Queen Anne style furniture

(1725-1755)

History and Illustrations

By 1720, certain stylistic changes in American furniture were taking place. Transitional forms between the William and Mary and Queen Anne styles appeared at that time, and the new style was firmly established by about 1725. The introduction of the fluid, curving line represented the fundamental stylistic change during this period. These curves were based on a scroll-like element first seen in French decorative art in about 1700 and was now expressed in the rounded cabriole leg, curved cresting piece, vase-shaped splat, and shell carving. Some of these innovations carried over into the Chippendale period.

Queen Anne Style Furniture in England.

The cabriole leg was introduced as a Baroque element in English furniture during the reign of Queen Anne (1702-1714) and remained until about 1760. The full French Rococo style was marked in England by 1750 by a more delicate cabriole leg. This later evolution was named the Chippendale period. In case furniture, strong architectural forms using balanced proportions, moldings, and pediments, which had begun to develop under William and Mary, were characteristic of Queen Anne style furniture.

English Queen Anne chairs generally assumed two forms. One was the English interpretation of the Chinese chair, with an almost flat cresting, rounded at each end, and straight stiles. The other used curving cabriole-shaped stiles with an ornament carved in the center of a hoop-shaped cresting. Both types had vase-shaped splats and pad and hoof feet, although claw-and-ball feet became popular during the first quarter of the 18th century.

Americans adopted English Queen Anne style furniture and simplified it in several ways, drawing from three English periods: Queen Anne, George I (1714-1727), and George H (1727-1760). In ornamentation, carving was more important than inlay, which was restricted primarily to star and sunburst patterns and bands of striping on drawer fronts. Finials, carved as urns or flames, were used on pediments. Veneering was applied to drawer fronts and to chair splats. Cabriole legs terminated in pad feet. Japanning continued to be popular, primarily in Boston, but also in New York and, in a limited way, in Connecticut.

Regional Characteristics in America.

The introduction of Queen Anne style furniture in the colonies occurred at a time when strong regional characteristics were developing. Although walnut was the wood most generally used, other types of wood began to be associated with certain areas. In New England, for example, walnut, cherry, and maple were the preferred woods, while walnut and imported mahogany were more popular in New York and Philadelphia. Regional characteristics in craftsmanship became more pronounced as well, and it is frequently possible to distinguish a piece made in one locale from that made in another on the basis of stylistic and construction details.

Because New England furniture tended to be conservative, characteristics of the William and Mary period tended to disappear more slowly. For example, stretchers connecting the legs of chairs persisted, even though the triangular corner of glue blocks used inside the seat construction to strengthen the corners made them unnecessary. Massachusetts furniture is generally delicate and spare, with a strong verticality that is unique among colonial pieces. Delicate tea and card tables, placed on slender cabriole legs, display the Massachusetts interpretation of Queen Anne style furniture to good advantage. Highboys tended to be slender and vertical, rising on delicate cabriole legs. In chairs, the vase-shaped splat was notably simple, and a pinched back was typical of Massachusetts side chairs.

The introduction of blocking in New England is an important contribution of the Queen Anne period. Requiring virtuoso skill, blocking involves cutting a single piece of solid wood to form raised and depressed areas on the front of a case piece. A technique derived from Continental craftsmanship, blocking represents a high point in New England cabinetmaking.

Newport, Rhode Island, emerged as a highly original center of American cabinetmaking during this period and flourished by mid-century. Here, Santo Domingo mahogany was used almost exclusively, having become fashionable as a result of widening international trade. The claw-and-ball foot was adapted quite early and was characterized by its oval, rather than round, shape, with slender and outstretched talons that were sometimes undercut just above the ball. Reminiscent of English work, this feature is especially associated with the cabinetmaker John Goddard. Splats on Newport chairs were generally narrow and often scrolled; the shell carved on the cresting was silhouetted (a characteristic also found on New York chairs). On some Newport chairs, there was also a flat serpentine stretcher. Newport is chiefly remembered for its case furniture, particularly the blockfront, which reached its height in the Chippendale style, and is associated with the Goddard and Townsend families of cabinetmakers.

Although the Dutch controlled the New York area relatively briefly, certain characteristics of Dutch Baroque design persisted there and were integrated with English Queen Anne and early Georgian design. New York furniture tended to contain square, squat, and heavy elements. The chair was often nearly square, and the cabriole legs had a sturdiness not found elsewhere. The claw-and-ball foot also displayed a squarish quality, and the rear leg, which was tapered and rounded, terminated in a small, square foot. A scroll called a cupid's bow was often found at the base of the splat in New York chairs.

Highly decorative chairs were produced in Philadelphia. Here, cresting was fashioned like a hoop, carved with S-shaped spirals; if a shell was included at all, it tended to be contained within the design, not silhouetted or set off by itself. The splat had curved volutes and scrolls, and the seat was horseshoe-shaped. The trifid foot, characteristic of Philadelphia-area chairs, was often paneled. Similar paneling is also seen with the club-and-slipper foot, a feature that seems to have originated in Ireland. The rear leg in Philadelphia chairs is often of the stump type -severely plain and round, although sometimes chamfered.

Furniture made in New Jersey and Maryland bore a strong resemblance to that of the Philadelphia school. The trifid foot appeared on some New Jersey chairs, and Maryland furniture maintained the same general shape as that of Philadelphia, but lacked the carved detail.

Much of the documented Southern furniture does not display the height or architectural proportions associated with Northern centers. Rather, it tends to demonstrate a close link with English country prototypes. Walnut and some fruitwoods were the principal materials, with Southern yellow pine used as a secondary wood. Tables from the South reveal straight, rounded legs ending in slanting pad feet, while case pieces had simple bracketed feet.

New Furniture Forms.

The Queen Anne style did not introduce quite as many new furniture forms as the William and Mary period did. Although the William and Mary side and armchairs and the easy chair now incorporated Queen Anne characteristics, a slipper chair with upholstered back and seat and a comfortable open armchair were actual innovations of Queen Anne style furniture. True sofas with curved cresting and cabriole legs were also introduced.

The daybed continued to be made with stylistic modifications. Tester beds (with a framework for holding curtains) became popular, now having short front cabriole legs with pad feet. Easily disassembled field beds, probably named because they were associated with military campaigns, were also developed during this period.

Drop-leaf tables also continued to be made, now with cabriole legs to support the leaves. Side tables, mixing tables, and tea and card tables were specialized types..

High chests and dressing tables continued to be made as well. Some of the latter forms were conceived with blocked fronts. Desks with bookcases followed the same form as in the William and Mary period but now tended to include broken pediments with finials as ornaments.

Looking-glass frames were also architectural, containing broken pediments and scrolls. They were made exclusively of wood or of wood with gilded plaster.

 

 

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