Side Chair

This chair is in the Gothic Revival style, one of the romantic imitations of past styles that began in England and on the Continent in the late 1820s. J. C. Loudon's An Encyclopedia of Cottage, Farm, and Villa Architecture and Furniture, first published in London in 1833, made Americans aware of the style. The writings of Sir Walter Scott, and the Gothic settings in his novels Kenilworth (1821) and The Talisman (1825), bolstered its popularity. This chair was found in Philadelphia. The pierced quatrefoil pattern of its back and the crest with pointed arch and crochets contribute to its splendid interpretation of the Gothic Revival style.