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The name given to a bulbous double-curved outline (wavy!), composed of a convex curve flanked by two concave curves, derived form the shape associated with snakes, applied, for instance, to the sinuous shape used in a horizontal plane on better furniture of the Rococo Period (see Bombe ).
A long spoon (approx. 9" long) used for serving food at the table.
A narrow table used in the dining room for the service of food.
A seat for two or more people with upholstered back and seat.
A bench seat with a tall, solid back used from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries to ward off drafts. Often used by a hearth.
A small table, usually of high quality. Fitted with drawers and/or a sliding bag to hold material and needlework tools.
The first thing to say is that Sheffield Plate is emphatically not electro-plated silver, in any way, shape or form. Sheffield Plate is rolled sheet silver which sandwiches an internal layer or sheet of copper, to which it is fused. The process was accidentally discovered in 1742 by Thomas Boulsover in Sheffield, and domestic articles were made using the technique from the 1750s until about the 1850s. It was recognised by the Sheffield Assay Office in 1784, after which date articles were stamped accordingly, and was being made there and elsewhere (Birmingham was a big producer) by the 1760s. By 1800 a wide range of articles were being produced in large quantites and a variety of styles, in many English towns. It was also copied abroad, notably France, Russia and Poland. The invention/development of " British Plate " in the 1840s brought production to an end, and in turn British Plate was superseded by the much cheaper electro-plating developed in the mid-to-late C18th. Sheffield Plate is very strong, and surviving pieces, and there are many, are generally in good condition. On the other hand, C19th silver plated ware can often be in poor condition, with worn off plate commonly evident.
The style period from 1790-1805. His book The Cabinetmaker's and Upholsterer's Drawing Book, published in four parts from 1791-94, established the style that came to be known as Federal in America.
A shaped horizontal bar fitted at the bottom of the chair back, on the rail , and into which the splat is fitted. Used on many C18th chairs, it was often fitted over the upholstery and tacked through into the back rail.
A dining chair without arms.
A dining room piece designed to store linens and equipment and for the service of food. Originated in the late eighteenth century.
Bed with curved head- and foot-boards resembling a sleigh. An Empire period design, showing the French influence whose popularity at the time reflected the belief that the French Revolution and the American Revolution were twins.
The smallest spoon of all (2" long), with a narrow bowl, used for extracting snuff from bottles.
This is a long seat, which was developed from the French day-bed. They were almost always fully upholstered, and of a rounded appearance. Sprung upholstery didn't appear until about 1830.
First made in about 1790, and developed from the Pembroke table, this drop leaf table was designed to sit behind a sofa (hence its name, of course), and is long and thin, with two short drop-leaves at each end, and usually two drawers in the frieze . The best ones have two end-supports connected by a stretcher ; the single pedestal type is much less desirable.
See Porcelain .
A long-handled, large-bowled utensil with an arched handle. Used to serve soup at the table. About 12" long.
A square tapered foot, generally used in the late C18th on a tapered leg, usually found on chairs, tables and sideboards. Can also be called a thermed (or termed ) foot, a term (pardon the pun) derived from the name for the stones used in antiquity to make boundaries, and which they resemble.
Usually associated with clocks, where spandrels decorate the four courners of a dial. On furniture, it's the triangular space formed between the curve of an arch and its square framing. Without the arch, the shape is that of a bracket.
See Braganza .
Spelter [metal] is an alloy composed chiefly of zinc. It was much used around the latter part of the C19th as a cheaper substitute for bronze, principally in cast decorative pieces, and was often painted or patinated to simulate ivory or bronze. It is very soft and malleable, but when cast tends to be crystalline and brittle, and which when broken shows a granular, silvery fracture plane. In many cases it was copper-plated before any other finish such as gold plating was applied and therefore a worn piece may look coppery. It as quite fragile if thin and there is no really satisfactory method of repair. In some cases such as figurines, a filler such as plaster may be added to give weight and strength. Spelter can often be detected by a scratch in an inconspicuous place showing a bright silver colour where otherwise one might expect bronze or copper.
A slender turned baluster , often decoratively used in rows, such as can be seen in the back of (say) a Windsor chair .
See barley twist .
The angled taper of the sides of, for instance, a splay foot. When curved, this is termed flared .
A vertical board, usually flat, and often with shaped sides and frequently pierced or carved, which is the central upright of a chair back, between the top and seat rails. Such a chair is known as a splat-back.