Library Chair
Friday, August 5, 2011
I recently caught the 1940 version of Pride and Prejudice with Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier on TCM and was both amused by the outlandish costumes and salivating over the furniture. Before the film, one of the stars shared how her love of antiques developed while on set. Because the studio had unlimited funds for set design, they had little appreciation for the history that was in their possession. In one scene where Olivier sat behind a desk, the desk was deemed too high. Instead of raising the camera, two inches were sawed off the bottom of the desk.
In a scene where Mrs. Bennett is lamenting her daughters' lack of good suitors to Mr. Bennett, I so fell in love with a chair that was occupying Mr. Bennett that I had to rent the DVD to get a better view of it. The library chair was introduced to the U.S. in the 1700s by Benjamin Franklin after a long visit to England. The above engraving from Banana Strudel shows how it converts to a ladder just by tilting the seat back forward. The following specimen from Debenham Antiques is the sketch brought to life. Add to this a bay window and a wall full of books and I would be set.
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