Lot Essay
With its wavy-crest, turned arm supports, tripartite stretcher pattern, and 'crookt' feet, this chair is fashioned in the Philadelphia tradition of joined, turned chairs associated with the shops of Solomon Fussell and William Savery. Made of maple and fitted with a rush-bottom seat, these chairs were inexpensive and therefore, made in large quantities for urban and rural Pennsylvanians alike. Fussell's surviving business ledgers provide evidence of the quality and quantity of such chairs produced in his shop. These ledgers qualify this type of chair as "common" and indicate its relative value by documenting the enormous quantites of the basic "common" chair components stockpiled by Fussell before 1750. The popularity of these chairs in the eighteenth century however, is in contrast to their great rarity today. A nearly identical chair attributed to Solomon Fussell is at Winterthur.
The chair's diverse characteristics may individually fit into both traditional Queen Anne and Chippendale stylistic categories. Nevertheless, as a whole work, the chair defies such stylistic designations. Forman, in discussing the Winterthur example of this chair, points out the difficulty in categorizing this unique style. In his article "Delaware Valley 'Crookt Foot' and Slat-Back Chairs: The Fussell-Savery Connection," Forman suggests that the "wavy-topped crest" should not be considered a "Chippendale" feature, as Chippendale had not published his book when the chair was made, but alternatively suggests that the crest may be "a simplified American manifestation of the international design ideas William Kent popularized in England" (Winterthur Portfolio, 15, Spring 1980, p.55). His logic may be applicable to the chair illustrated here, as its features do not fit exactly into traditional stylistic categories. Accordingly, the chair illustrated here, can best be seen in the particular context of the tradition of Philadelphia cabinetmaking associated with the Fussell-Savery shops. For a more complete discussion of the Fussell ledgers and the Fussell-Savery tradition, see Forman, 41-64.
Although clearly inspired by an Anglo-New England prototype, this chair has distinctly Philadelphia regional characteristics. As Forman notes, the tripartite stretcher has distinctly fuller carved elements and incised lines not found in New England examples. Likewise, while the Phialdelphia chairs generally had rush-bottom seats, their New England counterpart was probably introduced with a leather or cane seat (see Forman, pp. 55-56).
The chair's diverse characteristics may individually fit into both traditional Queen Anne and Chippendale stylistic categories. Nevertheless, as a whole work, the chair defies such stylistic designations. Forman, in discussing the Winterthur example of this chair, points out the difficulty in categorizing this unique style. In his article "Delaware Valley 'Crookt Foot' and Slat-Back Chairs: The Fussell-Savery Connection," Forman suggests that the "wavy-topped crest" should not be considered a "Chippendale" feature, as Chippendale had not published his book when the chair was made, but alternatively suggests that the crest may be "a simplified American manifestation of the international design ideas William Kent popularized in England" (Winterthur Portfolio, 15, Spring 1980, p.55). His logic may be applicable to the chair illustrated here, as its features do not fit exactly into traditional stylistic categories. Accordingly, the chair illustrated here, can best be seen in the particular context of the tradition of Philadelphia cabinetmaking associated with the Fussell-Savery shops. For a more complete discussion of the Fussell ledgers and the Fussell-Savery tradition, see Forman, 41-64.
Although clearly inspired by an Anglo-New England prototype, this chair has distinctly Philadelphia regional characteristics. As Forman notes, the tripartite stretcher has distinctly fuller carved elements and incised lines not found in New England examples. Likewise, while the Phialdelphia chairs generally had rush-bottom seats, their New England counterpart was probably introduced with a leather or cane seat (see Forman, pp. 55-56).