Church Chair
1875-1900 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Church chairs were used as an alternative to fitted wooden pews, sometimes being linked together beneath the seats to form fixed rows. They were largely made to be functional rather than decorative and needed to be cheap, simple and strong enough to withstand constant public use. Most were based on country chair designs, with turned legs and solid or rush seats, and had several stretchers between the legs for added strength. The wide top rail at the back allowed the person behind the chair to lean upon it when kneeling to pray.
This particular example is a very simple ladder-back chair with a wide top rail, single cross-rail, and rush seat. By the second half of the nineteenth century such chairs were probably made in large factory workshops in centres such as High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. This example was said by the previous owner to have come from St Paul's Cathedral, London.
This particular example is a very simple ladder-back chair with a wide top rail, single cross-rail, and rush seat. By the second half of the nineteenth century such chairs were probably made in large factory workshops in centres such as High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. This example was said by the previous owner to have come from St Paul's Cathedral, London.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Birch or oak, with seat of rush |
| Brief description | Church chair of simply turned and plainly varnished birch or beechwood, with a rush seat, the low back topped with a horizontal rail. |
| Physical description | Church chair of simply turned and plainly varnished birch or beechwood, with a rush seat, the low back topped with a horizontal rail. |
| Dimensions |
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| Object history | This chair was said to have been made for use in St Paul's cathedral in the late 19th century. It was purchased from John Brandler, Shenfield, Essex (Registered Papers 80/273). |
| Historical context | Such chairs came to be used in large numbers in churches and chapels in the later nineteenth century. The design was similar to traditional turned chairs, with the addition of a flat toprail, which allowed the person in the chair behind to rest their hands when kneeling to pray. This is also the reason that the back is relatively low, in contrast to the height of traditional ladder-back chairs, which might have several of the shaped rails that form the mid-rail here. |
| Summary | Church chairs were used as an alternative to fitted wooden pews, sometimes being linked together beneath the seats to form fixed rows. They were largely made to be functional rather than decorative and needed to be cheap, simple and strong enough to withstand constant public use. Most were based on country chair designs, with turned legs and solid or rush seats, and had several stretchers between the legs for added strength. The wide top rail at the back allowed the person behind the chair to lean upon it when kneeling to pray. This particular example is a very simple ladder-back chair with a wide top rail, single cross-rail, and rush seat. By the second half of the nineteenth century such chairs were probably made in large factory workshops in centres such as High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. This example was said by the previous owner to have come from St Paul's Cathedral, London. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | W.39-1980 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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