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PLATE IV

Another was of white gauze, upon the seams of which little tufts, or tassels, of various colours were sewn. The “pomme” painted in various colours, had attached to it a green silk cord; another was of crimson and gold; and another of violet velvet trimmed with silk fringe of the same hue. The “pomme” of the latter was painted violet and silver, and the cord was of violet silk.

A glance at Plate I. will show that the general outlines of the chairs are square. The usual set of seats comprised fauteuils, or arm-chairs; chairs with backs; folding-stools (pliants); and a lit de repos. In the ancient inventories the term “chaises meublantes” is given to chairs with covered backs, while the chairs with wooden and open backs are called “chaises cacquetoires” and “chaises perroquets.” The most characteristic chair of the period is the short, square and rather squat, yet well-proportioned chair that appears in nearly every one of Abraham Bosse’s drawings, and which in England is known as “the low leather,” or “Cromwell chair.” This chair is shown in the Frontispiece and also on Plate V., while variants appear on Plate I. as No. 3 and as a full drawing. This chair may be covered with leather, serge, silk, damask, brocade, velvet, tapestry, or needlework; but in every case the material is fastened to the woodwork by means of large brass, gold, or silver-headed nails, and the back and seat are both usually ornamented with a short fringe, as is shown in the Frontispiece. No. 2 and No. 5 on Plate I. are fauteuils of the period, No. 5 being an Italian chair decorated with a fringe. Many of the fauteuils of the day were “in the Italian taste,” that is to say entirely covered with velvet and trimmed with lace or fringe. The framework of the arm-chair was sometimes visible, as shown on Plate I., No. 2. It was of pear-wood stained to resemble ebony, walnut, oak, or it was painted in a colour to harmonize with the covering. Among Cardinal Mazarin’s many chairs were two fauteuils and two chairs with backs, entirely covered with velvet nailed on the wood. These were ornamented with a braid of medium width, as were also the folding-stools, or pliants. The wood of the latter was painted red. We also hear of two fauteuils trimmed with lace and fringe of medium width, the wood being entirely covered with the velvet; at the bottom of the back there was a double row of the crespine. The six folding-stools that went with these arm-chairs were also garnished with lace and fringe, but their frames were painted green and picked out with gold. The seats were covered with green serge. Another set of furniture consisted of six fauteuils, six chairs with backs, six pliants and a lit de repos. These were covered with needlework ornamented with a silk fringe of many colours. The frames were of pear-wood stained black, and they were decorated with twisted columns.

The twisted column shown in the side-supports and straining-rails of the chair in the lower right-hand corner on Plate I., and also in No. 2 and No. 3 on the same plate, is derived from Italy. It is a favourite ornamentation of the day and occurs in bed-posts and wherever pillars are used. Another form of the spiral leg is shown on Plate III., No. 6. Still another form is shown in the arm-chair with twisted and baluster arms that appears as No. 5 on Plate III. A favourite shape for the leg of a chair was also the X that so often appears in the pictures of the Dutch masters. These chairs were of Flemish and Italian origin. (See Plate VII., lower right-hand corner.) This X is also present in the pliant or folding-stool, an example of which is shown under the window in the Frontispiece.

The coverings for the fauteuils, folding-seats, etc. were, as we have said, of damask, brocade, silk, serge, tapestry, or needlework, but we must add that Genoa and Venetian velvets with floral designs in high relief were extremely popular.

Two other typical chairs are shown on Plate I. No. 1 is a handsome fauteuil of noble proportions. Its back and seat are covered with two squares of material fastened in the correct way with large nails. No. 4 is a very fine specimen indeed with a carved back panel of wood. The favourite mascaron decorates the top rail.

On Plate I. is shown a typical chair of the period with an open back of turned spindles. Deville says this was the “chaise caquetoire” or “chaise perroquet,” a name that was given to all kinds of chairs with open backs, whether carved or turned, or simply of two, three, four or five horizontal rails. If this was so, the chaise perroquet meant a different kind of chair later in the century, for Saint-Simon says: “Monseigneur himself and all who were at the table had seats with backs of black leather which could be folded up for carriage use and which were called perroquets.” In the Château de Chenonceau (1603), there were “more than two coverings for the petites chaises cacquetoires of silk of several colours brightened with gold and silver also on canvas estimated at forty sols, apiece.”

There were three other “chaises cacquetoires like the three chairs just mentioned, estimated at four livres dix sols apiece.”

In Cardinal Mazarin’s inventory, there was “an old chaise à perroquet” covered with moquette (a kind of velvet or woolen tapestry), and in the inventory of the Garde Meuble, ten perroquets covered with “tripe” (a kind of red panne velvet) occur.

Another kind of chair is the “chaise voyeuse.” The seat of this is quite high and the top rail resting upon the side supports (which are continuations of the back legs) is supplied with a manchette (cushion), upon which one may rest his elbows while watching the play at the card table. The back of this chair is shaped like a violin, or a bidet. These chairs are mentioned in many old inventories such as Cardinal Mazarin’s Fontainebleau, Versailles, etc. In Fontainebleau in the salons de jeux were “four voyeuses en prie-dieu” and “two voyeuses en bidets.”

The lit de repos, or chaise longue (see Plate VIII.) is an elongated seat. As a rule, this couch, or seat, is six feet long, and upon it rests a mattress or cushion. It is also furnished with a bolster, which should be covered with the same material as the mattress and back. Being exactly the width of the seat, it is placed below the back at right angles to the mattress. Sometimes this piece of furniture has elbows, and sometimes it has only turned supports at the sides of the back.

Many of the handsome tables were of a fashion that was continued through the succeeding reign, being of richly carved and gilded wood with hind’s feet or with term legs with or without stretchers. Some of them were enriched with gilded bronze, and incrustations and marquetry work of shell, copper and other metal. The tops, like those of the preceding reign, were frequently of marble or marquetry. They were also covered with a cloth and a housse of leather, serge, tapestry, etc. The table-carpet, as a rule, reached to the floor and was garnished with a narrow or wide fringe. This was the housse, and above it was a second cloth (see Frontispiece). These table-coverings were either simple or rich, according to the purse or fancy of the owner. Cardinal Mazarin, for example, had four table-coverings of crimson damask flowered, bearing the arms of his Eminence; four of “red crimson” Turkey leather trimmed with gold fringe and gold tassels and lined with red taffeta, and a green flowered damask table-carpet with four sides, lined with green cloth and trimmed with gold fringe à la Romaine. One of the handsomest varieties of table appears as a full drawing on Plate II.

Although the console is known during the reigns of Henri II. and III., it is in the reign of Louis XIII. that the phrase table en console appears in the inventories. The console was derived from the credence, and was even in its earliest form a large table with a marble top, jutting out like a bracket and serving to support a bust or vase. The three visible faces of the console were in the early days frequently supported with chimæras, fauns, etc. The word table was gradually dropped and the article was known as console.

A variety of table, known as the guéridon, was also popular. This is a small round table mounted on a stem or baluster that ends in three legs (Plate III., No. 2). It was made of various woods, sometimes of pear-wood stained black and sometimes painted. It was of great convenience. Sometimes it was used for cards; but more often it held a lamp, or candelabra, or a refreshment tray.

The chandeliers were usually of brass and hung from the centre of the room. Of course, candles were inserted in the arms. Candelabra and small candlesticks were also used to give light, and sconces were frequently attached to the walls. Pictures were framed and hung directly over the tapestries, as shown in the Frontispiece. Their frames differed but slightly from the frames of the mirrors, specimens of which appear on Plate II. as a full drawing and as No. 1. Another frame appropriate for either a picture or a mirror is seen on Plate IV., No. 3.