English Chairs

English Chairs (1965) by Ralph Edwards
Publisher: HMSO (Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, because nothing says glamour like stationery) | ISBN: none (this book predates the barcode era) | Condition: Good (sturdy, like a Windsor back)
Sat upon respectfully by Crappy Old Books

Ralph Edwards, distinguished furniture historian and long-time wrangler of mahogany minutiae, gives us English Chairs (1965) — a celebration of the nation’s greatest contribution to the civilised world: the act of sitting down, but tastefully. Within these pages lies everything you never knew you wanted to know about the evolution of chair design, from Tudor lumps of oak to Georgian elegance, Victorian fussiness, and the occasional experiment in leg angles that left joiners scratching their powdered wigs.

This copy is graded Good. Which, in Crappy Old Books lingo, means it has survived nearly six decades without collapsing beneath the weight of history students, furniture collectors, or anyone attempting to balance it on an actual chair as an improvised coaster. Pages intact, binding solid, cover only lightly scuffed — the bibliographic equivalent of a well-used but still sturdy dining chair.

Inside, you’ll encounter photographs, diagrams, and descriptions that make you realise how passionately some people feel about splats, stretchers, and cabriole legs. Edwards writes with scholarly devotion, determined that you’ll never look at a Chippendale the same way again. You may even find yourself nodding solemnly at your kitchen furniture, whispering: “Ah yes, a faint whiff of Regency influence.”

Why might you want this book?

• Because when someone asks about your taste in chairs, you’d like to answer with footnoted authority.

• Because it’s cheaper than buying an actual antique chair (and far easier to shelve).

• Because once you’ve read it, you’ll finally have the courage to correct people who confuse a Queen Anne with a William and Mary.

• Because nothing says cultured eccentric like owning a 1965 HMSO guide to chairs.

So here it is: English Chairs — reliable, slightly worn, and still standing tall. Condition: Good. Sold with a knowing wink by Crappy Old Books, where even the furniture manuals are afforded a seat at the table.

Keep browsing: See more Antiques books Other books by Ralph Edwards