FP 414
An oak single chair with original nailed leather covered upholstery Charles II, circa 1660-80 Purchased (two chairs) at Christie's South Kensington, 2 July 2003, lot 15 Provenance: the late James Frederick Ridge, Lancashire.
The Frederick Parker Collection has included a leathered chair of this type since 1914, but when these examples appeared on the market, it provided a rare opportunity to improve the Collection by adding such chairs in original condition. This type of joiner-made armless upholstered chair was known at the time as a 'backstool' or 'backchair'. Over time the terms were used more loosely to include side chairs with wooden seats. The more fanciful term 'farthingale' chair, referring to the hooped skirts of the period, was a romantic 19th century one.
The square box-like shape is one that was current over a long period in Britain and throughout Europe, with regional variations such as the fact that Dutch chairs commonly had finials on the back-posts and British ones tended to have four stretchers set between the legs, with the front one at a lower level than on Continental examples. This frame, with its slightly sloping back, is quite plain apart from the reel turning on the front legs, and the turned bun-shaped feet. The turning, and the fact that the back is low and horizontal in proportion, point to a date in Charles II's reign.
The cost of the wood and the making of the frame of such chairs was often much less than that of the covering, which on the finest examples might be of silk, velvet or embroidery. The use of goat or calf hide over straw or grass stuffing, finished with decorative brass nails, offered a cheaper but durable alternative. Two sources of leather are recorded, from Russia and Turkey, the former normally having a cross-hatched surface, not seen here. The leather is also typically applied to the front face of the back-posts in order to link the seat and back panels. Of particular interest are the four ties visible in the centre of the seat, known as double-stuff stitching, to help hold the stuffing in place. These chairs were often used with thick domed loose cushions which would have filled much of the gap between the seat and back.