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Windsor chair
Unknown - Enlarge image
Windsor chair
- Place of origin:
England, Great Britain (made)
- Date:
1780-1800 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Unknown (production)
- Materials and Techniques:
The seat, back legs and stretchers are of ash; the chair-back and front legs are of yew.
- Museum number:
W.156-1921
- Gallery location:
In Storage
Windsor chairs are characterised by their construction. Their seats are of solid, with legs and arm-supports dowelled into it. Their name probably derives from the town of Windsor in Berkshire, which is situated on the river Thames and was ideally located as a distribution point for chairs made in the Thames Valley region, where many chairs of this type were made. Windsor chairs were, however, also produced in many other areas of Britain during the 18th and 19th centuries.Cheap to make and light to move, Windsor chairs were widely made in the 18th and 19th centuries and used by all levels of society. Early Windsor chairs can sometimes be seen in paintings of gardens dating from the mid-18th century. For outdoor use they were usually painted for protection from damp, and would probably have been stored under cover.
