Gothic Revival Step Chair
Category
Furniture
Date
1870 - 1899
Materials
Oak, carpet
Measurements
89 x 43.5 x 36 cm
Place of origin
England
Order this imageCollection
Sunnycroft, Shropshire
NT 1318272
Summary
A Gothic Revival metamorphic chair and steps piece made from oak, dating to the late 19th century. The chair has two horizontal back bars with four flower motifs and a swirled decoration carved into them. The back bars are fixed to the vertical back support with angular wooden studs. The seat is plain, though a hinge line approximately three inches from the edge of the seat allows for easy metamorphosis into the step ladder form – the seat is fixed to the frame of the chair using the same style of wooden studs found on the back of the chair. The frame of the chair is designed not only to support the body weight of an individual sitting down, but also the weight of someone climbing the steps on the ladder. Two diagonal bars on both sides of the chair and two steps of the ladder underneath the seat provide this additional support. In order to transform the chair into a step ladder – used primarily for book finding purposes in a private library – the back of the chair must be rotated over the seat smoothly. When transformed, the step ladder has four treads, inset with a mandala patterned carpet.
Provenance
Sunnycroft was built in 1880 for J.G. Wackrill, founder of the Shropshire Brewery. It was bought in the early 1890s by Mary Jane Slaney who proceeded to extend the house and lay out the grounds to create the estate that is there today. After Mary Slaney died in 1912 the property was bought by her brother-in-law John Vernon Thomas Lander. Three generations of the Lander family lived at Sunnycroft. J.V.T. Lander's granddaughter Joan bequeathed the estate to the National Trust in 1997.