Chair

I was thinking for quite some time to make a post about chairs. Why about chairs, you may ask. And answer is quite simple – the most of my day I spent in some kind of chair. When I wake up, I sit on my computer desk chair, sipping coffee and reading comments in MyOpera. When I go to job, I sit in bus seat. In my office I have nice leather chair so I can spent a lot of time working with my computer. Usually I sit when I have a lunch break. In pub, it is the best to sit with your friends and have a beer… 😀 A life that we know is almost unimaginable without that simple piece of furniture.
In history, chairs appear in ancient Egypt as a sign of richness – made of ebony or wood, covered with expensive materials, chairs were privilege of pharaohs and priests of a high rank. Greek and Roman chairs were usually made of marble, ornamented with sphinxes and the feet of beasts. Byzantium ones had lions` heads and winged figures of Victory (Nike) with dolphin shaped arms. Chair of Dagobert, saved in Louvre, Paris was made of bronze, legs made as heads and feet of animals. The most famous was 13th century English chair made for king Edward I, made from oak and covered with gilded gesso; most of the latter monarchs were crowned in it. By the 12th century, sitting in floors was rare in China, unlike for the rest of Asia; chairs and stools were used in the vast majority of houses throughout the country. Also, the sedan chair was used for transporting nobles by slaves or lower ranking servants.
In Europe, during times of Renaissance, chair was not a privilege of high ranking persons or rulers but a necessity of whoever was able to afford it. By 17th century they were mostly made of oak, sometimes covered with leather, rarely with silk or velvet.
In 1830, Michael Thonet began with making furniture out of glued and bent wooden slats. His first success was the Bopparder Schichtholzstuhl (Boppard layerwood chair) in 1836. After Koblenz trade fair in 1841. he was invited to come to Vienna where he continued his work, making furniture mostly for Imperial family. In 1859. he made a "chair of the chairs" – chair Nr. 14 – better known as Konsumstuhl Nr. 14 (coffee shop chair no. 14).

chair Nr. 14
It was produced in about 30 million pieces until 1930. and still remained as the most coppied chair in history. I have seen it, in various derivated models, throughout Europe, in restaurants and bars.

variations of chair nr. 14 in Wien Museum
Today, chairs are made of various materials in a millions of shapes – mostly depending on purpose and the place it is used. Design considerations for chairs have been codified into standards – ISO 9241 for office chairs; ISO 7174 specifies stability of rocking and tilting chairs; ASTM F1858-98 specifies plastic lawn chairs.

rocking chair in the Adirondack style made of rough wood to give it a rustic look
***
Now, I am satisfied with a post I made. I will make myself a cup of coffee, lean into my favourite chair and wait for your comments 😀