A ladderback chair, also ladder-back chair, slatback chair or fiddle back although that name is used less now due to the creation of the fiddle back chair. It gets its name from the horizontal spindles that serve as the back support on them and are reminiscent of a ladder.
Ladderback chairs tend to have tall backs with two uprights. Between these two uprights exists multiple horizontal spindles or slats (three in the picture to the right). The seat can be made of a variety of different materials. Originally the majority of seats were constructed using cane or rush, whereas now, the seats tend to be made of wood. The top slat may be larger than the other slats, pierced, or have a hole in the center, as a utility that makes carrying the chair easier. The larger top slat could also be easily decorated and adorned.
Historyedit
Ladderback chairs date back to the Middle Ages where they can be found in homes across Europe. By the 17th century, this style of chair was among the most common style in England. By the middle of the 17th century, luxury furniture makers began to make ladder-back chairs out of walnut, rather than the more common sycamore or maple and added refined decorations and engravings. The chairs became staples in homes across colonial America. They still remain among the most popular types of chairs.[1]The Metropolitan Museum of Art purchased a ladder-back chair, which was considered a peasant's chair, and was dated between the 17th and 18th centuries, in 1908.[2] It owns a pair of them made in Philadelphia between 1785–95 that resembles chairs made by Philadelphia furniture maker Daniel Trotter (1747–1800).[3]
Productionedit
Production of the several different parts of the chair required a different set of tools than other chairs popular during the 18th century in colonial America like the Windsor chair and formal sidechairs. Creating the cylindrical pieces of a ladder-back chair, such as the legs, occasionally the uprights, or the spindles, were most easily created using a turner's chisels and gouges as the wood spun on a lathe. Meanwhile, the slats along the back of the chair required several different sizes of saws and a plane. The ladderback chair's seat was formed using a drawknife when the seat was made of wood, otherwise, it was woven using cane or rush.[4]
^The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin Vol. 3, No. 11. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. November 1908. p. 213. JSTOR i363461.
^Rogers, Mary-Alice; Heckscher, Morrison H. (photographs) (1985). American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 2. Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 110. ISBN978-0-87099-427-2.
^Gaynor, James M.; Hagedorn, Nancy L. (1993). Tools: Working Wood in Eighteenth-century America. Colonial Williamsburg, 1993. p. 48. ISBN978-0-879-35098-7.
January 01, 1970
ladderback, chair, ladderback, chair, also, ladder, back, chair, slatback, chair, fiddle, back, although, that, name, used, less, creation, fiddle, back, chair, gets, name, from, horizontal, spindles, that, serve, back, support, them, reminiscent, ladder, typi. A ladderback chair also ladder back chair slatback chair or fiddle back although that name is used less now due to the creation of the fiddle back chair It gets its name from the horizontal spindles that serve as the back support on them and are reminiscent of a ladder A typical ladderback chair Contents 1 Description 2 History 3 Production 4 See also 5 ReferencesDescription editLadderback chairs tend to have tall backs with two uprights Between these two uprights exists multiple horizontal spindles or slats three in the picture to the right The seat can be made of a variety of different materials Originally the majority of seats were constructed using cane or rush whereas now the seats tend to be made of wood The top slat may be larger than the other slats pierced or have a hole in the center as a utility that makes carrying the chair easier The larger top slat could also be easily decorated and adorned History editLadderback chairs date back to the Middle Ages where they can be found in homes across Europe By the 17th century this style of chair was among the most common style in England By the middle of the 17th century luxury furniture makers began to make ladder back chairs out of walnut rather than the more common sycamore or maple and added refined decorations and engravings The chairs became staples in homes across colonial America They still remain among the most popular types of chairs 1 The Metropolitan Museum of Art purchased a ladder back chair which was considered a peasant s chair and was dated between the 17th and 18th centuries in 1908 2 It owns a pair of them made in Philadelphia between 1785 95 that resembles chairs made by Philadelphia furniture maker Daniel Trotter 1747 1800 3 Production editProduction of the several different parts of the chair required a different set of tools than other chairs popular during the 18th century in colonial America like the Windsor chair and formal sidechairs Creating the cylindrical pieces of a ladder back chair such as the legs occasionally the uprights or the spindles were most easily created using a turner s chisels and gouges as the wood spun on a lathe Meanwhile the slats along the back of the chair required several different sizes of saws and a plane The ladderback chair s seat was formed using a drawknife when the seat was made of wood otherwise it was woven using cane or rush 4 See also editShaker tilting chair Jennie Alexander Philip Clissett List of chairsReferences edit ladder back chair furniture Encyclopaedia Britannica The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin Vol 3 No 11 The Metropolitan Museum of Art November 1908 p 213 JSTOR i363461 Rogers Mary Alice Heckscher Morrison H photographs 1985 American Furniture in the Metropolitan Museum of Art Vol 2 Metropolitan Museum of Art p 110 ISBN 978 0 87099 427 2 Gaynor James M Hagedorn Nancy L 1993 Tools Working Wood in Eighteenth century America Colonial Williamsburg 1993 p 48 ISBN 978 0 879 35098 7 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ladderback chair amp oldid 1216194547, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
