How to Identify Chippendale Furniture – A quick list
- Ball and claw designed foot of furniture legs
- Sturdy but well proportioned construction
- Exquisite and extensive carving
- Carving is the main ornamental feature in Chippendale furniture
- Chairs have carved back that becomes broader at the top
- Wide upholstered seats
- Taller furniture pieces have broken pediments at the top
- Skirts and aprons where generally carved on chairs and tables
Full Answer
How to identify Thomas Chippendale furniture?
Although famous for its legs and feet design this can only provide a good base when identifying Chippendale pieces, a lot of fine pieces of furniture have been associated with Thomas Chippendale, but valid pieces are rare.
What kind of legs do Chippendale cabinets have?
Many Chippendale pieces have cabriole legs, which have a curve to them. American cabinetmakers from Newport, Rhode Island, often used classically styled reeded or fluted legs as well. Furniture makers in Philadelphia incorporated Rococo influences resulting in more elaborately carved legs.
What kind of wood is Chippendale furniture made of?
Chippendale Block and Shell Carved Mahogany Chest of Drawers, MoMA. Chippendale furniture is an American design originating in the 16th century. It is mainly characterized by the style of the legs and feet and is frequently made of a dark colored wood.
Are old Chippendale chairs collectible?
And once you learn them, if you get lucky, you might even find an 18th century American-made piece, which is also highly collectible. An exquisitely carved cabriole leg – a serpentine-shaped leg in the Queen Anne style furniture – represents the signature hallmark of Chippendale chair and table legs.
How can you tell if a piece of furniture is Chippendale?
You can also find the following characteristics in Chippendale furniture.Fine silk fabric upholstery on settees, stools, and chairs.Yoke-shaped splats on chairs.Top railings on arm and side chairs are intricately designed with ribbon motifs.Shell motifs reminiscent of the Queen Anne Style.
What are the characteristics of Chippendale furniture?
Chippendale furniture draws on both Rococo and Gothic style, designers explain. Armstrong adds that Chippendale pieces are characterized by a number of key characteristics: S-curves, gothic influenced arches, Queen Anne cabriole legs, heavy Chinese influences, and pagoda elements in cabinet pediments.
What defines Chippendale style?
Chippendale furniture is an American design originating in the 16th century. It is mainly characterized by the style of the legs and feet and is frequently made of a dark colored wood.
How much is Chippendale furniture worth?
Chippendale chair: On average a genuine Chippendale single chair can begin at $300 and reach upwards of $600. Chippendale table: Smaller genuine end or side tables can start at $350 and range up to $88,721!
What is the most expensive Chippendale furniture?
At a recent auction at Sotheby's in London, a 1770 commode crafted by legendary British furniture designer Thomas Chippendale sold for $5,980,438, making it the most expensive piece of English furniture in the world.
How do you date a piece of furniture?
How to Determine the Age of Antique FurnitureLook Past the Style of a Piece.Examine Bottoms, Insides, and Backs.Check for Perfectly Matching Elements.Try to Figure Out What Tools Were Used.Look at the Wood and Upholstery Fabric.Investigate the Screws and Other Hardware.
What is the difference between Queen Anne and Chippendale furniture?
In general, Chippendale furniture is a more ornate version of Queen Anne furniture. Whereas the Queen Anne style often features padded feet, the Chippendale style often features ball-and-claw feet.
What makes a chair a Chippendale?
The first things that most people notice about Chippendale furniture are the legs and feet. Most Chippendale chairs and tables sit on cabriole legs, which are built with two curves: the first curve is at the top of the leg, where the wood curves outward, and the second is at the bottom, where the wood curves inward.
What wood did Chippendale use?
Mahogany woodThomas Chippendale originally chose Mahogany wood because of its amazing qualities compared to other timbers at that time. And to this day, compared to other wood, creating with this timber is still often superior to using any other wood.
How can you tell if a Chippendale chair is real?
0:092:34How to identify an unsigned Chippendale style chair, Dr. Lori ...YouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipLooks like the crest of a wave. If. Someone is teaching you about antiques. And they can't explainMoreLooks like the crest of a wave. If. Someone is teaching you about antiques. And they can't explain the vocabulary the vocabulary is always simple it looks like the crest of a wave.
How do I identify my furniture maker?
A telltale sign of the furniture's maker is a manufacturing tag, label or stamp bearing the name of the creator. Such a marking or label may have been placed inside a drawer on an old dresser, on the back of a chest of drawers, or on the underside of a chair or sofa seat.
Is Chippendale furniture antique?
Chippendale-style furniture is often talked about in the antique market. The characteristic legs, feet, and dark wood appeal to many antique collectors and each piece has its own unique appeal.
What is the difference between Queen Anne and Chippendale furniture?
In general, Chippendale furniture is a more ornate version of Queen Anne furniture. Whereas the Queen Anne style often features padded feet, the Chippendale style often features ball-and-claw feet.
What Wood did Chippendale use?
Mahogany woodThomas Chippendale originally chose Mahogany wood because of its amazing qualities compared to other timbers at that time. And to this day, compared to other wood, creating with this timber is still often superior to using any other wood.
What is Thomas Chippendale known for?
Thomas Chippendale (1718 – 1779) was a London cabinet-maker and furniture designer in the mid-Georgian, English Rocco, and Neoclassical styles. In 1754 he published a book of his designs, The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director.
What are different styles of furniture called?
We have tried to make understandable list of major furniture styles popular in homes.TRADITIONAL. Traditional style of furniture reproduces the classic decor with European flair. ... MODERN. ... CONTEMPORARY. ... TRANSITIONAL. ... MID-CENTURY MODERN.
What are the characteristics of Chippendale furniture?
Legs and Feet : Some of the most defining characteristics of Chippendale furniture include legs and feet. Most Chippendale furnishings featured cabriole legs, where the knees curve outward and the ankles curve inward, often terminating to ornamental feet. Above all else, Chippendale preferred the appearance of ball-and-claw feet and the lion's paw.
What is Chippendale Furniture?
In 1754, Chippendale published the Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director, a collection of furniture designs that improved upon fashionable furniture styles and designs of the time. Publication of his detailed collection had an enormous effect on Chippendale's career and future commissions. From his catalog, wealthy patrons could choose specific elements for their furniture and Chippendale would custom make each commissioned piece in his workshop.
What kind of wood is used in Chippendale furniture?
American furniture makers began using cherrywood and other kinds of woods as well, such as maple and walnut. In fact, many American Chippendale pieces were made with a combination of dark woods. Veneers were seldom used in the manufacture of Chippendale furniture, and you can typically spot a Chippendale reproduction for this reason.
What was the name of the book that Chippendale published in 1754?
In 1754, Chippendale published the Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director , a collection of furniture designs that improved upon fashionable furniture styles and designs of the time. Publication of his detailed collection had an enormous effect on Chippendale's career and future commissions.
What wood is used in furniture?
Woods Used: The finest pieces were traditionally handcrafted from mahogany, which was imported from the West Indies. Mahogany was less brittle than soft pine yet more flexible than hard oak, and it boasts a beautiful brown hue that tends to darken over time. In the latter part of the 18th century, furniture makers began using Cuban, Dominican, and Honduran mahogany. Due to the cost and scarcity of some wood species, furniture makers often had to improvise in order to mimic the older pieces that preceded them.
How to tell if a chair is Chippendale?
While legs and feet often provide a good place to start when identifying Chippendale pieces, there are a number of other features to look for as well. In terms of the wood detail, top railings on chairs frequently have a yoked shape. Back splats (the thin piece of wood on the center of the back of a chair) on arm and side chairs can be intricately pierced and carved with ribbon motifs, although some chairs do have less ornate splats. Shell motifs carrying over from the Queen Anne period may be present but are not as prevalent in this style as they were earlier in the 1700s.
What is Chippendale furniture?
Chippendale furniture is an American design originating in the 16th century . It is mainly characterized by the style of the legs and feet and is frequently made of a dark colored wood. There are influences from the Queen Ann style, as well as Chinese design; the Chippendale aesthetic has stood the test of time as it has continued to be a part ...
What are Chippendale legs?
Many Chippendale pieces have cabriole legs, which have a curve to them. American cabinetmakers from Newport, Rhode Island, often used classically styled reeded or fluted legs as well. Furniture makers in Philadelphia incorporated Rococo influences resulting in more elaborately carved legs. Some pieces, such as side chairs and small tables like the Pembroke style, have straight legs but other elements of Chippendale style are still present.
How many different types of legs are there in Chippendale furniture?
There are actually six different styles of legs and feet in Chippendale furniture: the lion's paw, the ball-and-claw foot, the Late Chippendale, the Marlborough, the club, and the spade. The lion's paw, named for its shape, and the ball and claw were based on the cabriole shape. American cabinetmakers favored the ball and claw as ...
What are the features of Chippendale chairs?
In terms of the wood detail, top railings on chairs frequently have a yoked shape.
Is antique furniture valuable?
Be sure to get the opinion of an antique furniture expert if you're not sure of its origin, especially if you're considering refinishing or altering the piece in any way. Many pieces of antique furniture are much more valuable in original condition.
Is Chippendale a Queen Anne style?
American furniture made in the Chippendale style, which falls within the Colonial period, was conservative in comparison to English designs from the same timeframe. Chippendale is closely related to the earlier Queen Anne style, and it is important to remember that elements in furniture designs sometimes overlap as tastes change from period to period. Thus, you may find a piece that falls into the Chippendale category overall, but has a Queen Anne element or two as well.
What style of furniture did Chippendale use?
In Antiques 101 by Frank Farmer Loomis IV, he states that although Chippendale “ appreciated the long-established Queen Anne style, he realized that innovative designs kept sales flourishing .”. This resulted with him creating a hybrid style by blending over-the- top Rococo style with the Gothic and Chinese styles.
When did Chippendale furniture become popular?
Most dominant in America from about 1750 to 1780 the style got its name after a cabinet maker from the 18th century, Thomas Chippendale who designed reproductions of popular English taste of the time with elements ...
What material did Chippendale use?
The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director Image via donaldheald.com. The material used for the most exquisite Chippendale style pieces was mostly mahogany, brought from the West Indies.
What was Thomas Chippendale's influence on furniture design?
This resulted with the publication of the Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director in 1754, a collection of popular English furnishing design templates and one of the very fundamental books for furniture design. In it Chippendale revised current designs to the popular fashion of the middle of the 18th century. Everyone from sellers to furniture makers ran to purchase it, forming a dignitary name for Chippendale . And the Director had such a great influence that the name Chippendale is very often widely correlated to all furniture from the middle of the 18th century. After it, two reprints followed, a virtual reprint in 1755 and finally a revised and enlarged edition in 1762, by which time Chippendale’s embellished blueprints began to show signs of Neoclassicism
How many plates did Chippendale have?
It consisted of 161 plates, imitating many elements of the Rococo, Chinese, Gothic and Neoclassical design. However, Chippendales work wasn’t limited to furniture design. As a gifted man, he was prepared to design and provide wallpapers, carpets, fire grates, decorative elements, chimney pieces, even complete room layouts.
When was Chippendale's chair made?
Chippendale Style Chair with Yoke Back, Pierced Splat, Cabriole Legs, and Ball and Claw Feet, c. 1765-1775. – Image via. Prices4Antiques.com. Although details of the beginning of his career still remain unknown, Thomas Chippendale was born in 1718 at Otley, a small settlement in West Yorkshire, England.
Is Thomas Chippendale a maker's mark?
Although famous for its legs and feet design this can only provide a good base when identifying Chippendale pieces, a lot of fine pieces of furniture have been associated with Thomas Chippendale, but valid pieces are rare. Chippendale never used a maker’s mark, so the only way of verifying his origin is to find one of his original bills, usually hidden among estate papers, or similar documents.
Where was Chippendale furniture made?
Highly collectible and sought after, Chippendale-style furniture made in America during the period from cabinetmakers in Boston and Philadelphia to Charleston produced furniture that exhibit the same characteristics as original Chippendale pieces.
What furniture was made in Chippendale style?
Both English and American furniture makers produced Chippendale-style chests of drawers, high chests, bureau or dressing tables, desks, tall clock cases, i.e., grandfather clocks, and gaming and dining tables. Pediments and finials graced the tops of tall pieces. Armchairs and side chairs became known for intricately carved or pierced-splat designs in their backs.
What wood was used in Chippendale furniture?
Veneers were seldom used. During the American Chippendale period, furniture and cabinet makers typically chose cherry wood.
What type of furniture was used in the colonies?
In New England, chairs often had stretchers between the legs, and case furniture such a bureau chests had concave or convex front panels known as blocking. Curve-sided bombe chests were mainly produced in Boston.
Why are Chippendale's original pieces irregular?
Most of Chippendale's original pieces featured some irregularities because they were completely handmade. Carvings from one side of a piece to the other will not match exactly. Joints are irregular and often display tool marks. When used, nails were handmade. Carved motifs were applied with pegs.
Did Thomas Chippendale use a maker's mark?
Notes for Novice Collectors. Thomas Chippendale did not use a maker's mark, so verifying the item as being made by him or his craftsmen in England requires original documentation or a professional assessment. Most of Chippendale's original pieces featured some irregularities because they were completely handmade.
Is furniture still made in this style today?
Furniture is still made in this style today, but identifying its specific characteristics can help you distinguish quality reproductions from cheap ones. And once you learn them, if you get lucky, you might even find an 18th century American-made piece, which is also highly collectible.
What is Chippendale furniture?
Chippendale furniture combines gothic, Rococo, and Chinese influences to create a design motif that has gained popularity throughout the world. History’s initial wave of Chippendale furniture enjoyed popularity from 1750 to 1780, but there have also been various revivals of the design in the United States and the United Kingdom over ...
What was Thomas Chippendale's furniture style?
Thomas Chippendale’s furniture style became famous in his time after his work was published in The Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker’s Director, a workbook with instructions for constructing various furniture pieces.
What type of foot did Chippendale use?
American cabinetmakers frequently used the ball-and-claw foot in their Chippendale designs. British craftsmen were already past using the style, so they are less frequent in antique British Chippendale pieces.
What leg is used in Chippendale?
Cabriole Legs — This curved style leg is the most popular style of leg used in Chippendale pieces.
What wood is used in Chippendale chairs?
The highest quality Chippendale chairs, tables, cabinets and other pieces, used mahogany. This reddish-brown hardwood is durable and fantastic for carving.
Can you refinish Chippendale furniture?
If you are interested in refinishing or reupholstering a Chippendale style furniture piece, get the opinion of an antique furniture expert at Aaron's Touch Up . You may be able to restore a piece and add exponential value to your antiques.
What are the signs of Chippendale cabinet work?
These include the use of short-grain kickers (which prevent a drawer from tipping downward when extended), which wear less than long-grain kickers would.
What is Chippendale furniture?
‘ Chippendale is a name that is synonymous with the greatest works of art created out of timber by a man in England ,’ says Orlando Rock, Chairman of Christie’s UK. ‘We really know him now because of his celebrated book, ...
What wood did Chippendale use?
Chippendale had a superb understanding of timber and its qualities. On relatively plain mahogany pieces, for instance, he would use cross-grain rather than long-grain timber on a simple moulding to add a refinement, where others would not.
How many castors are there in a Chippendale pedestal desk?
Chippendale’s pedestal desks feature an apparently unique system of locating just two castors centrally beneath each pedestal. This takes into account uneven wood or stone floors that would have been prevalent in the 18th century, so that when the desk is assembled it offers self-levelling stability and ease of movement — more so than if the pedestals were fitted with four (or no) castors.
What was Thomas Chippendale's biggest commission?
Chairs from the Music Room at Harewood House, which was the largest commission of Thomas Chippendale’s career. © Harewood House Trust. Photograph by Paul Barker
What are Chippendale's drawers made of?
His drawers were made with fine dovetails and lined with mahogany where extra strength was required, with cedar when they were to be used for storing clothes, or with oak on more functional pieces.
What was used to disguise the use of pine?
Drawer stops will have cut corners at the back, and a red wash was often applied to disguise the use of pine, as well as to prevent worm infestation.
