Sofa seat
Thomas Chippendale II (1749 - 1822)
Category
Furniture
Date
1802
Materials
Painted and parcel gilt deal and beech, horsehair, textile
Measurements
26 x 120 x 38 cm
Place of origin
London
Order this imageCollection
Stourhead, Wiltshire
NT 731562
Summary
A set of six painted and parcel gilt banquettes or 'sofa seats' with later overstuffed loose seat cushions, by Thomas Chippendale the Younger (1749-1822) London, 1802. Commissioned by pair for the anterooms to the Picture Gallery and the Library and most probably a pair for the Hall at Stourhead by Sir Richard Colt Hoare. Of rounded rectangular form each have a later thick loose cushioned seat raised on a moulded frame with oval medallions applied above the spiral fluted turned tapered legs, ball feet. The sizes per pair vary, painted decoration refreshed.
Full description
Chippendale's account dated 10th October 1802 '4 sofa seats with thick squabs stuffed and quilted in fine linen, the legs painted and bronzed £21-' and 'Silk thread and time making yellow cotton cases to ditto lined and welted £1-12-' and '2 long sofa seats with thick squab cushions stuffed very hard in fine linen and finished in white and gold £22-' and 'silk thread and time making cotton cases to do lined and welted £1-' The six now are uniformly painted in white with parcel gilt decoration, four originally were painted and 'bronzed' as listed in the above account and all appear to have been redecorated sometime in the early - mid 19th century. The original decoration can been seen in places where the paint has chipped and flaked. Thomas Chippendale the Younger at Stourhead Sir Richard Colt Hoare employed Thomas Chippendale the Younger (1749-1822) from 1795 to 1820 to supply furniture and furnishings for Stourhead in Wiltshire. The accounts submitted for his work are the largest known archive relating to Chippendale’s work. Out of the 163 pieces of furniture described in the accounts, 103 are still in the house, mostly in the rooms for which they were made. There was a fire in 1902 which destroyed the central part of Stourhead but fortunately most of the pictures and furniture from the ground floor were saved, the majority of the contents of the upper floors were destroyed. Chippendale the Younger worked with his father Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779) for many years before the latter died. Much of the work he produced in the 1780s and 1790s continued the styles and techniques associated with the Chippendale firm. During these years he was completing or continuing commissions that the firm had been involved with including Harewood house, Nostell Priory, and Burton Constable amongst others. The furniture supplied for Stourhead shows the continued high quality and attention to detail that was expected from the Chippendale workshops, linked with simplicity of decoration and clarity of line. For further discussion and extensive published research see: Goodison, Judith ‘The life and work of Thomas Chippendale Junior’ PWP 2017 Goodison, Judith ‘Thomas Chippendale the Younger at Stourhead’ Furniture History Society 2005 (Vol. 41) pp. 57-116 Gilbert, Christopher ‘The life and work of Thomas Chippendale’ London 1978 Vol.1 pp.235, 267 Beard, Geoffrey & Gilbert, Christopher ‘The Dictionary of English Furniture Makers, 1660-1840’ Furniture History Society 1986 pg.169 James Weedon (February 2018)
Provenance
Commissioned for Stourhead by Sir Richard Colt Hoare, two each for the ante rooms to the Library and Picture Gallery, two probably for the Hall. Made and supplied by Thomas Chippendale the Younger in 1802. Stourhead; the house and contents given to the National Trust in 1946 by Sir Henry Hoare (d.1947).
Makers and roles
Thomas Chippendale II (1749 - 1822), cabinet maker
References
Goodison, 2005: Judith Goodison. “Thomas Chippendale the younger at Stourhead.” Furniture History 31 (2005): pp.57-116, pp. 57-116 Gilbert, 1978: Christopher Gilbert. The life and work of Thomas Chippendale. London: Studio Vista: Christie’s, 1978., pp. 235, 267 Beard and Gilbert, 1986: Geoffrey Beard and Christopher Gilbert (ed), Dictionary of English Furniture Makers 1660-1840, 1986, pg.169 Goodison, 2017: Judith Goodison, The Life and Work of Thomas Chippendale Junior, PWP London & New York 2017