Five Legged Chair

Hello , I’m new here and trying to find out something about this chair ... Many Thanks

 

Thankyou

 

late 1800's...used for very stout people............??

 

Indeed ... quite probably for a stout person . It’s got such elegant legs though . Found in Staffordshire

 

Hi MG. I'm only guessing, but could it be a chair for use at a card table? The flat ends of the arms would allow you to pull the chair close to the square card table but still support your arms. The slight extension in the middle of the seat would provide very comfortable support for long card sessions. The middle leg would allow you to place your own legs on either side flat on the floor and the open space underneath would allow you to put your feet backwards for comfort. I'm sorry I'm not using the technical names for these pieces but I hope you follow my meaning.

 

Sounds perfectly feasible to me ...

 

Thanks. I'm sure someone more knowledgable than me will provide the correct information soon.

 

They're corner chairs. The shape was meant to be for the corner of a room: that five legged structure was more stable than anything with four legs if it had the diamond shaped or curved back. Just as a three legged stool is more stable.

 

HI OWB, that's what I first thought as well. The photo isn't that clear, and it's a bit hard to see, but if you look at the back of the chair you will see two legs. I understood that corner chairs had only one leg at the back, to allow the chair to be pushed right into the corner of a room.

 

It looks like a corner chair ... but ... it doesn’t look right in a corner ( aesthetically ) ...

 

Ah, ok, I see what you mean. An odd thing, that.