1872.1
Joined Great Chair
Artists
William Searle
(Devonshire, England, 1634 - 1667, Ipswich, Massachusetts);
[
school of
Thomas Dennis]
Title
Joined Great Chair
Creation Date
1663-1667
Century
17th century
Dimensions
48 1/2 in. x 25 1/2 in. x 17 7/8 in. (123.19 cm. x 64.77 cm. x 45.4 cm.)
Object Type
furniture
Creation Place
North America, United States
Medium and Support
oak
Credit Line
Gift of Ephraim Wilder Farley, Class of 1836
Copyright
Public Domain
Accession Number
1872.1
An accomplished joiner born and educated in Devonshire, England, William Searle emigrated to America in 1663. He is believed to have produced this carved chair for his home in Ipswich, Massachusetts. The handsomely carved ornament, with anthropomorphic figures decorating the stiles, is based on the geometric Mannerist strapwork, promoted in Northern Europe through prints and pattern books. Seen on English furniture from the region in which Searle trained, the designs were carried on by at least two generations of joiners in New England. The use of carving increased a chair’s cost, but furniture of local oak furnished many households of Anglo settlers in Massachusetts. Originally given to Bowdoin College for use of the president at Commencement, the chair is now recognized as among the nation’s finest examples of seventeenth-century furniture. It provides a marked contrast to the Dutch side chair, made of lathe-turned parts, on view nearby.
Additional Media
1872.1.side.jpg