SIDEBOARD AND FURNITURE.
semicircle; the upper portions, assuming the same, were connected by means of arms, and a back, often ofconsiderable height, was added. Of course, those chairs with fixed backs were incapable of being folded up,but others were expressly made for this purpose. A chair of this description is in the possession of aninhabitant of Dover, and is said to have been used by Henry VIII . at the Field of Cloth of Gold. Anotherexample of the folding type is the celebrated Glastonbury chair, which must be referred to the middle of thecentury; in this case the pieces could be easily separated, and the whole packed into a very small compass *At the beginning of the next century we read of little gilt chairs for women, scrolled chairs, turnedchairs, and Flemish chairs; these, however, belonged to the parlour, or best room in the house; the otherapartments would probably contain only benches and stools.
The board (or as it was called, “the table”) and trestles continued in fashion down to a very late
period, and in nearly all the inventories of the time there is frequent mention of “ a fayre table and two
trestles;” these latter, in the great dining-halls, were frequently morticed into the ground, but in general
they appear to have been used for the convenience they afforded of being packed away into a small compass.
Other tables, in the modern sense of the word, were no doubt in use, hut appear to have been of smalldimensions, and, with a few exceptions of the time of Henry VIII. , no specimens are remaining.f
The cupboards, or, as we should now call them, the sideboards, often consisted of nothing more thana couple of trestles and a wooden top, resting against the wall. Sometimes, however, they were regularlyframed into desks, or steps, upon which the plate was deposited, in which case they were called jointedcupboards. In France the number of desks varied with the rank of the owner, but we are not awarewhether this was the case in England. Cavendish mentions Cardinal Wolsey as displaying one “ six deskshigh, full of gilt plate, very sumptuous;” while the king, on the same occasion, exhibited to the Frenchambassadors one cupboard seven stages high, and thirteen feet long, full of gold plate, and another of ninestages. These cupboards owed most of their splendour to their coverings, for the most part composed of velvet,tapestry, and Turkey carpets, which began to be imported into England about the middle of the fifteenthcentury. The same coverings were used for the tables, and served to hide the unsightliness of the trestles.
The bedsteads, if we may believe the MSS. illuminations, were often very splendid, being covered withrichly embroidered counterpanes and curtains. The curtains were hung, from a rough frame-work, coveredwith tapestry, and surrounded with a valence, the whole being suspended by ornamental cords from the beamsof the ceiling. The regular four-post bedstead did not make its appearance much before the time of HenryVIII. A very fine example remains at Covely Hall, near Blackburn, Lancashire ; the posts, in this instance,are elaborately carved, reminding us of the pillars supporting the stalls in Henry VII.’s Chapel at Westminster.
The ark, or chest, supplied the place of the modern wardrobe, and was often ornamented with muchcare; many are yet to be found in our parish churches, most elaborately carved. Those destined fordomestic use were much simpler, but often decorated with gilding and colouring.^ Many chests were simplyframed of massive timber, and the panels ornamented with the linen fold. Others, again, owed all theirdecoration to their iron-work. When raised from the ground on feet, they were termed “ standard chests;”and those for containing linen and clothes “ trussing chests.” Smaller coffers were used to contain papers,money, and jewellery, and were often made of wood, covered with “ cuir bouilli,” ornamented with anindented pattern, and secured by bands of iron. Occasionally they were of carved ivory, with the carnations,borders of garments, &c., coloured or gilt. But more frequently they were entirely covered with elaborateiron tracery, the intricacies of which were made apparent by means of red velvet introduced beneath.
One of the most curious relics of the middle of the fifteenth century is the cradle of Henry V. , nowpreserved at Brislington, near Bristol . It may be described as a square box, made of four thin planks ofoak, covered entirely with horizontal mouldings; the supports take the shape of a T reversed, strengthenedby carved spandril pieces. On the summit of each is a carved bird. The more common cradles representedin the illuminated MSS. are not unlike the modern ones, and are exceedingly plain.
* As to the chair or throne in St. Mary’s Hall, Coventry, Sir S. Meyrick considers that it was originally connected with the stall-work inthe church; and its whole appearance, especially the tracery with which it is covered, confirms this- supposition.
f Mr. Shaw, in his “Ancient Furniture,” has engraved a folding-table, circa 1500, ornamented with “Itomayne work,” as it was then termed;which was a coarse imitation of those beautiful arabesques which we find so frequently employed in the French Renaissance.
| The chest of Sir Thomas More , which still exists, is covered with canvass, painted black; upon this, as a ground, are represented gay-colouredflowers, and, lastly, the whole of the iron-work is gilt.