Versailles were carried out
about 1830, under Louis Phillipe. "Versailles Galeries Historiques," par
C. Gavard, is a work of 13 vols., devoted to the illustration of the
pictures, portraits, statues, busts, and various decorative contents of
the Palace.
[14] For description of method of gilding the mounts of furniture, see
Appendix.
[15] For a short account of these Factories, see Appendix.
[16] Watteau, 1684-1721. Lancrel, _b_. 1690, _d_. 1743. Boucher, _b_.
1703, _d_. 1770.
[17] The Court room of the Stationers' Hall contains an excellent set of
tables of this kind.
[18] The late Mr. Adam Black, senior partner in the publishing firm of A.
and C. Black, and Lord Macaulay's colleague in Parliament, when quite a
young man, assisted Sheraton in the production of this book; at that time
the famous designer of furniture was in poor circumstances.
[19] The word Baroque, which became a generic term, was derived from the
Portugese "barroco," meaning a large irregular-shaped pearl. At first a
jeweller's technical term, it came later, like "rococo," to be used to
describe the kind of ornament which prevailed in design of the nineteenth
century, after the disappearance of the classic.
[20] Mr. Parker defines Dado as "The solid block, or cube, forming the
body of a pedestal in classical architecture, between the base mouldings
and the cornice: an architectural arrangement of mouldings, etc., round
the lower parts of the wall of a room, resembling a continuous pedestal."
[21] Owen Jones' "Grammar of Ornament," a work much used by designers, was
published in 1856.
[22] Essay by Mr. Edward S. Prior, "Of Furniture and the Room."
[23] Published in 1868, when the craze for novelties was at its height.
[24] Essay on "Decorated Furniture," by J. H. Pollen.