Squab frame
Category
Furniture
Date
1672 - 1673
Materials
Gilt wood, later ebonised, upholstered in gold and silver brocade
Measurements
18.0 x 710. x 61.0 cm
Place of origin
England
Order this imageCollection
Knole, Kent
NT 129529.1
Summary
One of a pair of carved squab frames with caned tops. The frames are ebonised but have traces of gilding underneath. Each frame carries two large tasselled cushions, one of gold and silver brocade to match the outer hangings and one of pink satin embroidered with silk to match the lining of the so-called ‘King’s Bed’ made in Paris. The upholstery, but the not the carving of the squabs, are en suite with the bed, presumably made for James II, when Duke of York (129526), a pair of armchairs (129527) and six matching stools (129528.1-6).
Provenance
The bedchamber suite was presumably made in 1672/3 for James, Duke of York (later King James II) and his wife Mary of Modena. Recorded at Whitehall Palace in 1694, and removed shortly afterwards from Whitehall Palace, either as a perquisite of office or as a gift from William III, by Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset in his capacity of Lord Chamberlain, and brought to Knole. Knole and the majority of its furniture were accepted by HM Treasury in part payment of death duties and transferred to the National Trust in 1946.