Object Description
A Very Fine Quality Pair Of Early 19th Century, Regency Period, Mahogany Hall Chairs, In The Manner Of Gillows Of Lancaster, Having Deeply Carved Shells To Elaborate Backs, Over Panelled Seats Raised On Elegant Reeded Turned And Tapering Legs, Retaining Exceptional Rich Colour And Patina Throughout.
Originally the purpose of hall chairs was exactly as their name suggests, to sit in the hallway of a house and be used for any guests to take a seat on after arrival whilst waiting for the owner of the house to be ready to receive them. For this reason they nearly always had wooden seats and backs so that any wet and dirty clothes were not likely to soil any expensive, or elaborate, fabric upholstery.
Generally hall chairs are found in many shaped and sizes, constructed throughout both the 18th and 19th centuries to varying degrees of quality and scale, dependent upon whom and where they were being made for.
This particular design, with the richly carved shell to the back and the incredibly elegant reeded turned leg is a well known design that was utilised by the well known furniture making firm Gillows, Lancaster. There is no stamps or signatures to confirm that they were indeed made by the Gillows firm, but based on the overall quality of the construction and the richness of the mahogany timbers used we would not be surprised in the slightest to discover that they did indeed originate from the workshops of Gillows.
Very much fit for original purpose and relatively sturdy with very little significant damage, which isn’t always the case with these types of chairs following heavy usage throughout the years, these are a lovely, elegant design of chair which would look absolutely fantastic in a whole variety of different spaces around the home.
As with all items which we offer for sale this pair of chairs have been inspected in our workshops by our traditional antique furniture restorers and received a natural wax polish before being offered for sale, which ensures they are ready to be placed straight into the home.
Circa 1820.
Height 35in.
Width 15.5in.
Depth 19in.
Seat Height 17in.