Rocking chair, #2
(late 19th century)
Medium
Maple (Acer sp.), cotton, (other materials)
Measurements
87.1 × 43.9 × 55.8 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Gift of Peter and Eloise Smyrl, 2021
Gallery location
18th & 19th Century Decorative Arts & Paintings Gallery
Level 2, NGV International
About this work
Production chairs were chairs made by Shaker communities for sale to the outside world, as opposed to the chairs that they made for their own community use. The Shakers produced a number of products for sale, including packaged seeds, patent medicines and oval-covered boxes, and they were known for their honesty and the quality of their goods. Production chairs were made from around 1870 until the last chair workshop closed in the 1940s. They were made in eight sizes, from 0 to7, and used standardised elements, including rocking skids, arms, shawl bars and wooden slats or cloth-taped backs so that customers could choose their own design.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
United States
Accession Number
2021.278
Department
International Decorative Arts