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Heart-and-Crown Chairs
Heart-and-crown is the romantic name given to the aristocrats of New England country chairs, which were made for a little more than a century, beginning around 1720. Erect in posture and firm in stance, these dark-clad members of the Colonial household were as dignified and upright as the coastal Connecticut craftsmen who made them.
To picture a heart-and-crown chair, think of a classic New England banister-back, whose turned and split or molded balusters are inserted vertically between the lower rail of the back and the chair’s rest. What distinguished the heart-and-crown chair from its country cousins—banister-back chairs made throughout the English colonies—was the fanciful embellishment of its crest, or the shaped pediment known in its day as a crown. These crests were pierced with one or more hearts, giving the chairs their name.
Folksy and functional, heart-and-crown chairs were made along the 40-mile stretch of coastline beginning at Norwalk, Connecticut, and extending east to Guilford, Connecticut, just a few miles east of New Haven. The origin of the style is not known. Likely precedents include London cane chairs, which were imported to Boston in the late 18th century, and Boston banister-backs of the same period. Unable to duplicate the rich Baroque carving on the urban prototypes, provincial craftsmen substituted simple heart cutouts.
An Englishman named Thomas Salmon appears to have been the father of the heart-and-crown tradition. Born in Wiltshire, England, he settled in Stratford, Connecticut, before 1719. A master builder, joiner, and turner with a substantial shop, Salmon died in 1749 or 1750, leaving in his estate “6 black Chars” and “2 Great Chears,” most likely heart-and-crown. The earliest documented heart-and-crown chairs date to between 1725 and 1735. Most surviving heart-and-crown chairs are either by Salmon or by one of his apprentices. Best know is Andrew Durand (1720-1791), who set up his own practice around 1729 in his bride’s hometown of Milford, just a few miles from Stratford. In all, a half-dozen Salmon-trained craftsmen are thought to have produced most of the extant heart-and-crowns.
Heart-and-crown chairs were also made in Norwalk and Guildford, Connecticut. Those made in Norwalk were fashioned with heavier, more ornate stretchers. These chairs also had a fifth banister, whereas the Milford-made chairs had only four. The extra banister expanded the crown and allowed for an arrangement of three hearts across surmounted by a fourth, inverted heart. By contrast, Milford chairs generally featured a single heart.
Guilford heart-and-crowns have a real country flavor, most sporting Queen Anne splats, rather than banisters, and almost all are playfully scalloped along their crests and rails. The Guilford chairs reflect the growing influence of the Queen Anne style. By 1750, chair makers in Connecticut were updating their product lines by grafting Queen Anne curves onto straight-backed chairs that by then were hopelessly old-fashioned.
Tall and graceful, some with fine, sophisticated turnings, most heart-and-crown chairs have posts of maple and crests of tulip poplar, a soft wood that was easy to carve. Occasionally, a late side chair was crafted with a splat made of pine or stretchers made of ash.
Heart-and-crown chairs were usually painted black or a very dark brown called Spanish brown. Some chairs have been primed with an undercoat of red paint. Others are decorated with find gold pinstriping, a Victorian embellishment that appeals to some collectors.
Graceful proportions, bold turnings, and a fine state of preservation increase the value of a heart-and-crown chair. Some repairs are to be expected. After nearly 300 years of use, it isn’t unusual for the feet to have become worn and to have been augmented or replaced. While repairs are acceptable, the addition of a crown or other major alteration detracts considerably from a chair’s worth. Original paint is a rare but highly desirable feature.
To picture a heart-and-crown chair, think of a classic New England banister-back, whose turned and split or molded balusters are inserted vertically between the lower rail of the back and the chair’s rest. What distinguished the heart-and-crown chair from its country cousins—banister-back chairs made throughout the English colonies—was the fanciful embellishment of its crest, or the shaped pediment known in its day as a crown. These crests were pierced with one or more hearts, giving the chairs their name.
Folksy and functional, heart-and-crown chairs were made along the 40-mile stretch of coastline beginning at Norwalk, Connecticut, and extending east to Guilford, Connecticut, just a few miles east of New Haven. The origin of the style is not known. Likely precedents include London cane chairs, which were imported to Boston in the late 18th century, and Boston banister-backs of the same period. Unable to duplicate the rich Baroque carving on the urban prototypes, provincial craftsmen substituted simple heart cutouts.
An Englishman named Thomas Salmon appears to have been the father of the heart-and-crown tradition. Born in Wiltshire, England, he settled in Stratford, Connecticut, before 1719. A master builder, joiner, and turner with a substantial shop, Salmon died in 1749 or 1750, leaving in his estate “6 black Chars” and “2 Great Chears,” most likely heart-and-crown. The earliest documented heart-and-crown chairs date to between 1725 and 1735. Most surviving heart-and-crown chairs are either by Salmon or by one of his apprentices. Best know is Andrew Durand (1720-1791), who set up his own practice around 1729 in his bride’s hometown of Milford, just a few miles from Stratford. In all, a half-dozen Salmon-trained craftsmen are thought to have produced most of the extant heart-and-crowns.
Heart-and-crown chairs were also made in Norwalk and Guildford, Connecticut. Those made in Norwalk were fashioned with heavier, more ornate stretchers. These chairs also had a fifth banister, whereas the Milford-made chairs had only four. The extra banister expanded the crown and allowed for an arrangement of three hearts across surmounted by a fourth, inverted heart. By contrast, Milford chairs generally featured a single heart.
Guilford heart-and-crowns have a real country flavor, most sporting Queen Anne splats, rather than banisters, and almost all are playfully scalloped along their crests and rails. The Guilford chairs reflect the growing influence of the Queen Anne style. By 1750, chair makers in Connecticut were updating their product lines by grafting Queen Anne curves onto straight-backed chairs that by then were hopelessly old-fashioned.
Tall and graceful, some with fine, sophisticated turnings, most heart-and-crown chairs have posts of maple and crests of tulip poplar, a soft wood that was easy to carve. Occasionally, a late side chair was crafted with a splat made of pine or stretchers made of ash.
Heart-and-crown chairs were usually painted black or a very dark brown called Spanish brown. Some chairs have been primed with an undercoat of red paint. Others are decorated with find gold pinstriping, a Victorian embellishment that appeals to some collectors.
Graceful proportions, bold turnings, and a fine state of preservation increase the value of a heart-and-crown chair. Some repairs are to be expected. After nearly 300 years of use, it isn’t unusual for the feet to have become worn and to have been augmented or replaced. While repairs are acceptable, the addition of a crown or other major alteration detracts considerably from a chair’s worth. Original paint is a rare but highly desirable feature.
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