chair, hall
Object
Accession Number
983.597Alternate Name
armchairDescription
A very large profusely carved arm chair with a curving half-canopy section at its top, a three-dimensional gargoyle-like head centred on its front, the inside back in two sections, the top a fan design with rounded top with deep oval-shaped gouges in the wood repeating in two horizontal rows, at the centre base of the fan a gargoyle, below it are five separate scenes with images carved in low relief, in the centre a diamond-shaped area with a horseman riding by a toll house, the upper right panel depicting a man sowing seeds, in the lower left a young woman feeding fowl or gathering eggs, the lower right panel depicting a woodsman chopping wood, on the front edge of the seat in raised upper-case lettering: "Honour to the Brave", the chair's arms plain but terminating in dragon-like heads, a large turned stretcher on the front beneath the seat, the sides and back are plain, the sides of the seat, arms and back heavily carved on each side.Narrative
This chair was made during the 19th century – probably for the English market, where newly-rich homeowners sought to fill up their new mansions with furniture made to look antique. This piece is intended to emulate 17th Century English furniture design.Many of these Victorian mansions were enormous (in excess of 30,000 square feet) with cavernous central hallways where chairs of this scale were easily accommodated. These new houses were sometimes quite deliberately designed in a variety of styles from different time periods. The intention was to suggest that the family living inside – like the house – had occupied that land for centuries. The carved back panels on the chair are probably English and older than the rest of the chair which may have been made in the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia).
History of Use
A very brief note in the artifact document file for this object indicates that it had once been owned by "Lord and Lady Wescott".The chair was purchased for display in Craigdarroch by Society President James K. Nesbitt on about March 23, 1981 according to a list compiled by Castle Society Office Manager Mauro Azzara. An embroidered firescreen (983.318) was purchased at the same time.
