Side chair (one of a pair)

With its straight and tall back slightly raking back, this formal side chair with was made about 1690-1700. Its columnar legs, carved at the top with a plain collar surmounting an inverted acanthus leaf cup above a tapering fluted shaft, are connected by an H-shaped stretcher. The restrained lines and austere carved ornament attest to the diversity of styles prevalent in the later years of Louis XlV’s reign. Evidence of the survival of the classical repertory in France, this ornament anticipates the neo-classical style which develops eighty years hence during the reign of Louis XVI. The chair’s upholstery, covering the entire seat but leaving the uprights of the back as well as the top and lower rail visible, is of the period. It consists of wool velvet (moquette) with a stamped pattern in red, blue and beige.