拍品專文
Perhaps the most widely recognized of Portsmouth splat patterns, this set of sidechairs, represents the largest known group of this popular chair form.
Identical to three chairs branded 'R Hart' by merchant Richard Hart (ca. 1733-1820) of Portsmouth, this set is part of a group of twenty-six chairs probably made in the same cabinetshop. While there is an even larger group of chairs of various means of construction with carved splats and crests that lack the downward peaks, chairs from the smaller group represented here are consistent in overall design and construction techniques. Each chair features rounded ears and downward peaks on the crest, beaded legs with an inner chamfer, a blind-tenoned medial stretcher,inscribed medial stretchers and over-the-rail upholstered seats.
The shop characteristics and appearance of these chairs relate them to chairs made by English cabinetmaker, Robert Harrold, who arrived in Portsmouth in 1765. Two of the chairs associated with Harrold's ;shop share either the identical crest or a broader splat interpretation, both of which are based on plate 4 of Robert Manwaring's The Cabinet and Chair-Maker's Real Friend and Companion (London, 1765) (see Jobe, Portsmouth Furniture (SPNEA, 1993) figs. 86, 87). For this group of chairs, Harrold or a competitor directly copied Manwaring's design for the crest and elongated the splat to arrive at the pattern for these chairs (see illustration).
Identical chairs include a branded 'R Hart' chair illustrated in Sack, American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection, vol. 7, p. 2001; two 'R Hart' chairs in the collection of Strawberry Banke Museum; a pair photographed at the Jewett House in 1931 (SPNEA); a pair from the Wentworth-Gardner House; a set of eight chairs advertised by Israel Sack in Magazine Antiques 43, no. 5 (May 1943):203; Magazine Antiques 104, no. 4 (October, 1973):539; two chairs from the Warner House; a sidechair at the Tate House Museum, Portland Maine; and two chairs that sold in these Rooms June 2, 1990, lot 216 and October 19, 1991, lot 130 (Jobe, p. 327).
The upholstery on these chairs was installed by the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities Conservation Center; each chair is fitted with stable foam and covered in modern dark blue horsehair. Finish analysis was also performed on the chairs and conservation record are available.
Identical to three chairs branded 'R Hart' by merchant Richard Hart (ca. 1733-1820) of Portsmouth, this set is part of a group of twenty-six chairs probably made in the same cabinetshop. While there is an even larger group of chairs of various means of construction with carved splats and crests that lack the downward peaks, chairs from the smaller group represented here are consistent in overall design and construction techniques. Each chair features rounded ears and downward peaks on the crest, beaded legs with an inner chamfer, a blind-tenoned medial stretcher,inscribed medial stretchers and over-the-rail upholstered seats.
The shop characteristics and appearance of these chairs relate them to chairs made by English cabinetmaker, Robert Harrold, who arrived in Portsmouth in 1765. Two of the chairs associated with Harrold's ;shop share either the identical crest or a broader splat interpretation, both of which are based on plate 4 of Robert Manwaring's The Cabinet and Chair-Maker's Real Friend and Companion (London, 1765) (see Jobe, Portsmouth Furniture (SPNEA, 1993) figs. 86, 87). For this group of chairs, Harrold or a competitor directly copied Manwaring's design for the crest and elongated the splat to arrive at the pattern for these chairs (see illustration).
Identical chairs include a branded 'R Hart' chair illustrated in Sack, American Antiques from Israel Sack Collection, vol. 7, p. 2001; two 'R Hart' chairs in the collection of Strawberry Banke Museum; a pair photographed at the Jewett House in 1931 (SPNEA); a pair from the Wentworth-Gardner House; a set of eight chairs advertised by Israel Sack in Magazine Antiques 43, no. 5 (May 1943):203; Magazine Antiques 104, no. 4 (October, 1973):539; two chairs from the Warner House; a sidechair at the Tate House Museum, Portland Maine; and two chairs that sold in these Rooms June 2, 1990, lot 216 and October 19, 1991, lot 130 (Jobe, p. 327).
The upholstery on these chairs was installed by the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities Conservation Center; each chair is fitted with stable foam and covered in modern dark blue horsehair. Finish analysis was also performed on the chairs and conservation record are available.