Series editors' preface - Wood Tools

Figure 1.16 A mahogany English Regency Carlton
House table
was used and it soon developed a tilting mechanism
by being hinged to a small cage. From
1770 the ‘Carlton House’ style table was introduced
(Figure 1.16).
The early part of the eighteenth century is
marked by the use of needlework for upholstery,
and the rise of the wing chair, which
remained popular throughout the century
(Figure 1.17). From around 1725, bergère
chairs, characterized by a long seat and a raked
back, were introduced from France. By the
middle of the century, upholstery had become
less visually important, but was used in conjunction
with carved wooden frames for chairs
and a wide variety of special types of seating
furniture and hangings.
Beds remained important pieces of furniture,
but gradually became lighter in construction
with draperies reduced to a minimum and the
woodwork again becoming important, the
posts being reeded and slender and the canopy
often pierced and carved. The so-called Angel
bed, which had its tester hung from the ceiling,
was introduced. Other new bed designs
included the French ‘Lit à la Polonaise’ and the
‘Lit à la Turque’. Field and tent beds also
became popular towards the end of the century.
When draperies were used they often
included crewel work or other embroidery.
Materials used
The range of woods available to eighteenth
century cabinetmakers had gradually increased
Furniture history 23
Figure 1.17 Upholstered wing chair, English,
mahogany, second half of the eighteenth century. The
textile cover, embroidered with silks and wool, is
somewhat earlier
as trade with America, West Indies and the
coasts of south America developed. In America
itself, walnut, tulipwood, gumwood, cedar,
cherry and mahogany as well as maple and
walnut veneer were added to the cabinetmaker’s
repertoire. In England the fashionable
taste for walnut encouraged the importation of
Virginia black walnut to augment European
supplies. Although the era is well known for
the use of mahogany, walnut was still acceptable
as a fashionable timber up to the 1750s.
However, in 1721 the abolition of duty on
mahogany encouraged the first major imports,
which were mainly from Jamaica. Spanish
mahogany (sometimes known as Baywood)
from Cuba or Honduras was also shipped to
England, and towards 1750 it came into general
use. San Domingo shipped another variety,
which was very hard and straight grained,
and was ideal for carved designs that would
require a crispness to them. All mahoganies
were used extensively in the solid and in large
boards (avoiding joined up panels for table