Before the 1850s, few chairs were made for comfort. Seventeenth and early 18th-century American chairs were designed with hard seats and straight backs, and few had arms.
No slouching allowed. People were expected to sit up straight. Since most people worked during the day and went to bed when it was dark (there was no electricity), chairs were used for short periods of time when friends visited or the family sat for dinner. Jobs like bookkeeping or sewing were among the few that required the use of chairs for longer periods of time.
By the end of the 18th century, chairs had padded seats, curved backs and arms. Some were large upholstered wing chairs made for comfort and to protect the sitter from cold drafts.
Sometimes an event influenced chair shapes. Egyptian Revival chairs were created to celebrate Napoleon’s victories in Egypt. The chairs had winged arms and their backs were carved with Egyptian symbols such as a bird’s beak that poked the sitter.
Early Victorian designers preferred hard upholstered seats and arms for sofas and large chairs, but their chairs were curved for seating comfort.
By about 1850, coil springs were invented and used with stuffing in seats. Comfort became even more important. The 20th century saw the introduction of good artificial lighting and the invention of games, radio, television and other entertainment that required seated players, listeners or viewers.
Some designers wanted a different look for furniture and once again comfort suffered.
Q: Many sellers on eBay have said that Japanese buyers are paying high prices for Fire-King glassware and buying a lot of it. Some say they think the Japanese are buying it to make copies that will hurt Fire-King’s values and collectability. Or are Japanese collectors into 1950s kitchen decor?
A: Japanese buyers seem to like the simple glass designs of the 1950s as much as American collectors do. The value of the dollar versus the yen makes American eBay items inexpensive at times in Japan.
Shipping adds a lot to the cost. But the reproductions you should worry about are those that have been made in Brazil since 2000.
Q: What are “naughties”?
A: Naughties are small (under 4 inches high) bisque figurines of women, men or children in suggestive poses. Each figurine has a hole in it so water can come out of its private parts. The most common naughty figurines are children urinating.
Busts of women with holes in their breasts were also made. Naughties were made in Germany from the 1890s to the ’20s. Later, poor copies were made in Japan.
Reproductions have been sold online. For many years it was suggested that the figures held perfume, but that seems unlikely. Unglazed bisque is not a practical container for perfumes.
Write to Terry Kovel, (The Herald), King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019.
© 2011, Cowles Syndicate Inc.
On the block
Current prices are recorded from antiques shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.
Butterick Quick ‘n’ Easy dress pattern, sleeveless, full skirt, c. 1962, 36-inch bust, 28-inch waist, $18.
Arthur Murray Studios World Dance-o-Rama medallion, bronze award, outline of dancers, Medallic Arts Co., Danbury, Conn., 1970s, 2 3/4 inches, $35.
Grape-Nuts premiums catalog, “Win with Dizzy Dean” on cover, 33 premiums, information on how to obtain premiums and how to join club, 1935, 12 pages, $85.
Chorus girls pin, celluloid, three blond dancing girls with hands raised, manager watching, 1930s, 1 3/8 x 2 inches, $95.
Estee Lauder perfume compact, “Little Doll in Red Wagon,” doll sits in red-and-black enamel toy wagon, EL Pleasures perfume, $225.
Battleship Oregon still bank, cast iron, black with gold and red accents, J.&E. Stevens, cast iron, c. 1893, 6 x 4 7/8 inches, $1,085.
Madame Alexander Margaret O’Brien doll, pink dress, brown hair with coiled braids, hazel sleep eyes, closed mouth, jointed, 1946, 21 inches, $1,300.
Victorian cast-iron garden bench, Renaissance Scroll pattern, female mask, overlapping ovals, floral scroll and shell apron, cabriole legs, 1900s, 31 x 44 inches, $1,600.
Pieced and appliqued quilt, four urns with long-stem blossoms, buds, berries and leaves, red, yellow & green garland border, white cotton ground, 1880s, 85 x 84 inches, $2,840.
Wedgwood fairyland luster bowl, Argus Pheasant pattern, pink and red pheasants, flowers and butterflies, inside with medallion of pheasant standing on one foot, signed, 8 inches, $5,750.
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