Gothic Dining Chairs

These six Gothic dining chairs are made of oak, characterized by unusually fine grain and richness of color, as reflected in our photos. The seats (which are 18 inches from the floor) have very fine decorative brass nails about 1” in from the edges of the seat, and are set at intervals of between 4 ½” to 5”. They are set deep enough into the wood that they are no higher than the wood’s surface, hence they do not provide a snagging opportunity for clothing. Most of the nails have aged and their color now matches well the color of the wood, but some are brighter, as one would expect of brass. What chiefly attracted us to these chairs was the intricate fenestrage design evoking windows (fenetre being the French word for “window”) of French Gothic cathedrals such as Notre Dame or Chartres. The tops of the back panels have two rose (rosace) window patterns carved into the oak, with tall peaked gothic arches below. Each corner of the back has a stylized tower with crenellations (the high and low spots found on the upper reaches of castle fortifications that allowed defenders to alternatively hide and hurl objects on attackers below) between the “towers”. The front frieze below the seat is also fenestrage but has not been cut through, or “pierced,” but lends an additional level of medieval flair to the overall Gothic design. The legs and stretcher are beveled on the edges and flare out to full width where they meet the floor or another piece of wood. The horizontal stretcher provides substantial rigidity to the four legs and means fewer repairs and re-gluing. Ader-Tajan, Collection Bruno Perrier Haute Epoque (Catalog for Sale at Auction on April 6, 1992 at the Hôtel Drouot, Paris); Boccador, Jacqueline, Le Mobilier Français du Moyen Age à la Renaissance, Editions d’Art Monelle Hayot (Saint-Just-en-Chaussée, 1988); Charles, Corinne, Visions d'Intérieurs, du Meuble au Décor (Paris-Musées, Paris, 2003); Thirion, Jacques, Le Mobilier du Moyen Age et de la Renaissance en France (Editions Faton, Dijon, 1998); Viollet-le-Duc, Eugène, Le Mobilier Médiéval (Georges Bernage, editor) (Editions Heimdal, 2003) This sturdy set of 6 dining chairs is in outstanding condition and ready for use with an oak gothic table like our #4164 or #9451, though the color of the chairs is a bit different from these tables, or to use on your own dining table. For more information, visit M. Markley Antiques on the Web -- the premier resource in the U.S. for French Gothic Revival and Renaissance Revival furniture, including Henri II and Louis XIII styles.