17th Century English Oak Joint Stool with Turned Legs

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Fine 17th Century English Oak Joint Stool with Turned Legs Circa 1680

A fine and highly decorative 17th Century English … Read more Fine 17th Century English Oak Joint Stool with Turned Legs Circa 1680

A fine and highly decorative 17th Century English oak joint stool, circa 1680, of wonderfully traditional country-house form. The stool has a rectangular oak top with softly rounded moulded edges, raised above a substantial joined oak frame with simple moulded decoration to the frieze. Particularly attractive are the four beautifully proportioned ring and baluster turned legs, terminating in square blocks and united by substantial low stretchers. This type of joined construction was a mainstay of English domestic furniture during the 17th century, with closely comparable stools surviving in important collections and specialist archives. The oak has developed a particularly pleasing contrast of colour, with the lighter, beautifully figured top sitting above the rich deep-brown frame. The top displays pronounced grain, knots and the numerous little marks and imperfections that give early oak furniture so much character, while the base retains an attractive mellow surface with considerable wear around the stretchers and feet. The visible pegged construction, substantial rails and traditional turned supports are all characteristic features of early joined furniture. BADA records a c.1640 example with a pegged top, baluster-and-peg turned legs and straight stretchers, demonstrating the long-established construction tradition from which this stool derives. A wonderfully usable piece of early English vernacular furniture, equally suited as a traditional stool or used today as a small side table, lamp stand or fireside piece. The combination of strong architectural turning, compact proportions and centuries of accumulated character makes these early stools particularly appealing in both period and contemporary interiors.

Dimensions Height: 46.5cm Width: 38.5cm Depth: 23.5cm Seat height: 46.5cm See less