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Antique Chairs - Item 4118
2 Gothic Armchairs or Caquetoires

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Item 4118 |
2 Gothic Armchairs or Caquetoires |
Dimensions |
Width 21, Height 54, Depth 17 (in inches) |
Wood |
Oak |
Country |
France |
Date |
Circa 1890 |
Price |
$4,995 |
Description |
These
two matching Gothic chairs are fine examples of the 19th century revival in France
of interest in designs of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The armchairs are classic caquetoires -
trapezoidal-shaped seat echoed below in the stretcher. This shape, also referred to 'as in the
manner of Tallemouze,' is another charming example of design evoking food: the 'talmouse' was a triangular puff pastry
dating from medieval times but now recognized as the ancestor of the
cheesecake. The origin of the term
caquetoire, however, is a bit sexist to the modern observer. According to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam,
the caquetoire was developed as a conversation chair for women (the French verb
"caqueter" means "to chat"). The broad, trapezoidal seat accommodated wide dresses worn by ladies
of the 16th century who otherwise had been relegated to stools or window seats
(except in the case of aristocracy and royalty) while their male counterparts
sat on chairs.
Other
features of the armchairs harking back to the haute époque caquetoire include
the narrow back out of which curving arms attach to posts in the shape of
columns extending vertically from the seat.
What attracted us to them was that the decoration is Gothic, in the
nature of fenestrage or the tracery patterns found in windows of Gothic
cathedrals. That Gothic elements would
be used by a 19th century creator of a chair whose design owes its origins to
the Renaissance reinforces the notion that Gothic and Renaissance coexisted
quite comfortably in the 19th century revival of both styles in France.
The intricate
hand-carving of the backs and the railing feature of the top displays the best
of Gothic design in 19th century reinterpretation. For example, the railing feature is typically seen atop benches
and chayres or thrones for bishops. And
the elongated central panel of the back of each chair is more often seen in
sets of dining chairs where each chair is slightly different within the overall
effect of the tracery. The columns
supporting the armrest and the seats again evoke Gothic cathedral design in their
diagonal fluting, including alternating plain and entrelac or overlapping
patterns. More Renaissance in nature is
the curving armrest rather than the more angular version favored in other
caquetoires, such as #4149.
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Reference |
Boccador,
Jacqueline, Le Mobilier Français du Moyen Age à la Renaissance, Editions d'Art
Monelle Hayot (Saint-Just-en-Chaussée, 1988); Boussel, Patrice, Les Styles du
Moyen Age à Louis XIV (Baschet et Cie,
Paris, 1979);Rousseau,
Francis, Le Grand Livre des Meubles (Copyright Studio, Paris, 1999)
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Uses |
These
chairs are ideal for a dining area around a small table or as occasional chairs
in any room.
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