Windsor chair
The Windsor chair is a type of chair that is particularly common in Great Britain and North America. It was developed in England in the early 18th century and is still in production today. It is a very light chair that consists of a seat that is slightly adapted to the shape of the human body, as well as twisted chair legs and a backrest made from individual, likewise twisted rods. Many Windsor chairs also have armrests.
features
The Windsor chair owes its popularity primarily to the small amount of wood required to make it. The legs and back of the chair can be turned from branches. Alternatively, triangular wooden sticks that were cut from tree trunks were used in the past. Its manufacture is relatively simple, so that even those who are relatively inexperienced are able to manufacture these chairs. Complex connections such as dovetail connections or the like, which require greater manual experience, are not necessary in the construction of the chair. To assemble the chair, only holes are drilled in the seat and the upper backrest and, if necessary, in the armrests. It gains its stability from the four inclined chair legs that are also reinforced by three cross connections.
The basic design was gladly taken up as a rocking chair variant.
history
The Windsor chair originated near the English town of High Wycombe , but it is named after the town of Windsor . Windsor was right on the Thames , making it ideal for transporting chairs made there to London, the main market. The chairs were often resold from London. Most of the trade routes were by ship along the British coast. To the best of our knowledge, they were introduced to America in 1726 by the governor of Pennsylvania, Patrick Gordon.
The Windsor chair was one of the first mass-produced furniture. Its design also allowed craftsmen with relatively small businesses to produce chair legs and armrests in advance and store them without taking up a lot of space. Relatively few tools were required for production. The manufacturer needed an ax or a saw, a drill, hammer and a plane. A lathe was required to turn the bars and chair legs. Foot-operated lathes such as rocker lathes have existed since the 16th century. Such a Windsor chair was relatively inexpensive to buy for users. Their light design was also a major advantage at a time when chairs were traditionally placed along the walls and only placed at the table for meals.
supporting documents
literature
- Harvey Green: Wood - Craft, Culture, History . Penguin Books, New York 2006, ISBN 978-0-14-311269-3 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Green, p. 102
- ↑ Rocking chair examples
- ^ Knell, David (2000): English Country Furniture: The Vernacular Tradition 1500-1900 , ACC, 310, ISBN 1-85149-302-6 .
- ↑ Green, p. 104
