Chair from a set of at least 6, of mahogany, with upholstered seat, the frame with cabriole front legs on ball and claw feet, the back 1750-70, the back carved with the crest of Eyre (an armoured leg)

Chair from a set of at least 6, of mahogany, with upholstered seat, the frame with cabriole front legs on ball and claw feet, the back 1750-70, the back carved with the crest of Eyre (an armoured leg).
Design
The cabriole legs have ball feet, each gripped by four bird’s claws, which, unusually, are pierced through at the lower end. The lower part of the leg is plain, rounded, with, above, a section carved with feathers (looking in places more like leaves), the top edges meeting the seat rail with additional, scrolled spandrel brackets. A lappet is apparently laid over the feathers, the edges moulded and scrolled into the ears of the cabriole leg with the outer edges carved as ‘reversed gadrooning’. The lower scroll of these meets an acanthus pendant, carved down the front of the leg. Below this, carved swags of fabric hang from a carved ring and appear to be looped back and knotted at the back of the leg, with carved tassels hanging down, all this forming the lower edge of the feathered section. On the knee, a scallop shell is carved over crossed palms.
The back legs, which are continuous with the uprights and square sectioned with a curving rake, are cut on the front face cut with a decided kick. The inner edges are chamfered.
The back is rectangular with a pierced central splat. The uprights taper upwards with an ‘S’ curve just below the junction with the cresting rail. The front faces have a moulding on the outer edge and are angled back towards the splat. This faces are carved with a foliated scroll at the base and a symmetrical device of scrolls flanking a shell.
The cresting rail is serpentine with outer corner extensions, heavily scrolled back in a tight paper-like scroll. The front faces of these are carved with acanthus and a small floral drop. The centre section of the rail is raised and is likewise heavily scrolled, the front carved with a scallop shell with crossed palms below.
The outer side section curves of the centre of the crest rail continue down, scrolling into the pierced splat, which is composed of two opposed elongated scrolls, enclosing a circle. This which contains a carved crest showing an armoured leg with spur on a torque (the crest of Eyre). Below this is a further pair of scrolls with a leafy pendant, which touches the base rail of the splat, carved with two half rounds, one each side of the leaf. The shoe, into which the splat is fitted, is of standard pattern with a moulded top edge.

Construction:
Mortise and tenon construction, the uprights and back legs continuous. The seat rails are tenoned into the back uprights and double pegged and tenoned into blocks above the front legs. The uprights are tenoned up into the top rail, the splat also tenoned up into this and down into the back seat rail. The shoe sits on top of the back rail and sits around the front three faces of the base of the splat, and the splat is pinned forwards into the shoe. The back seat rail is set with two pieces of mahogany veneer.
The seat is upholstered in crimson plush, originally finished with a red and cream silk gimp (now missing). Underneath a jute base cloth is visible. The webbing is black and white chevron. The three back-to-front strips are 4.2 cms wide, with three chevrons; those set lateraly are 4.4. cms wide and show 4 chevrons.
The seat has rails of oak with softwood blocks attached with large handmade nails. The shaped spandrel block inside the proper right back leg is a replacement and the other back block is missing. There is evidence of old nails on the top inner surface of the seat rails. The side spandrel of the proper right leg may be a replacement, as it is considerably lighter in colour on the inside.
The seat has oak rails and softwood corner blocks attached with screws. The seat rails show evidence of removed handmade nails. The proper right shaped-spandrel block is missing.

Armorial crest

Given by Douglas Eyre in memory of his father and mother, Henry Richard and Isabella Catherine Eyre, late of Shaw House, near Newbury, Berkshire.

This chair and five others from the set (W.22 to E-1922) were given by Douglas Eyre, 1922 (see Registered File 22/2658). At that time the chairs were described as 'English'.

The armorial crest in the back panel appears to be the crest of the Eyre family of Eyrecourt Castle, Co. Galway, Ireland. The heraldic description of it is 'a leg in armour couped at the thigh proper, garnised and spurred in gold'. David Jones was the first to suggest that these chairs were Irish, in 1983 but it should be noted that the same crest was used by the Earl of Newburgh in the peerage of Scotland (created 1660). Records of Eyrecourt Castle suggest that the building was in disputed ownership in the middle of the eighteenth century, so it seems unlikely that new furnishings were being commissioned, although various members of the family had other properties in Ireland at the time and the chairs may originate from those properties. More work is needed on the history of the chairs. There was also a prominent Eyre family in Philadelphia in the eighteenth century and pieces of their furniture appear on the market from time to time (e.g. Christie's New York 16 January 199, lot 592). The design of their furniture is markedly more sophisticated that this piece, although most are of a similar date.

For similarities in chair back see 'Irish Furniture', The Knight of Glin and James Peill, p. 213, fig. 38.

The upholstery in crimson plush seems to date from the late 19th century.

This chair is one of a set of at least six (W.32 to E-1922). The back is unusual in that it includes a carved representation of a heraldic crest, thought to be that of the Eyre family of Eyrecourt Castle, Co. Galway. Although crests were often carved or painted on hall chairs, they were not usually displayed on chairs intended for dining-room or drawing-room use. The early history of the chairs is not clear and needs further work. The same crest was used by the Earl of Newburgh in the Scottish peerage. The identification of the chairs as Irish is still tentative. It is based on their large scale and robust carving but more information on the history of the set is required.

W.32B-1922