These designs for lanterns by Thomas Chippendale are the original designs for plate no.153 in The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director (1762 ed.). The designs demonstrate the popular and flamboyant rococo style which, inspired by French precedents, became fashionable in Britain from the first half of the 18^th century. The rococo was characterised by curved, scrolling forms and natural imagery. The designs were engraved for the Director by the engraver W. Foster, whose name is visible on the plate but not on these designs.

Thomas Chippendale was a fashionable designer and cabinet-maker in the eighteenth-century, providing furniture to such famous contemporary figures as David Garrick. His company produced high-quality furniture, including some key masterpieces, but Chippendale's outstanding skill was in design. His pattern-book The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director went through three editions in the 1750s and 60s and inspired trade catalogues and pattern-books from fellow designers. Usually produced by architects, a large, elegant pattern-book was an ambitious project for a craftsman at this time. The Director showed the full range of furniture available in the eighteenth century, and the range of styles that were fashionable. Chippendale created a trademark fusion of rococo style with Chinese and gothic elements, which was the basis of 'English' rococo. His style influenced furniture design in contemporary Europe and colonial America, and had a marked Victorian revival in England. The Director designs were the main source for Chippendale's high reputation until his furniture was first identified in 1906.