French and English furniture : $b distinctive styles and periods described and illustratedSingleton, Esther
History
French and English furniture : $b distinctive styles and periods described and illustrated
Singleton, Esther
Furniture -- England; Furniture -- France
Turning now to the Canopy, Couch and Sofa beds, we find Chippendale
describing a “Couch with Canopy. The Curtains must be made to draw up in
Drapery, or to let down, when it is occasionally converted into a Bed.
This sort of Couch is very fit for alcoves, or such deep Recesses as are
often seen in large Apartments. It may also be placed at the end of a
long gallery. If the Curtains and Valances are adorned with a large gold
Fringe and Tassels, and the ornaments gilt with burnished gold, it will
look very grand. The Crane at the top of the Canopy is the Emblem of
Care and Watchfulness: which I think it not unbecoming in a place of
rest. The length of the bed cannot be less than 6 feet in the clear, but
may be more if required. The Breadth is 3 feet or more, in proportion to
the length. The height may be determined by the place it is to stand
in.”
Another “Couch bed,” he tells us, “was made for an alcove in Lord
Pembroke’s house, at Whitehall.” This bed is a sofa of sweeping curve,
three short cabriole legs supporting it in front. A stiff rolled bolster
is placed at each end of the sofa crosswise. Four slender posts hold a
canopy draped and decorated with a Chinese feeling, only tassels are
used for ornaments instead of bells. The drapery is arranged in four
symmetrical festoons, caught back gracefully at the sides and falling
nearly to the short leg of the sofa. This was really a kind of _lit de
repos_ rather than a bed properly speaking; but there is one that can be
used either as a sofa or a bed. He describes it as follows: “A Chinese
Canopy with Curtains and Valances tied up in Drapery, and may be
converted into a Bed by making the front part of the seat to draw
forward, and the sides made to fold and turn in with strong iron hinges
and a proper stretcher to keep out and support the sides when open. The
curtains must be likewise made to come forward, and when let down will
form a Tent.”
Another of his designs is a “Chinese Sopha with a canopy over it, with
its curtains and vallens all tied up in drapery. This design may be
converted into a bed, by having the Sopha so made as to come forward,
the curtains to draw to the front of the Sopha, and hang sloping, which
will form a sort of a tent, and look very grand. The ornaments are
designed for burnished gold.” Another “is a Chinese Sopha, intended for
the same use as the former; the design is different from the other, and
if well executed by an ingenious workman, it cannot fail of giving
content.”
Another “Chinese sopha” is represented on Plate XLI., which is purely a
sofa and not a bed. This has a pagoda-shaped canopy decorated with bells
and the drapery arranged in formal festoons. At the back is a piece of
silk ornamented in the style of Boucher, and the sofa, which is a French
_canapé_, bears a design reminiscent of Watteau,—a “gallant scene”
showing a lady in a large hat and flowing gown seated on a bank while
her companion is a gentleman in a cocked hat.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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