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  SET OF 6 PLANK-SEATED, HALF-SPINDLE-BACK, PAINT-DECORATED, PENNSYLVANIA CHAIRS, 1845-1865
Dimensions (inches): 32" tall x 14.2" wide x 14.5" deep
Description:
SET OF 6 PLANK-SEATED, HALF-SPINDLE-BACK, PAINT-DECORATED, PENNSYLVANIA CHAIRS, 1845-1865:

Set of 6 paint-decorated, Pennsylvania, plank-seated chairs, rare with colorful fruit and foliage decoration on a background that is grained in red and black to resemble figured mahogany. The decoration is beautifully hand-painted and stenciled and highlights include a blushed yellow pear on the straight crest rail and a string of cherries framed by geometric cross-hatches and polka dots on the mid rail.

This is mule-ear design with half-spindle backs and plank seats. They were made circa 1845-1865, probably in central Pennsylvania based on the combination of form and decoration. The origin of this chair type with this shape of seat is uniquely Pennsylvania, made primarily in rural communities as a less costly and more durable outgrowth of the urban windsor. Production began in the 1840's and had virtually ceased by 1880. Chairs were typically made by one person and painted by another, although in the same shop. Most historians feel that they were made to order with regard to decoration style, color, and to some degree, construction. It is almost unheard of, however, to see any more than 6 matching Pennsylvania plank seat chairs. This is a bit hard to explain given the large size of rural families, but the chairs must have been costly enough to make the purchase of more than 6 an extravagant undertaking for most rural households.

Condition: The set is in great overall condition; a 8.5 to a 9 on a scale of 1-10. One of the seats has some distortion in the varnish from a wet object having been sat on it, but it's not serious. The decoration is very nice and intact. The paint is untouched.
   
Primary Color: brown, mahogany red
Earliest Date: 1845
Latest Date: 1865
For Sale Status: Sold
Price SOLD
E-mail: info@jeffbridgman.com
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