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The Elements of Style - A Practical Encyclopedia of Interior Architectural Details From 1485 To The Present - Calloway (1996)
The Elements of Style - A Practical Encyclopedia of Interior Architectural Details From 1485 To The Present - Calloway (1996)
ELEMENTS
OF STYLE
THE
ELEMENTS
OF STYLE
AN PRACTICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF INTERIOR
ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS FROM 1485 TO THE PRESENT
REVISED EDITION
Senior Executive Editor Robert Saxton Illustrations Dennis and Sheila Curran Executive Editor Alison Starling
Senior Executive Art Editor Jacqui Small Location Photography Kim Sayer Executive Art Editor Vivienne Brar
Project Editor Sarah Polden Archive Photography Ian B. Jones Project Editor Elisabeth Faber
Senior Art Editor Mike Brown American Editor Elizabeth Cromley Designers Mark Richardson, Geoff Borin
Editor Lydia Seagrave Americanization Carol Hupping Production Dawn Mitchell
Editorial Assistant Jaspal Bhangra Directories Carol Hupping,
Designers Geoff Fennell, Fayal Greene Biographies Valerie Clack
Rozelle Bentheim American Directory revised by Fayal Greene
Production Ted Timberlake British D irectory revised by Emma Shackleton
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3
ISBN 0-684-83521-5
The creation of The Elements of Style has been very much a collaborative who have been with the project throughout, helping with the research
effort; a task rather like the building of a house, in which, from the and marshalling a vast body of material, textual and visual, with both
initial planning stages through to the completion of the project, the efficiency and an unfailing cheerfulness. I should like to thank very
learning and skill of many individuals have been called upon. The warmly the many curators, public institutions and organizations and,
essential founqation of the work has been the deep and detailed above all, the owners of private houses who kindly allowed us access
know ledge that each of the individual authors has brought to bear in to take photographs, often at considerable inconvenience to
the compilation of his or her chapter(s). All have given much more themselves. (Detailed photo credits appear on pages 560-63.) Finally, it is
tJ,an duty alone could require, and without their enthusiasm, expertise a pleasure to record our immense gratitude to one friend, whom at his
and patience such a book could not have been achieved. The publisher's own request I shall not name, who most generously made available for
creative team, including the illustrators and the photographers, also study and photography his unrivalled collection of architectural
deserve grateful thanks. Particular mention should be made of those treatises, pattern books and trade catalogues.
- -.
The engraving above shows the origin of the
Corinthian capital. The Athenian sculptor
Callimachus is said to have come across a woven
straw basket containing the few possessions ofa
poor girl from Corinth who had died tragica/1)1. The
basket had been covered with a slab or roof tile,
and acanthus leaves had grown up around it, and
curled beneath the overhang. Moved by the pathos
and simple charm of the composition, Callimachus
sketched it and later carved it in stone with such
skill that it became part of the classical language of
architecture- one of the Five Orders that have
fashioned the aesthetic of building_ from the
Renaissance to the r.resent day. (rrom]ohn
Evelyn's translation of Roland Freart's A Parallel
of the Antient Architecture with the Modem,
published in England in 1664i second edition
1707).
CONTENTS
Foreword by J. Jackson Walter 8
Preface by S ephen Calloway 9
How o lJse This Book 10
A~ 1oe on Terminology 10
--- .
Edwardian (1901-1914)
by Robin Wyatt
Introduction 354
Doors 356
American Victorian (1840-1910) Windows 360 The Modem Movement
by Thomas Jayne Walls 363 (1920-1950)
Ceilings 366 by Alan Powers
Introduction 272 Floors 368
Doors 276 Fireplaces 370 Introduction 448
Windows 280 Kitchen stoves 37 4 Doors 452
Walls 283 Staircases 375 Windows 454
Ceilings 285 Built-in furniture 377 Walls 456
Floors 287 Services 378 Ceilings 4.57
Fireplaces 289 Lighting 380 Floors 458
Kitchen stoves 293 Metalwork 381 Fireplaces 459
Staircases 294 Woodwork 383 Kitchenstoves 461
Built-in furniture 297 Staircases 462
Services 299 Built-infurniture 464
Lighting 301 Services 466
Metalwork 302 Lighting 467
Woodwork 304 Metalwork 468
Woodwork 469
FOREWORD
J. JACKSON WALTER, FORMER PRESIDENT, NATIONAL TRUST FOR H ISTORIC PRESERVATION
n the shore of the Ashley River outside Charleston, South the trade-off has provided a much broader population the
0 Carolina, stands Drayton Hall, the preeminent surviving
example of Georgian Palladian architecture in the United
opportunity to enjoy good design.
The Elements of Style takes the mystery out of this evolution.
States. This historic house, a National Trust property whose It is a book, for example, that will be equally worthwhile to
construction was completed in 1742, is justly famous because those interested in Georgian Drayton Hall, and to those who
it has never been restored; rather it is preserved - untouched happen for the first time upon Woodrow Wilson House,
by plumbing, electricity or central heating - a unique reflec- another National Trust property located in Washington D.C.,
tion of pre-Revolutionary American culture, frozen in time. where the kitchen authentically preserves the appliances and
But while the house itself is one-of-a-kind, the collection of the ambience of the early 1920s. Visitors to all of the National
components that were assembled in its fabrication is widely Trust's collection of 17 historic house museums will find much
known. All of them, the walls, doors, windows, floors and to think over, to understand and to use in these pages . The
fireplaces, were created according to the principles of design sheer magnitude of America's, and Britain's, architectural her-
that together make up the Georgian style. They hold anoilier itage comes alive here.
distinction, as well. They are all here in The Elements of Style. For the preservationist, whether homeowner or profes-
The genius of this book is that it joins in one volume many sional, telling the story that lies behind bricks and mortar,
snapshots of architectural history. It is a source book indis- woodwork and w indow is a constant challenge. As George
pensable for owners of historic houses and those who work McDaniel, the director of Drayton Hall, puts it, his historic
on them because it permits and encourages both identifying site is a "small postage stamp of history", an intact survivor
architectural detail and placing it in the context of a centuries- from a society of the past.
long evolution. The Elements of Style places a large magnifying glass into the
This is especially important because contemporary archi- hands of anyone who wants to understand why things look
tectural styles are quite different, both in technology and in as they do inside, and outside, our historic architectural struc-
the materials used, from earlier eras. The quality and crafts- tures. It brings the continuity of design over the last 500 years
manship of artisans creating individual ornaments often have into sharp focus . And it shows in great and satisfying detail
been replaced by factories using mass-production techniques, the enormous ingenuity succeeding cultures have brought to
which first were introduced in the mid-19th century. Quality bear on creating a hospitable environment, both practically
and richness of detail may have suffered in the process, but and aesthetically, in which to live.
9
PREFACE
STEPHEN CALLOWAY
uporat the
a man's house is his castle", wrote Sir Edward Coke
beginning of the 17th century. The phrase has
ings based on a wide variety of archival material, including
old photographs and measured drawings (often of buildings
become a cornerstone of the way we think and live . Yet, by now demolished), rare prints and builders' pattern books. The
a stroke of historic irony, the great lawyer's memorable line images used to illustrate each chapter have been selected by
was penned at the very time when Inigo Jones was building the individual authors, each of whom has made a rarticular
the first modern house in England, the Queen's House at study of his or her period. For each chapter the chief aim has
Greenwich- that precocious expression of polite taste and been to show the development of standard forms but also to
perfect monument to a new domestic ideal. From this date illustrate some of the influential high-points of architectural
on people cared for their houses not merely as strongholds of achievement and something of the variety that has always
safety and domestic wealth: they loved them for their archi- characterized domestic buildings.
tecture. Today we are heirs to a legacy of fine building and Primarily, The Elements of Style is intended as a visual and
to a continuing fascination with the details and stylistic ele- documentary resource for people concerned with the details
ments which give our houses their character. In Britain, and of houses, whether as owners, conservators, architects, inte-
in the United States too, that interest in old houses has rior decorators or designers. For the student and the inter-
become something of a national obsession. The desire to ested general reader the book can also be used as way to trace
know and understand the history of our homes has never the history of the British and American house. Between the
been stronger. We are, perhaps more than ever before, aware practical approach and the academic there is no real division
of the crucial importance of our great architectural traditions of interests: a chief desideratum in each case is sympathy for
and the central position they occupy in what we have come matters of detail, a belief in the importance of accuracy at the
to call our heritage. most meticulous level.
At the heart of this concept of heritage lies our idealized The overall plan of this book is a simple chronological one,
image of the period house, which, great or small, ostentatious period by period, style by style. The main chapters deal with
or plain, has come to epitomize so many of our notions of what we may define as polite architecture: that is, buildings
civilization. The study of the architectural evolution of the which aim, with whatever degree of success, at observing the
country house in England and the United States, and of urban architectural rules and at being fashionable, or in later periods
and village building, has a long and distinguished history. But buildings which conform to nationally prevalent types.
in recent years, academic interest in the planning, stylistic Houses which fall outside this rather general definition -
development and detailing of historic houses has increasingly modest country dwellings, traditional structural types in use
become linked with the more passionate and practical enthu- over a long period, and aistinct regional variations on stan-
siasms of the conservation movement. As a result, the houses dard forms - are dealt with separately in chapters devoted to
we live in have become a major concern - the subject of both vernacular building. British vernacular is treated separately
a large body of scholarly and investigative endeavour and from the end of the Tudor period: before then the two strands
often intense public discussion and debate. have been combined, for the distinctions between vernacular
One of the foremost defenders of traditional values in and polite in that era are so blurred as to be misleading, even
design and workmanship, the Prince of Wales, has repeatedly meaningless. Under American vernacular, the coverage is of
stressed the influential role which fine architecture can play rustic and regional features from Colonial times to the mid-
in our everyday existence. As the protagonist of a humane 19th century. Inevitably, these chapters are highly selective:
architecture based on human scale and sound techniques and given the multiplicity of localized styles, The Element of Style
materials, he has championed the idea that good building is can do no more than illustrate some of the highlights of ver-
not only an index of civilization, but also an important con- nacular architecture.
tributory factor in the quality of life which we enjoy. Similarly, although Britain and the United States are treated
Today, those who value the best of the old in our heritage separately in the first half of the book, the chapters on Arts
are convinced of its relevance to the new. But there is, it has and Crafts, Art Nouveau, the Twenties and Thirties, and the
to be said, a great deal that must be learned or re-learned. In Modem and Beyond Modern styles combine material from
recent decades more modem tendencies have prevailed, and both sides of the Atlantic, in order to emphasize the close
we have come perilously close to losing much of the rich connections that exist in an age of international influences.
vocabulary and even the grammar whicl:i gave our architec- This approach has brought about some interesting juxtaposi-
turallanguage in previous ages its subtlety and fluent charm. tions, such as the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh in Glas-
What we need now is a return to visual literacy, an under- gow and the early houses of Frank Lloyd Wright.
standing of all the elements and details of the house as they The Elements of Style is not a book about great architects;
have changed through five centuries. To promote such an although inevitably their names and works appear among
understanding, which alone can be the only proper basis for these pages, their stories are told elsewhere, and the inter-
conservation, restoration and sensitive design, is one of the ested reader will have no difficulty in tracking down more
main aims of this book. information. Nor is it a study of grand houses to the exclu-
We have sought to create within the compass of a single sion of the more modest. We have chosen to place the great-
volume a practical sourcebook for all those who care about est emphasis on that category which the 18th-century
our heritage of domestic architecture in Britain and the United architect and his builder called the "good middling sort of
States. TJ:ie vast body of illustrative material that has been house"; for in such houses we may discern much of the genius
drawn together here includes specially commissioned pho- of each age and in full measure those qualities which tl:ie first
tographs of houses, reproductions of engraved plates from architectural writer in English, Sir Henry Wotton, re~uired of
the key architectural publications of each period, and draw- all fine building: "Firmness, Commodity and Delight .
10
ARCHffiCTURAl TERMS 1HE ANNOTATID DRAWINGS ILLUSTRATI SOME OF 1HE PRINCIPAL SPECWJST TIRMS.
MOULDINGS The profiles derived from the classical Orders:
cyma reversa,
torus scotia ovalo echinus cyma reversa or agee cyma recta cavetto fillet astragal
frieze slip
11
INTERIOR DOORCASES EXTERIOR DOORCASE
V>
a:
hood 0
volute or 0
broken pediment patera frieze scroll 0
Ionic
top rail capital
V>
~
0
0
muntin z
fingerplate/ ~
push plate
"'u
V>
a:
0
SEGMENTAL PEDIMENT 0
ti
V>
"'u
<
0:
rusticated ~
masonry
frieze
"'~
u
~
transom
leading STAIRCASE V>
open-string type
~~~~
pane)
..
z:::!
~-
~
handrail :o2
"':0
"-
sash box
palmette
glazing bar leaf capital
or astragal
pane or
light ribbon-and-
husk
ornament
sill
nosing
step pilaster
12
he Tudor and Jacobean periods can be seen as a often impossible, for example, to date ironwork accu-
T turning point in British domestic architecture. Fash-
ionable building gradually moved away from the styles
rately, as practical designs, once they had evolved,
endured for hundreds of years.
and tastes of medieval building toward more sophisti- Where original elements from the period survive unal-
cated structures with classicized decoration. tered, this is due either to their exceptional quality or to
After the Wars of the Roses (1455-85), the accession some freak of building history. Original floors are some-
of the Tudor dynasty ushered in an era of strong rule, times revealed in areas where new floorboards have
political stability and prosperity, and a new age of build- been laid over old ones. Wall decoration can be found
ing and rebuilding. It was not only the first two Tudor under later panelling, hangings or paint layers. Thus, our
monarchs, Henry VII and Henry VIII, who were prolific view of the early domestic interior is coloured by the
builders, but also their subjects. The wealthy and the patchy evidence which has been left to us.
less wealthy rebuilt, re-modelled or extended their Certain overall developments during the period help
houses. Timber-framed buildings were reconstructed or us to unravel the appearance of the Tudor and Jacobean
rebuilt in stone or brick; there was a rise in both the qual- interior. Houses became markedly more comfortable
ity and quantity of new dwellings. than their medieval forebears. The central hearth, which
The construction of more durable houses has led to a had been the sole means of heating a room in a medieval
greater survival rate, and the large number of houses house, had been replaced by the wall fireplace in almost
built has created a greater stock of examples from which all sizes of dwelling by the end of the period. In terms
to make generalizations. With the dawning of the 16th of construction and interior decoration, this change was
century it becomes possible for the first time to write radical. The abandonment of the central hearth re-
the history of the English interior with any accuracy. moved the need for single-story houses with holes in
This great advance is tempered by the fact that subse- the roof; floors were introduced above the entrance
quently there have been four to five hundred years in level, and as ceilings were no longer obscured or dam-
which alteratiops can be and have been made. Impor- aged by smoke they could now be decorated. Perhaps
tant original elements such as floor and wall decorations more importantly, the wall firepface became a focus for
were changed according to fashion. In an 18th or 19th decorative treatment. From the Tudor period right
century house original walls, ceilings and floors can through to the mid-20th century the fireplace was a
often be found, whereas in 16th- and 17th-century dominant element in the style of a room.
houses they are far rarer. An additional complication is Another development which was to have a major
that some elements of the English interior scarcely impact on the form of the interior was the increasing
change between the 17th and the 19th centuries. It is availability of glass. By the end of the period glass was
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 13
not only typical in larger houses but had become Lincoln and it was the standard building material
common in smaller houses too. This affected the size, throughout Scotland and Wales. The Thames valley and
number and design of windows. Moreover, bigger win- East Anglia produced suitable brick-earth. Different
dows and those without shutters admitted more light building materials were reflected in different architec-
and provided the incentive for carved or painted deco- tural effects. Although some forms, especially window
ration inside the room. and door styles, could be reproduced in brick, stone or
A more fundamental development was the increasing timber, other elements of decoration were greatly
specialization of room functions within a house. In the affected by the material in which they were executed.
Middle Ages even the King would live in one big room, Stone houses, for example, tended to have less decora.
where he would eat, sleep and conduct affairs of state. tion than timber ones, as stone was more difficult and
From the beginning of the 16th century, first the royal expensive to carve. Areas of good building stone such
palaces, then courtier houses and finally gentry houses as the Cotswolds or Northamptonshire tend to have
developed a series of specialized rooms. Separate with- houses with more sober decoration than, for example,
drawing rooms, dining rooms, parlours, bedrooms, clos- the highly decorated timber-framed houses of Lan-
ets and even libraries and studies became commonplace. cashire or Cheshire. Brick was increasingly used in areas
Each of these rooms had its own functional require- without good stone. It varied as much as stone in qual-
ment? and sometimes a code of decoration. Fabric hang- ity and colour: much depended on the nature of the clay
ings, for example, were considered inappropriate for from which it was made and on the manufacturer. Brick
rooms in which people ate, as they tended to retain the had its own limitations and advantages: it could be
smell of food: plaster was thought to be more suitable. carved (rubbed) but more often the individual bricks
A further factor which affected the style of the inte- were laid in patterns, which took local forms.
rior was regional variation. Building materials are on the Another variable in terms of style was the location of
whole heavy and bulky items which were expensive to the building, whether in a town or in the countryside.
transport in an era before the creation of an efficient Rapid increases in population made for a period of urban
road or rail network. Thus the style and form of houses expansion- so rapid that in 1580 a royal proclamation
varied widely accross the country. The three principal forbade new building within three miles of the gates of
building materials were timber, brick and stone. All- the city of London. The early Stuarts, James I and
timber buildings were found only in areas without sup- Charles I, placed further restrictions on building in
plies of local stone or brick-earth, such as the West London. This meant that houses built in the centre of
Midlands. Stone was almost universal in the great lime- the capital (and other towns followed suit) were gener-
stone belt which stretches across England from Bath to ally tall and narrow and had external decoration, such
14 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485 - 1625
(DA timber-framed town house. It is well A late 15th-century merchant's house with house, with mullioned oriel windows on the
built and has fairly large windows: indications a jettied upper ~oo"' a fashionable feature of ~!fper story. P
ofa comfortable but not an extraordinary town houses at this date. Lv (i) Two 15th-century timber framed houses.
house. (The frames contain 20th-century CD Paycocke's in Coggeshall, Essex, is an The door and window frames form an
metal windows.) LV elaborately fenestrated late 15th-century integral part of the structure. LV
as carved timbers and pargeting, concentrated on their that is, the systems of ornament, derived from ancient
cramped facades . In the countryside, where land was Greece and Rome, based on the Doric, Ionic, Corinthian,
less expensive, buildings could sprawl outward and Tuscan and Composite styles of columns and entabla-
facade decoration could afford to be looser. tures. The desire of clients for these novelties was prob-
Through most of the period the principal foreign influ- ably less strong than the enthusiasm of the craftsmen
ences were from the Low Countries and Germany, but who sold the designs. From c.1560 a stream of books
as the 16th century wore on the influence of Italy began and engravings began to come to England from Ant-
to make itself felt, rarely directly from the Italian penin- werp, widening the craftsmen's decorative vocabulary.
sula but more often through the medium of northern When the Duke of Alva began to persecute Protestants
European countries . This process led to the gradual in the Netherlands in the late 1560s, the flow of printed
adoption of classical motifs and the classical Orders- matter was augmented by the craftsmen and artists
TUDORANDJACOBEAN 15
2 3
4 5
themselves who fled to England to escape the dangers. part in the style of domestic buildings. Certain features
One of the most important decorative imports from were universal- the shapes of door and window heads,
Antwerp in this period was strapwork, a dominant form the overall configuration of a fireplace, the creeping
of interior decoration on ceilings, fireplaces and wood- influence of the Italian Renaissance - but the final prod-
work. Many of the newest decorative fashions, includ- uct was infinitely varied. With the additional complica-
ing strapwork, were first adopted at Court or in court tion of regional variations in materials, the period
circles, but the speed at which ideas diffused down the 1485-1625 seems to be one of considerable stylistic free-
social scale was remarkable. This inevitably led to dom. This is especially apparent when the period is
the misunderstanding of decorative motifs by lesser compared with the age of Baroque, which saw the intro-
craftsmen. duction of the rules of classical architecture, as well as
The imagination of local craftsmen played a central the beginnings of mass production.
I
'
. - - -- - -- - - -
16 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
Doors
~
0
0
LJ 0
."
I o
..
. .
::::: :1
a:
"~ .. .
o 1 o o o
All the doors and details shown timber surround has a four- moulded hood and spandrels square-headed stone doorway
on this page, except , are centred arch and a typical leaf carved with an ornate foliate with chamfered lintel and jambs.
exten'or. pattern carved into the spandrels. design. Such a surround could @ Brick was a versatile building
(j) The front door to a This grand stone doorway, contain a door or provide the matencd and it was often given
merchant's house in Stratford- c.1530, has richly moulded entrance to a porch. an ornamental treatment. Mid-
upon-Avon, dated 1596. The jambs that sit on a block plinth, a An early 17th-century 16th century.
(5) A four-centred timber 0 Only the grandest houses and dark terracotta. It was has a pediment and obelisks.
doorhe~ with Gothic quatrefoils had terracotta ornament. This constmcted c.1525 for Sutton This example 1tsrom York. The
and tracery. Early 16th century. group- doorhea~ hoodmould Place in Guildfor~ Surrey. use ofsuch moti s, in a restrained
@ Early 16th-century stone and overdoor frieze with A common form of/ate 16th- composition, re ects the growing
doorhead with a hoodmou/d. hoodmou/d- is made from light and early 17th-century doorhead influence of classical forms.
13
A sir;gle-story timber porch, from the early 16th century. The The second is an elongated, These examples are from the late
typical from the late 16th century first is a stone porch with crenellated brick porch, common 16th/early 17th century. The top
on. The inside supports are turnW, hoodmoulds over door and dun'ng most ofthe period. one is a classical design; the
like contemporary balusters. window. The buttressed form @ and @ Projecting doorhoods bottom one is a vernacular
@) and @ Two-story porches looks back to medieval models. were often supported on corbels. exercise in craftsmanship.
18 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
0 A highly elaborate 15th-
1
century door and doorcase from
Lavenham, Suffolk. The door
contains a wicket (a small,
secondary door) with an agee
arch. By contrast, the main
doorhead is four-centred with
decorated spandrels. Lv
~
mmetrical design. This kind
o imaginative approach resulted
rom the free hand most carvers
were given by their clients. su
5
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 19
5 7 8
. . ~
. ~.
11
Q) Some internal doors from the the 16th century. the section ofthe third door. These operated externally by a piece of
early to mid-16th centwy had 0 A simple front doot; enlivened and profrle @show elaborate string.
linen(old panelling. bi_ staggered nails. schemes; @and @are typical @ An iron latch, very common
@ This/ate 16th-century (DAn external door from a of vernacular and service doors. throughout the pen.od and well
dootway combines classical jacobean town house in York. Strap hinges were secured into the 19th century.
elements with traditional details. The panelling is formed by either by a pintle (a haole) sunk @ Wrought-iron or brass box
CD to Door panelling. All but qe_plied battens. into the door jamb, or, on lighter locks were luxury items. Early
the last are cross-boarded. (.V to @Sections ofdoor doors, by a pivot and a plate 16th century.
CD and @ Large external doors panel/ins_. Profrle is the section which was nailed into the jamb. @ to @Typical handles. The
with ribbed and moulded faces ofthe frfth door above, @ the @ A wooden latch, lock and frrst is the most common form;
were common to better houses in section ofthe sixth door and @ bolt, 17th century. The latch was the last is from an internal door.
15 ~F=~=-=.-=~=.==-~~.-..-..~.=~~.=--.=~.-,---~-~--".-..-~-.---.~
16
lI':1/.
,~.- ..~:.-~ ..:.... -:.:
)I:
.11
1;,
lili l
' ~
ij J!j I
!! ,(! jl !!!
li I '{ J ,! f:
19
21t,.9r
''
,Gi'. . . ~
o Gf
11m
G '
. '
20 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
Windows
uur 1~~~1(~
= = ;:::;; I I= =
= :;;;
i
= ;:::;;
I=F =
v
= = I= =
== I= ;:::;;
F=F= ;:::;; v
:J :a :]:a :] v
,
(D A typical/ate 16th-/early 7 ~~mt~~
f+-lS!
17th-century stone window. The
stone dressing echoes the
decoration on the edges ofthe
porch where the window is
located.
@ A six-:;liht window in
terracotta rom Sutton Place,
Guildfo~ , Surrey, c.1525. Both
sets oflights have trefoiled to@ Plan sections.
heads, slightly old-fashioned at A simple wooden window.
this time. Note the hoodmould. The standards and the glass are
0 A two-light window from the indicated.
middle of the 16th century: @ A stone bay window, showing
effects originally cut in stone the different thicknesses and
could be reproduced in brick. mouldings ofthe mullions.
A brick oriel window ofthe @ A timber bay window, similar
late 16th century, constructed to Q), with structural corner posts
from cut and moulded bricks. and thinner glazing mullions.
~ 12
10
CD A much-restored transomed
and mullioned window of the
early 16th centwy. The window
is supported by wooden brackets
to form an oriel. P
0 The simplest vernacular
windows in timber-framed
buildings were framed by the
structural members of the house
and divided into lights by
mullions. In poorer houses there
was originally no glass. L v
0 In a timber-framed house
with herringbone brick nagging
(infillj, the window is framed by
the structural timbers, divided by
thin mullions and glazed with
diagonal panes. LV
-- ~
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 23
0
1
---- - 2 A pair ofiron casements set in
a stone surround, 17th century.
1 <;::=:
The casements swing out and are
held by the fixed restraints. Note
~b
the decorative curling hinges.
~
r--:
:i r-
:-- ---------
A wrought-iron casement
showing the catch, handle, pintle
.
hinges, elaborate glazing pattern
and a ventilation quarry.
~~
;
- ~
Q) Examples ofpierced lead
ventilation quames. Some bear
the initals ofthe original owner.
@to@ Various Tudor
''I ' wrought-iron casement fixtures.
rno I
I
I
rno i DD
D~
rno
il
!I
i
I
b
~~~ I
~
Di I
~ \r-- v~ r
6
~
-----
Glass Window lights were filled with a loop to hold the standard). The
10
small panes ofglass which were glass would be wired to the
held toeether bY cames (grooved ironwork.
bars of lead). These were wired Part ofa window showing
Lead to iron standards (vertical rods) the staybars and standards. Note
and staybars (horizontal the trefoil heads, a popular late
rods) which were set, at medieval motif, used in grander
intervals, into the window buildings.
surround. @)A diagrammatic section
A detail ofa window head through a came, showing the
showing a locket (a staybar with glass in situ.
24 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
Walls
he most common interior wall surface in this panelling (wainscot) was sometimes surmounted by a
T period was flat plasterwork, laid on brick, stone
or a skeleton of oak or chestnut laths, and painted with
painted or plaster frieze. .
Panelling comprises thin boards let into grooves in
limewash (whitewash). solid timber uprights and cross members. The boards
In more elaborate buildings timber panelling was were generally of oak, measuring no more than 24
applied to a brick or stone wall as a decorative cladding inches (60cm) square and split as thin as possible.
or to stud work (the timber framework of a house) to Carved decoration was popular; early in the 16th
form a wall in itself. When applied to existing walls century a linenfold pattern (derived from wall hang-
the panelling could be full height or to frieze or dado ings) was fashionable. Later on, arabesques, strapwork
level. Dado panelling was usually surmounted by wall and foliate forms were used, as well as busts in
hangings (tapestry or painted cloth), or occasionally roundels. Geometric shapes were often formed using
painted decoration in imitation of fabrics or panelling. applied battens. In grander houses a design of panel-
Wallpaper was rare in this period. Frieze-height ling might encompass the fireplace and door surrounds.
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 25
(J) An elevation and section ofan decoration early in the period.
early 17th-century wall showing @ Larger panels with applied
good-quality wainscotting with a geometric shapes were popular
P-_/aster frieze. in the early 17th century.
Typical 16th- or early 17th- 0 Crudely carved panels such
century panelling. The framing is as these were widespread
jointed and pegged. during the later 16th century.
0 Linen(oldyanelling. the most
fashionable form of carved
AI . ; t;q.
@ to Ti!f'ical sections o[
panelling; () is a section ofthe
first wall (left) , 0 of the second
wall and ofthe fourth wall.
The last shows clapboarding.
where tapering boards are used
with the overlapping face or the
smooth face exposed.
@ Two methods ofattaching
panels into a framework. The
first shows a mason's mitre,
where cross-panels are chamfered.
- - -- ----- - - -
26 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
---
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 27
Ceilings
1
V)
(.)
z
d
"'
u
Icasenunderside
the 15th century the ceiling was simply the
of the floor above; this continued to be the
in humble houses for much of the period. In this
principal structural elements, divide the ceiling into
compartments which can be left plain, be painted, or
filled with carved timber or plaster ribs . Early compart-
case the structural floor members were sometimes mented (coffered) ceilings are grid-like, but those from
decorated. However, in the early 16th century the the later 16th century have a more fluid form and often
underside of the floor joists in better houses began to contain organic motifs or strapwork. At the points
be covered with boarding or laths which were where ribs or straps intersect moulded bosses or, in
plastered. These suspended flat ceilings could be left grander houses, pendants are sometimes fixed. Plaster
plain or sometimes were carved or decorated with mouldings were at first worked in situ but later the
plaster mouldings. Even quite poor houses had some more elaborate patterns were made in wooden or wax
kind of ceiling ornament, often in the form of moulds and then fixed in place.
chamfered and stopped mouldings on the joists. Ceilings were not always flat: those on the upper
On decorated ceilings the main beams, which are the floors of large houses were often caved or hipped.
28 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1 625
(j) to@ Typical sections (j) A simple arch-braced roof not have a collar beam. tie-beam.
through timber-framed roofs. A king post roof, where the Q) A crown post roof is @A queen post roof, where the
Many variations on these structure is supported by a single supported by a collar-beam collar-beam is supported by two
standard forms can be found. post from the tie-beam and does carried on a single post from the posts from the tie-beam.
1 2 Stmt 3 4
6
30 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
Floors
1
he simplest ground-level floors were beaten earth; found in rural houses where animals were kept inside.
T better ones were brick, laid on edge, or tile; the best
w ere flagged in stone. Brick floors were common, but
Upper stories have wooden floors, mostly of oak,
although elm is found. Boards are much wider than
as brick is a soft material most brick floors found today modern planks: 24 inches (60cm) is not unusual.
are later replacements. In grand houses brick was nor- Many floors were plastered, particularly in northern
mally restricted to service areas. Tiles can be boldly pat- England. The mix usually contained a high proportion
terned, glazed or left plain; the colours and sizes vary of straw for greater strength. In grand houses the floors
from region to region. Stone slabs were the most could be painted but most were covered in rush mat-
favoured ground level flooring; once they had become ting. Matting was a universal floor covering. It was
worn they w ere turned over and re-used before being sometimes laid when the plaster was damp so that it
replaced. Local stone was usually laid; types commonly fused into the floor or it was laid in loose strips on the
found today include York stone, granite, slate, many dry surface. Lengths were often stitched together and
sandstones and even marble. Cobblestones can be nailed down at the edges. Carpets were a luxury.
- - - - --- -----
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 31
Fireplaces
~
0
0
tC
A t the beginning of the period the central hearth was four-centred arch with chamfered or moulded decora-
\.. common, but during the 16th century the wall fire- tion. A frieze often surmounted the lintel. From the
place came into the ascendant. The re-location of the 1540s fashionable fireplaces had Renaissance details,
fireplace made it the focus of architectural interest. such as classical Orders on the jambs. Overmantels had
The simplest fireplaces were brick or stone stacks built niches, coats of arms, decorative panels or strapwork.
against an outside wall or placed on one of the central, Hearths were of stone or brick; those of brick were
internal walls. In the latter case a number of fireplaces regularly re-laid. The back wall was often finished with
could share the same flue (back-to-back and on differ- thin bricks or tiles, on edge, or was protected by a
ent floors). Such fireplaces had timber or stone lintels wrought-iron fire back. The simplest hearths had small
which could be plain, chamfered, moulded or carved. brick walls which supported the burning logs, but most
In grander houses, the fireplace opening could be con- had iron andirons (fire dogs). During the 16th century
ceived as one timber, brick or stone structure. Those wood became more expensive and increasingly coal
from the early 16th century were usually spanned by a was burned in fire baskets.
32 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485 -1 625
(J) A simple fireplace of bn"ck a townhouse, c.1600. The deep 16th century, with a {our-centred @An early 16th-centwy stone
with a carved oak lintel, a type lintel is typical. arch, stop-chamfered jambs and surround with a four-centred
common throughout the pen"od. A more sophisticated stone a foliated overmantel. The arch, embellished spandrels and
0 A simple stone fireplace from fireplace from the first half of the hearth projects into the room. quatrefoils on the lintel.
Spandrels ofren contained
badges or mottoes.
G) A four-centred surround from
the 1590s with geometric
6 p.ainted decoration.
@ Dating from the early years
of the 17th century, this marble
example combines a Con"nthian
column with incised foliage and
strapwork decoration.
10
- - - - - - --- .
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 33
(!) An unusual combination of with a nmning vine moll{ with early 16th-century frreplace. SU early 17th centun'es. C
rubbed-brick/ambs and a catved bunches ofgrapes. SU @ A surround ~anked by half- (J) The lower part of this
wooden linte makes up this Q) Heraldic badges and shields, columns with an overmantel chimneypiece is 18th-century but
early 16th-century frreplace. P which today appear blank, compn'sing a decorative panel the wooden overmantel with an
A detail of a catved frreplace were often brightly gilded and similarly flanked is a typical armorial and frgu res is typical of
spandrel. A shield is coupled painted, as in this detail from an arrangement ofthe late 16th! the late 16th century. c
4
34 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
(!)A vety grand pre-Reformation The four-centred arched 0 Columns, half-columns and chimneypieces. The overmantef
fireplace, with typical/ate surround of this chimneypiece, pilasters feature in grand continues the cornice from the
medieval motifs. The broken c.1600, is conservative while the Elizabethan and jacobean wall. Wood, early 17th centuty.
form of the overmantel shows overmantef with its strapwork
that it has been altered. and pilasters is vety fashionable.
@ This fashionable wooden allegorical scenes in relief Built centuty, has receptacles for jugs @Hooks on andirons held cross-
chimneypiece from Bromley-by- for a member ofthe court circle in ofwme. bars which retained the logs.
Bow Palace, London, c.1603, Greenwich, London, c.1607-12. This is a spear-headed @An andiron with a stand for a
has decorative pilasters on the A stone and oak firebasket from Haddon Hall, jug of wine. Late 16th centuty.
jambs and half-columns and chimneypiece from a London Derbyshire, early 16th century.
niches on the overmantef. townhouse, c.1620. A cast-iron andiron, 30
CD A grand stone chimneypiece CD All firebaskets were wrought- inches (75cm) high, c.1610,
with catyatids, strapwork and iron. This example, late 16th with a female bust on a pedestal.
----
----- -
--------------~-
--- ----
_ ...
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 35
Staircases
This is the principal staircase at Chastleton newel posts and pendants are ofa common
House, Oxfordshire, 1602. It is ofthe obelisk-like form. c
framed type {without a central newelj. The
he most common form of staircase during this period Here, the solid central newel is replaced by a timber-
T was the straight flight. In small houses it was
squeezed into a narrow space and was often hidden
framed tower surrounded by a stone or brick stairwell.
Most Elizabethan balusters are turned to resemble
behind a partition. The dog-leg stair is a variation, com- columns or they are waisted. Some carved or pierced flat
prising two adjacent flights with balustrades on the same balusters are found from the middle of the 16th century,
vertical plane. In better houses the staircase was an object but they are more typical of Jacobean staircases. They are
of status; it was often placed to the side of the central hall, curvaceous or tapering shapes, mostly based on strap-
with elaborate, weighty decoration. Many houses, includ- work. All stairs are dosed-string: that is, the balusters are
ing quite grand ones, had external staircases and galleries. set on a diagonal brace rather than on the stairs them-
Spiral staircases (vice stairs) can be found in better selves. A wide variety of mouldings was adopted for the
houses early in the period. These developed massive handrail. The piece de resistance was the newel post, which
square central newels of brick or stone, which by the mid- could be elaborately turned and carved in even quite
16th century had evolved into the framed newel stair. humble houses.
36 TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 1485-1625
,,
1 4
1\ ll lllH \11
' Ill I 111 11 11111111
5
~ (
~
~
r
Up '
up
II
j Down
~
g
~
~
(!) The spiral staircase was in of staircase in this period. became a common staircase 0) The framed newel staircase
use throughout the period, in Q) The dog-leg stair is found in form in larger houses ofthe mid- offered the greatest opportunity
timber, stone or bn'ck. modest houses throughout the and late 1bth century. The for display. It ~rst appeared in
0 The straight flight is the p_eriod. newel nses from the bottom of larger houses in the middle of
simplest and most common form G) A central so!td square newel the building to the top. the 16th century.
6 8
10
This staircase from the mtd-16th century. the handrail and a diagonal elaborate staircase, c.1620.
Warwick has a simple newel @ A Somerset staircase, strip, the closed-string type. @ This upper story flight from
post with plain turned balusters c.1560, with more elaborate @ The obelisk was a popular Northamptonshire, c.1580, has
that resemble columns. It is turned and carved members. form for newel posts in the early a pendant hanging from the
typical of ordinary houses, of The balusters are held between 17th century, as seen on this newel.
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 37
(j) A staircase with a turned 17th century.
newel post and carved pilaster Q) In this 17th-century example
balusters. Late 16th century. from Shropshire, openwork
Part ofa very elaborate strapwork is placed below the
framed newel staircase with handrail instead of balusters.
sloping pilaster balusters and Such designs were very popular
strapwork embellishments, early during the Baroque period.
1 2 3
Built-in furniture
0
0
An oak aumbry, c.1530.
This early 16th-century
aumbry has its original fittings.
3 -
Q) An elaborate internal porch
from the dining room at
Broughton Castle, Oxfordshire,
c.15 99. It has foliate and
strapwork decoration and
obelisk-type finials.
1
@ ~ "-"
~
@
I
I " @ The interior ofa stone porch
of 1611, with scalloped niches.
Note the four-centred arch,
"
. I old-fashioned for this date.
r CD A detail ofthe top rail and
w
I
~ ~ ~ ~nial ofa settle, c.151 0.
I A typical table and form.
""' 0 An oak settle with linenfold
back and calVed finials, c.1500.
---- -
TUDOR AND JACOBEAN 39
Services
1
(!) to @ Ornate lead hopper heads/leader CD The water closet from Sirjohn Harington's
heads and down pipes/downspouts (rom The Metamorphosis of Ajax; a Cloacinean
Sherborne in Dorset, Bramshill in Hampshire, Satire, published in 1596. A is the cisterni D
Bramhall in Cheshire and Haddon Hall in is the stone seat with a hole in iti His the
Derbyshire. These were fed by wooden gutters flushing pipei and N is the collecting vault. It
lined with lead or by plain lead gutters. The is a highly sophisticated system for its day.
down pipes/downspouts could be ofsquare or @A garde robe, c.161 0, from a large town
round section. They were luxury items so the house in Newark-on- Trent, Nottinghamshire.
date ofinstallation is often recorded, as on the It is now located in a cupboard. The seat has a
first two examples. Some simpler heads were wooden cover and rests on a shaft which
made but they have a poorer survival rate as leads to a pit at ground level. Its survival is
they tended to be replaced. remarkable. TY
tandards of sanitation varied according to the status pipes/downspouts which directed rainwater to cisterns.
S and location of a house. Houses near rivers had
ready-made waste disposal facilities and those near
Highly decorated heads and pipes survive at some great
Jacobean houses such as Knole and Hatfield House.
springs an easy water supply. Andrew Boorde in his Most households were served by outside privies
book The Dietaty ofHealth (1540) rates a supply of water (houses of office), although built-in garderobes (water
as the primary factor in choosing the location of a house. closets) were not uncommon during the late 16th and
Water supply to the grandest houses, and in some 17th centuries. These were usually sited in recesses and
towns such as the city of London, was by conduit. comprised a wooden seat with a hole and a shaft. The
Wooden or lead pipes fed the water from springs to shaft was often located next to a chimney-stack to allow
conduit heads. More commonly houses were served by upward ventilation. It either led to a conduit which
either communal or private wells. Internal lead plumb- could be flushed from below or, more commonly, to a
ing was restricted to grand houses, as was the external garderobe pit which was periodically dug out and
network of lead gutters, rainwater heads and down cleared.
40
BAROQUE
1625- 1714
0 The garden facade of 1
0 Moulton Hall, Yorkshire,
Moulton Manor, Yorkshire. c.1654-60. The house is within
The original Elizabethan manor sight of Moulton Manor. The
was altered c.1650 by the gables are in the Netherlandish
application of crude classical style. The alternating bands of
detail - pediments on the plain and rusticated masonry are
windows, and a balustrade on a provincial feature. MU
the roof both apparent in this
view. This work reflects the
misunderstanding by a
provincial architect of
fashionable courtly ideals. Note,
for example, the undersized
proportions of the window
pediments. 1he hall and cross-
wing plan type represented by
this house gradually became
outmoded in the course of the
17th century, as more compact
plans came to favour. M O
2 l'wtc 1!.
Q) Reputedly the (trst regular show the early use of a facade @ The double-pile plan, with a in country houses afrer its early
terrace/row in London, these with giant pilasters based on the central corridor dividing two appearance at Coles hill,
houses in Great Queen Street classical Orders. SUM ranges of rooms, was in~uential Berkshire (1649). OUP
ment on an otherwise plain wall, as at Beningbrough leading to a room of little consequence . Many exam-
Hall, Yorkshire (1715), or of richer ornament on a ples of such rule-breaking will be found illustrated in
sparsely ornamented wall. these pages, reflecting a superficial familiarity with
These principles were fully realized only in the Court architecture, but little understanding of its prin-
circles where state influence was most assertive. Else- ciples. For the Court found that it had to repress the
where, designers were less troubled by these abstract underlying aesthetic urge of the period, which
ideas. Although the role of decorum came to be influ- is dynamic. Frames burst outward, ornament spills
ential, it was often broken, perhaps by an extravagant over, architraves do not adhere to a straight course,
window surround, or by a pompous door frame mouldings are fat and voluptuous, carving is coarse
42 BAROQUE 1625-1714
3 4
and expressive, colour is bold and simple. upon Court architects can be seen at Eltham Lodge,
The exile of the Court from 1642 to 1660 dissolved Kent (1663), a derivative of Pieter Post's Mauritshuis
the adherence to theory, while the dynamism of non- at The Hague; but it can also be seen at a lower social
courtly architecture thrived. The theoretical basis of level in the brick houses with shaped gables in the
early Stuart Court architecture was restored with King eastern counties of England.
Charles in 1660, although its practical expression was After 1690 the ancient idea of unity became less
enriched by study of courtly architecture in the places influential. Architects became even more interested in
of exile, particularly France and the Netherlands . The re-creating the appearance of ancient Roman buildings,
former influence is more easily recognized in public or at least of Italian Renaissance buildings (which
buildings, but it can also be seen in courtier's houses seemed to have an authentically ancient appearance),
like the Duke of Montagu's at Boughton, Northamp- but at the expense of theory. Thus, Easton Neston Hall,
tonshire (1683), and the Duke of Somerset's at Pet- Northamptonshire (c.1685) has different (and irregu-
worth, Sussex (1688). The impact of the Netherlands lar) numbers of stories on different elevations: its
---- - - - - -- - - .
BAROQUE 43
composition is not unified, despite the fact that it has which are in distinct conflict. One of the most extreme
some similarity with a Renaissance palace. The fashion examples of this is Vanbrugh's Seaton Delaval Hall,
for buildings copied from the antique did not produce Northumbria, whose component parts seem to have
unified designs either. And although Castle Howard, little or no relationship with each other. The architects
in Yorkshire (1699-1726, Nicholas Hawksmoor and Sir of this post-1690 school were evidently more inter-
John Vanbrugh), is a unified composition, other great ested in purely visual effects, and therefore have more
houses such as Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire (1705, in common with the 18th-century Picturesque move-
by the same architects), are composed of elements ment than with the Baroque.
44 BAROQUE 1625 - 1714
Doors
The entrance was the most important feature multiplication as much as by addition: here,
of the exterior and was thus emphasized by a concentric series of mouldings with
an extensive use of ornament. Such dentillated infill is used to dramatic effect. It
decoration could be increased by is an excellent provincial example. MO
he formality of life in the Baroque period was wished to stress his morals, his blood or his learning. The
T nowhere more theatrically expressed than at the
front door, which was made to look simultaneously as
pediment could be simple, it could terminate in scrolls,
or it could be double-curved and scrolled (the swan's-
festive as the backdrop of a stage, and as imposing as the neck type); it could be filled with carved ornament,
gates of a citadel. It might be flanked by columns, or Oess which sometimes took over and obscured the underly-
expensively) pilasters . The columns might be plain ing shape. However, as knowledge of antiquity became
Doric, to look forbidding, or ornamental, to look expen- more common, emichrnent was increasingly confined
sive. If ornamental, they could be fluted, twisted, or to particular areas, such as capitals or friezes.
emiched with ornate panels of decoration. The doors Doors were ornamented with hinges inl-shaped, but-
were often positioned at the top of steps, and could be terfly or "cock's-head" patterns. Massive wooden box
canopied by a shell or placed in a porch. Above it there locks were used by most people, but the rich bought
could be a pious inscription, a carved achievement of intricate and expensive iron and brass locks to advertise
arms, or a pediment, depending on whether the owner their patronage of ingenious mechanics.
BAROQUE 45
0 Columns were a desirable example is early 1580s. of Architecture {1729). It judge's House in Salisbwy,
but expensive frame to a door; @ The growing importance of compares the decoration and Wiltshire, is enriched with
pilasters were a less expensive classica[ proportions and motifs proportions of a door and a ornament in the tympanum.
alternative. Ham House, in fashionable architecture is window. AP () and (j) The Corinthian
Surrey, 1610. illustrated by this engraving CD Where classical allusions Order looks most expensive but
Q) A run of steps allowed the from an English edition of were appropriate, the door the Doric is more imposing. The
owner to descend in style. This Andrea Palladia's First Book might have a pediment. The arst surround here, c.16 77, is
from King's Bench Walk,
London. The projections ofthe
engaged columns and pilasters
are continued into the pediment.
The second, stone surround
dates from c.1695.
The alternative to a
pediment was a cornice, here
enn'ched with scrolls. 1717.
The Ionic Order gave
elegance to a surround. This
garden door from Wolvesey
Palace, Winchester, 1684, is
tall and well proportioned.
@ Classical learning and
wealth are brought together in
r an exceptionally expressive
design. The elongated fonn of
this surround from Mark Lane,
London, early 18th century, is
typical ofBaroque taste.
46 BAROQUE 1625-1 714
1 f~~~~5~5~~r (J) Tall porches such as this columns). This example from CD and 0 The pedimented form
i (1623) were fashionable on grand Nether Lypiatt Manor, and the temple portico were the
houses early in the period. Gloucestershire, 1702-5, is made main variations ofthe porch
0 Until the English Civil War g!!inder by a fiight ofsteps. during this period. GBV
(1642-51) columns were often (i) Twisted columns, inspired by 0 Country houses sometimes had
enriched by panels ofornament, those ofKing Solomon's Temple, wide porticoes. Groombridge
usually strapwork, as on this }emsafem, were even more showy'. Place, Kent, c.1660.
p_orch. King's Manor, York, 1635.
Q) A porch could resemble an
aedicule (a niche framed by two
- - --- - - - .
-
.
BAROQUE 47
1
~
0
0
Q
(j) The front door to Kimbolton Castle, 4 ~~~~~~~~!!!~~!'!~!,! @ The n"ch decorations on this doorway from
Cambndgeshire, 1680s, is a$rand classical Thorpe Hall, Northamptonshire, designed
ensemble, approached by a flight of steps. c.1653, are indications ofthe importance1
The door is set within a courtyard, a the room. The entablature and pilasters o
consequence of recasing a medieval house. AQ the doorcase and the wreath motifon the
@By the end of the 17th century, pattern doors are worked in high relief TH
books from Continental Europe were being 0) A great variety of panel arrangements
published in England. This doorway from was used in the 17th century. Doors with
Beningbrough Hall, Yorkshire, c. '1715, was two square panels were common. MO
designed by William Thornton who copied @By the mid-17th century fashionable
details from Domenico De Rossi's Studio London doors had square and rectangular
d'Architettura Civile of 1702; these, in panels, but in more remote areas joiners
turn, were based on Roman remains. AQ continued to create more imaginative designs,
Q) A typical Queen Anne town house from as here. Yorkshire, c.1654-60. MO
Albury Street, Deptford, south London. The (])Nail-head ornament (of medieval on"gi11)
narrow proportions are characten"stic, and geometn"cal panel patterns (fashionable
re~ecting the narrow passage within the in the 16th century) were used until the
house leading from the door to the stairs. AQ English Civil War (1642 -51}. fi.IU
5 7
48 BAROQUE 1625-1714
Internal doors
(J) Baroque doors are large and
ofren have only two panels.
0 and Q) The classical formula fi:om double two-panelled doors. harmonize with the architecture were among a number of
for door surrounds - architrave, @ The six-panelled door, like ofa room. The pilasters that experimental forms of the time.
pilasters and (n.eze - attained this one from Eltham House, frame this double door ofthe In particularly important
prodigies of elaboration but the Kent, 1664, was to become the mid-1650s reach the cornice. locations the height of the
door itself was ofren ve'Y simple. standard Georgian door. 0 and([) Five-panelled doors doorway could be increased by
The four-panelled door evolved CD Doorways were made to and ten-panelled double doors the use ofan overdoor, as in this
example from Ashburnham
House, London, c.1660.
9 Panelling could be ve'Y
imaginative and elaborate.
DO
/[1 ~I
@ Sections of moulded door
panels, from c.1640 to c.1695.
Doors were moulded in much
higher relief by the end ofthe
17th centu'Y than in the mtddle.
oa
- ------------ --- ..
BAROQUE 49
(]) joiners were accustomed to framing doors in 2
whatever shapes were determined by the
bricklayers or masons. WH :2
0
0
0
0 Fashionable tall doors needed many (' The thin joinel)l on intemal doors prevented
framing members. TheY. often had more than locks from being cut into the woodwork. Box
the six panels typical ofGeorgian doors. WH locks were therefore mounted on front surfaces,
Arched doors were inspirid by Roman on the insrde ofrooms {top). The reverse had
prototypes. The spandrels are customarily mounting bolts, handles and keyhole plates
filled with facetted triangular shapes. (bottom). WH
Q)A door knocker, c.1650 {top). By 1700 more sttlndard forms ofhinges are illustrated here: Cock's-head hinges and drop handles are
omate, scrolled knockers had appeared (bottom). H-shaped, L-shaped and butterfly. used on Baroque fumiture and doors alike.
@ Hinges were mounted on the door face, (l1 Locks were prestige items, even in simple A decorative keyhole escutcheon plate on
rather than being cut into the insrde edge as houses. The mechanism was ofien ingenious the back ofa door complemented the box lock;
they were from the Georgian period. The three and the box could be highly chased (engraved). an elaborate key would complete the set.
50 BAROQUE 1625-1714
Windows
in dow surrounds, particularly those on the windows increased and became narrower, king mul-
W entrance front, were styled with as much pomp
as front doors. Those in the middle of the middle floor
lions became dispensable. Transoms were positioned
relatively high in the opening and were reduced from
were especially elaborate and were designed to impose two to one. The moulded profiles of early mullions were
unity by centralizing the whole composition. Even the replaced by plain square sections.
owner of a relatively unostentatious town house would Hinged casements filled the space between mullions
be prepared to spend money on an ornate serliana and transoms. The development of counter-weighted
01enetian window) with an arched centre light. vertically sliding sashes in the 1670s eliminated the need
Large window openings were at first supported by for mullions and transoms while allowing much larger
mullions and transoms. As the period progressed these areas of glass to be moved. By 1700 sashes were com-
were reduced both in quantity and bulk. Initially the mon, and the fashionable ones were as tall and narrow
central king mullion remained substantial while the as possible. Casements remained in smaller houses and
others were reduced in size. Then, as the numbers of in the service areas of many larger ones.
------------- ~ - .
BAROQUE 51
mm mm
example has a large central king
-- mullion, commonly used at this
date to reinforce a w1de window. ~
0
From mid-century, mullions Ci
a~uired unmoulded profrles.
z
~~~
~;::::: FF
@ and CD Pattern books with 3
Fr- ~r-
r- f- rr- classical designs were consulted
f- ~ r- 1- rl-
* ;::=:=
~ := r- 1-
r- 1-
r- f- ,..... f-
in fashionable circles. They
illustrated correct elements, motifs
and proportions. AP, GBV
@Narrower windows, which
eliminated the need for king
mullions, appeared in the 1630s.
7
4 6
I< ~
DO
p p 1==
DO
ffiDO
~ ~ DO
and Decorative scrollwork
or rustication framed pn.ncipal 13
windows on fate 17th-century
facades - that is, those above the
f!ont door or on the piano nobile.
@ Tall and narrow proportions
were highly desirable. This
~l linnnnil lf
resulted in the elimination of
mullions and transoms. The
orangery window illustrated,
c.1704, is 14 feet (4.2m) tall.
@ This attenuated window is @Round-headed windows @ Simple round relieving @A late 17th-century window
one ofa pair ~anking a front similar to this were introduced by arches, in the Netherlandish head, with classical details.
door in Sussex, c.1712. The Hugh May at Windsor Castle, style, were popular in the 1650s @ The keystone became
thick glazing bars are typical. Berkshire, c.16 72. and 60s. fashionable from the 1640s.
52 BAROQUE 1625-1714
Q) HierarchiCJ1l fenestration in transoms. The bottom lights in this shutters; curtains were less usual. decorative pair is from a house in
the classiCJ11 style is treated in an four-light window, c.1703, would Iron latches ofien display the Guildford, Surrey, c.1680.
eccentric, somewhat exaggerated open. Most windows had internal blacksmith's crafi. This highly 0 Some latch-plate patterns
fashion at Moulton Hal" were popular over a very long
Yorkshire, 1654-60, a house period. The so-CJ1lled cock's head
remote from fashionable London. 4 pattern (lefi) is found from the
MU 16th to the 18th centuries. Other
@ Sash windows from Winslow zoomorphic shapes were used.
Han Buckinghamshire, 1698- Iron springs and small pivots
1702, designed by Sir were common latch mechanisms.
Christopher Wren. Their
elongated fo1111s and the use of
the counter-balanced sash typifv
windows of high Baroque and '
Queen Anne houses. WH
CD Hinged CJ1sements ~/led the
spaces between mullions and
- .
BAROQUE 53
Windows were simpler on This less classical dormer of features ofthe age. Oval
top ~oars, although even the attic 1684 has a hiyped slate roof windows were even more
dormers ofa very classical Note the old-fashioned popular, both at high and low
composition had pedimented diamond-shaped quarries. social levels. The circular window,
gables, as in this example from @ to@ The circular window is c.1695, is from Hampton Court
the 1650slearly 1660s. one of the most charactenstic Palace, London.
. - - ~---
--- ----------------------
54 BAROQUE 1625-1714
Walls
g oo nr
A detail of the east wall of the dining room at carved details. The whole design shows a strict
Thorpe Hall, Northamptonshire, c.{654 -6. The observance of classical proportions and parts,
bold lines of the wainscotting and the doorcase with a clearly de fined dado (chair) rail and a
are impressive. Their austerity is somewhat simple cornice. 1he ten-panelled double doors
relieved by the limited use of swags and other complement the wainscotting. TH
alls were patterned, except in the poorest houses, and could be removed from its original house as a result
W usually by means of painted stencils. In the later
17th century stencilled patterns began to be replaced by
of a bequest. It was fonned into panels w hich increased
in size as joinery skills advanced. Wainscot was painted
block printed papers, the first wallpapers . Both these with patterns determined by the shape of the panels :
forms of decoration are liable to decay and their survival usually geometric and abstract designs were used, with
is very rare. Richer owners would cover their walls with the occasional addition of figurative detail. Heraldry,
w oven or painted fabric hangings. Tapestries for the moral themes and classical architecture (which became
wealthy were produced in England or were imported more effective as panel size increased) were depicted
from Continental Europe. The most extravagant cover- on the walls of wealthy householders. The tendency
ing was leather which was stamped, sometimes tooled was to simulate a more expensive material: deal (pine
and occasionally gilded. It was attached to battens. or fir) was painted to resemble oak, oak to resemble
Wood panelling, termed wainscot, was a fashionable walnut, and many woods were treated to simulate
form of wall lining; it was often regarded as furniture marble or tortoiseshell.
----- -
-- ------ .
BAROQUE 55
~
gurative carving in oak, a fonn
rna mentation which could be
nd in better houses.
0 Painted geometric patterns
decorate the plasterwork on the
wall and frreplace surround of
this early 17th-century house.
CD The late 17th century was the
heyday of naturalistic carving.
This detail, c.16 77, from a
picture surround at Sudbury
Hall, Derbyshire, shows the
virtuosity of Grinling Gibbons.
His reputation is such that the
talents of contemporaries like
Edward Pierce and john Selden
have become overshadowed.
@ Strapwork decoration was
popular early in the period. Here
it is used on an oak pilaster.
0 Two examples of wood
cornicing. The top one (c.1690) is
decorated with acanthus leaf
carving in the cove. The early
17th-century example below has
dentils and geometric carving.
In this carved overdoor detail
Honour and Dignity are
conveyed in the palms and the
cloths of state.
56 BAROQUE 1625-171 4
0 Inigo jones and his pupil 1
john Webb produced designs for
interior ornament correctly
modelled on ancient Roman
examples, such as this fn.eze,
early 1630s. The anginal Roman
des1gns were for open-air use, in
stone. AM
0 It took time for jones'
ornament to become known.
Meanwhile, the more inventive
Romanized ornament ofthe 16th
century continued in use, much archaeologists who had studied 3
of it taken at second or third remains ofRoman interiors, lost
hand from the Italian before jones could see them.
-- ------- .
BAROQUE 57
Ceilings
1
(!)A detail ofa grand plastered Vigorous moulded ornament A variant of the grid-plus- circular breaks, c.1685.
ceiling, Thorpe Hall, against a plain ground divided oval formula: a grid forming a Q) A more elaborate design, of
Northamptonshire, c.1653. by a grid. TH central rectangle, with semi- c.1695.
ost ceilings of the period were not plastered. to emulate ancient architecture . As walls were
M Ornament was provided by chamfering the
beams, and sometimes the joists supporting the floor
gradually organized into ancient architectural forms,
their junction with the ceiling was marked by a cornice
above. The only feature that distinguishes ceilings of - even when ceiling and wall were plain. If this point
this type from similar constructions of the 16th cen- had been emphasized at all in the 16th century, it
tury or earlier is that the timbers became narrower- a would have been with a frieze . There was also an
reflection of the fact that wood was increasingly com- increasing systematization of the ornament. The 16th-
peted for. By way of compensation, the stops at the and early 17th-century ceiling was an impenetrable
ends of the chamfers became increasingly complex. maze of ornament. The Baroque ceiling, although
Better houses had plaster ceilings suspended from retaining densely ornamented areas, had them divided
the undersides of the floor above, as previously. from each other, and even from some areas that were
However, the style of plaster ornament changed entirely plain, by a grid which imposed a clearly cen-
greatly, although not until c.1640. There was a desire tralized, and sometimes hierarchical system.
58 BAROQUE 1625-171 4
(j) A ceiling from a house in with ornament, or left blank in Q) Later, the basic gnd was been framed. Whether or not the
Houndsditch, London, c.1630. order to emphasize other parts omitted, leaving only the ovals designer enriched these yattems,
Until nearly 1640 ceilings were of the design. RIBA or circles which had formerly they remained simple, force{it!
ornamented with dense and large. From Hamstead
strapwork, as here. If there were Marshall, Berkshire, c.1686.
any breaks or any emphatic 4 @ The oval was the favoured
features, they were usually central ceiling form in the second
repeated; thus, much oftheir half of the 17th century. This
distinctio11 was lost. Sometimes detail is from a ceiling of
the ornament centred on framed c.1655.
armorial or emblematic devices; CD and@ Plasterwork corner
commonest were the four ornament of c.1680. Towards
seasons, five senses, seven sins, the end of the late 17th century,
and nine virtues. classical stories, such as scenes
0 A half-ceiling design by from Ovid's Metam orphoses,
Inigo jones. It was j ones who a long poem on myths and
introduced the simplified~pe of legends (AD 1-8), began to be
ceiling based on a grid o illustrated on ceilings.
deeply moulded beams. he (j) A cherub: a central ceiling
spaces could be painted, filled panel of c.1695.
5 6
- - - - - - - -- - .
BAROQUE 59
Floors
::2
0
0
ti
(j) A selection of the many (1691). They were influential in across the floorboards, is known Somerset House, London, in
patterns obtainable by paving in England where marble was as broderie and is similar to the 1661 afrer her return from exile
different coloured marbles. These used in the grandest houses. designs for contemporary garden in France. They reflect the latest
geometric designs are taken 0 A rare surviving detail ofa P-_arterres. French tastes. The skill required
from a French source, painted wooden floor at Two patterns for parquet to produce illusionistic designs
C. A. d'Aviler's Cours Hanbury Hall, Worcestershire floors laid in the apartments of made this an expensive
complet d'architecture, (c.1 700). The pattern, taken Queen Henrietta Maria at technique. AP
Fireplaces
any fireplaces were little more than a hole in the cornices projected on corbels, forward of the pilasters,
M wall, framed with moulded wood or stone, like a
simple classical door. However, in houses of any pre-
transforming the overmantel into a sculptural feature;
by 1700 such effects were only possible when the fire-
tension it was usual to give fireplaces prestigious treat- place was set across a corner. Naturalistic carving offered
ment. They could be dignified with a frieze and cornice, further expressive possibilities. After the Restoration,
and in a very grand room the cornice would be sup- carved frames became enlarged, while the panels they
ported by pilasters. framed were diminished. There was also a fashion for
The decorative arrangement of the surrounding wall mirror glass (very expensive). These trends culminated,
could be altered or interrupted to emphasize the fire- c.1710, in overmantels wholly of sculpture with inset
place. The most momentous version of this was the mirrors.
overmantel, an architectural composition above the Fire backs were cast with ornamental designs. The fire
chimneypiece, usually framed by pilasters and some- dogs which held the logs in place were given ornamen-
times pedimented. Early in the period the most superb tal finials or styled as classical columns.
-- ------ ~ - .
BAROQUE 61
1 2 5
, --;.~ , ...;,....-
(]) Simple classical ornament in 7
~~ / ~~ . ' . .yo _ '
stone: pilasters, frieze and - (,..
cornice, c.1640.
0 Even without pilasters,
classicalleamillj5_ could still be
indicated by a frieze and
I\~,, I'-
11 ;' '
., r
cornice. This example, from a
Gloucestershire house, dates '"'
{!om the early 17th century. 1;:[("1 ~.
Q) Elaborate ornament was
ofien applied to a frreplace that
was in a position of importance.
"'
v
/
'
Sometimes the ornament would ' i
~jI ~ [1. ")
.-'
indicate the use of the room, or
the occupation or interests ofthe
owner. Or it could simply
include carved initials and a
date. This example, in stone, is
from Abbey House, Bnsto!, CD The{ieze could be a plain
c.1664. panel o marble, here stopped
@ A small comer fireplace, by scro Is and surmounted by a
from Hanington Hall, cornice. Belton House,
Warwickshire, c.16 70. Lincolnshire, c.1685.
@ A sketch by Inigo jones for a (j) A much simpler but still This frreplace is by the and an overmantel reminiscent
bedchamber chimneypiece in the luxurious treatment, with a frne Italian architect, painter and of court cupboards ofthe period.
Queen's House, Greenwich, bolection moulding in black and theonst Sebastiana Serlio this ts an old-fashioned type,
c.163 7. The draped heads white marble. Designed by (1475-1554), from a translation with limited concessions to
(herms) come (rom a French Hugh May for E!tham Lodge, published in England in 1611. classicism.
source, but other details are of Kent, 1664. His designs were in~uential in @ A more complex design of
Italian inspiration. There would A frreplace with lugged fc<shionable circles. SE c. 1632, showing an
certainly have been an architrave, marble slips and @ An oak chimneypiece of individualistic ransacking of
overmante!. RIBA Baroque scrolls, c.1700. c.1640, with double pilasters classical ornament.
62 BAROQUE 1625 - 1714
CD Although simple in design, memorized antique detail seen the fn.ezei and the architrave mouldings in the architrave, the
this fireplace is dignified by a in London. Yorkshire, mid-17th seems to run on behind them. TH designer here has achieved
contrast ofdifferent marbles. century. MO @ An arched pediment breaks greater richness without
Mid-17th century. TH Q) Another provincial fireplace, forward of the cornice. This is seriously jeopardizing the unity
0 Bizarre use ofornament more elegant but still not entirely another fireplace that depends of the composition. MU
suggests a provincial designer harmonious. The pilasters on a contrast of marbles. TH A cast-iron fireback, 17th
who has inaccurately support the cornice alone, not Q) By multiplying the century, in situ. c
- -- - - - - - - .
BAROQUE 63
CD Hoods, used to induce @A marble fireplace
smoke to ascend the chimney, accentuated by a decorative
survived into the 17th century. treatment of the surrounding
They could be combined with panelling, c.1700.
pilasters, frieze and cornice to
form an imposing composition,
rather like a tomb. This is an
early 17th-century example.
0 Corner fireplaces were a
common feature ofsmaller
rooms in the late 17th century,
when space was at a premium.
Usually they were set into a
diagonal section of wall. This
example dates from 1701.
0 Another corner fireplace,
with bold marble mouldings,
1630s. The upper part is
ingeniously worked into the
panelling. Note the receding
shelves, for displaying china.
5 6
"' =
. '
i,
:, '
. - I
;;:;;.
r #' f-f}//
~
~.)
rt
//;/
rl
'
'
0) In the later 17th century, richly sculpted with mythological have a discreet ornamental dating from c.1650.
chimneypieces could include figures, fruit, foliage and dead panel, perhaps carved in the The sculpture could be lavish
mirror glass panels - an game birds. this example is Gn'nling Gibbons manner. and vivid, like that ofa church
indication of wealth. c.1690. A more elaborate picture monument. Hampton Court
@ The overmantel could be 0 A simple chimneypiece could frame built into the overmantel, Palace, Surrey, c.1700.
--- - ---
1
64 BAROQUE 1625-1714
(J) This is a sketch by Sir 1
Christopher Wren, with a detail
of carving drawn in by the great
woodcarver Grinling Gibbons.
The architectural framework is
relatively simple, and greatly
enriched with naturalistic
carving. The cornice is
suyported by atlantes (figures
of Atlas), and graced by a
lolling cherub and ho-ho birds.
Fruit, leaves and tmmpets
frame the overmantel panel. so
0 Another design by Wrw, Charles I below to the Garter chimneyboard- a board fitted CD Two cast-iron firebacks in
with detail drawn in by badge above. so into the opening to stop draughts the typical arched form. The first
Grinling Gibbons. The Q) A palatial chimneypiece when the fire was not in use. example is decorated with a
chimneypiece is as simple as design of 1666 by john Webb, Chimneyboards were decorated Phoenix, symbol of the
possible, but the two-tier showing a full classical as lavishly as possible, usually Commonwealth. The second is
overmantel expresses the treatment with swags, crowns in paint. This is a design by the an allesorical figure of Spring.
symbolism of the Stuart and in:yerial eagles. LHT Frenchmmt]ean Le ?autre, Other favourite ornamental
monarchy, from the bust of G) A fireplace with a fine published in1661. themes from the Bible or
classical mythology were the
Nativity, the Woman of
Samaria, Neptune, Charity,
and Herwles slaying the
Hydra. Rich fioral borders are
characteristic.
Four andirons (firedogs).
These were used in pairs. Two
posts at the front of the fire were
all that was needed to prevent
logs from falling on to the fioor.
Some andirons had brass or
even silver mounts.
0 An early example ofa raised
S!..ate, ]ean Le ?autre, 1665.
8 The andiron lost its
importance to the basket grate
in the early 18th century, when
sea coal began to replace wood
as a ~1el. This is an early
example of a grate, from the late
17th century.
BAROQUE 65
Staircases
The secondary staircase at the main staircase, suggesting It is evidently not a back stair and their staff would have
Thorpe Hall, Nonhamptonshire, that the two had complementary for the use of servants only: in mingled in th'e public spaces.
1654-6, is almost as ornate as functions of almost equal status. the Baroque period the.gentry TH
11
Built-in furniture
1
Services
A11 the theoretical writers about architecture stressed designed as often as possible with at least a partial area
n the need to site a new house near a spring or river. of flat roof on which to collect rain in a lead cistern.
They hardly had to, for common sense and tradition Great houses had much lead at their disposal, and as a
both conveyed the same message. consequence some aristocratic families suffered from
In towns one of the most easily recognized signs of lead poisoning for generations.
the benevolence of a ruler was the provision of public People used chamber pots in their own rooms, and
water. However, English kings and city authorities these were supplied in quantity in rooms where eating
rarely rivalled the Roman Emperors or the Popes in this and drinking took place. Sometimes they were built into
respect. Instead, London was furnished with water by an item of movable furniture, the "close stool", which
venture capitalism, the necessary engineering works might be kept in a special closet, the "stool chamber" or
being undertaken by private companies such as the "dark closet". Where space permitted, outside privies
New River Company or the Chelsea Water Company. ("necessary houses" or "houses of easement"), were
To supplement these erratic sources, houses were built at the far end of the yard or garden.
70 BAROQUE 1625-1714
Lighting
1
4
6
uring the Baroque period even a single candle was the lantern was pulled across and lit from the staircase.
D an expensive item. The fire lit most indoor activi-
ties after sunset, and a candle would be carried up to
Rooms of ceremony could have a branched fixture,
suspended by a cord from a hook in the ceiling. It would
bed. The poor used rushes, dipped in fat and held by a hang quite low for ease of lighting (chains and pulleys
clip. The middle classes had tallow candles and the rich were an 18th-century innovation). It was usually made
had wax. Candle stands were usually made of turned of brass, with a central reflective globe to enhance the
wood, although brass and pewter were more desirable. candlelight. Chandeliers were grander still. Most were
The very rich had silver stands, but only in the best made from carved and gilded wood; the best were rock-
locations and not until the end of the 17th century. crystal. Sconces (demi-girandoles) were anoi:her luxury.
Where people were on the move -in passages and on For most of the period these were mounted on brass
the stairs - a constant but dim light could be provided plates which were sometimes decorated with repoussi
by a la,ntern. Staircase lanterns were often suspended work; by c.1700 mirror glass was used and the orna-
from an iron branch that was hinged from the landing; ment was transferred to richly carved and gilded frames.
BAROQUE 71
Metalwork
1 2
inch (1cm) thick and was worked into ornamental at plinth height and on the top of gates.
forms: darts, twists, leaves, waves, frets, scallops, and From 1650, iron balconies became fashionable. Promi-
even masks, bird and animal heads and cloths of estate nently positioned over front doors, they often have
(heraldic emblems). Sometimes repousse work was alternating plain and twisted bars and panels of foliage
used- hammered, relief ornament. Wrought-iron gates and scrollwork. They were always painted, probably
and railings include the full repertoire of decorative blue or green, and sometimes gilded. Clairvoyees
devices. Finials ceased to be simply spikes and became (openings in boundary walls) were often situated at the
balls, leaves and spears; some bulbous shapes were end of walks; viewers on the outside enjoyed a fine vista
supplied ready-cast and were welded on. Bars were held of grounds and house. These openings were usually
together by either rivets or collars. Full-height bars in a fitted with ornamental wrought-iron grilles.
72
EARLY GEORGIAN
1714- 1765
1
1?1 [___;
(J) With its restrained and Colen Campbell and was and 0 The elevation and palazzo facade, the proportion of
carefully proportioned facade, constructed between 1724 and plan ofa typical villa from window to solid wall is pearly
Marble Hill House, 1729 by Roger Morris, under Abraham Swan's A Collection increased. Theflans of such
Twickenham, west of London, is the supervision o( the amateur of Designs in Architecture. houses also reflected Italian
typical ofPalladian taste. The architect Henry Herbert, 9th Although this house is based practice, following in particular
house is based on a design by Earl of Pembroke. MR upon the ideal of the Italian Palladia s Vicenzan villas. ASA
entlemen amateurs, the new breed of professional scale there w as an explosion of speculative building
G architects, and confident if largely untutored specu-
lative builders all made a distinctive contribution to the
which hastened the creation of that dense pattern of
streets and squares w hich grew outward from the city
development of the English house in the first half of the in the Georgian era. As a result, the brick-built, ter-
18th century. By the time of the death of Queen Anne raced/ row house, which had first appeared in the 17th
(1714), at the grandest level of taste, a hew architecture century, rapidly became the most characteristic and
of subtle forms and details had all but supplanted the important building type. Its size, proportions, detailing
Baroque vigour of the later 17th century. The fashion- and the methods of construction were governed by the
able circle led by Lord Burlington (1694-1753) and the informal rules of taste propounded in the professional
architects Colen Campbell (1673-1729) and William Kent architects' and builders' pattern books and by a series of
(1685-17 48) espoused the ideals of the Italian architect Building Acts. The latter had their origin in the legisla-
Andrea Palladio (1508-80). Their fine town and country tion that followed the Fire of London (1666) which had
houses reveal Palladia's influence in their planning and decreed that houses in central London should be flat-
proportions (which were based in turn on ancient fronted and of brick or stone. An Act of 1707 proscribed
Roman architecture), in their symmetry and regularity the use of the popular wooden eaves cornices and
of fenestration and in their detailing, which stemmed required the use of full-height party-walls (that is,
from 16th-century Italian models. Palladia's palazzi shared walls between houses which extended through
around Vicenza in northern Italy had a profound effect the roof) and parapets, to prevent flames spreading at
on Georgian architecture, inspiring the emphatic height rooftop level. Similarly, to increase fire safety, a 1709 Act
and richness accorded to the piano nobile, the main floor required that the sash-box of windows should be set
of a house which was either the raised ground floor or back by the thickness of one brick (4 inches/10cm). Pre-
the floor above the entrance level. Outside offices and viously windows had been set flush with the wall, so
stable-blocks of grand country houses w ere also given the new legislation radically altered the visual effect of
the most elaborate architectural treatment, but in the the fenestration, thereby changing building aesthetics.
arrangement of kitchens (often in a separate pavilion) Both these Acts technically governed only building in
and the other humbler domestic quarters, anything the City of London; but whilst an Act of 1724 extended
approaching modem notions of convenience was cheer- their scope, it was the wish of provincial builders to keep
fully sacrificed to the achieving of grandeur. up with architectural fashion that led them to adopt the
In London, the grandest and most fashionable houses new precepts, even in small towns and in the country.
also aspired to the Palladian values, but further down the The rapidly rising cost of building plots in towns and
EARLY GEORGIAN 73
1 2
(D An elevation and plan for a planning was always 1720s house in Spita!fields, east
terraced/row town house from constrained by the limitations of London. The panelling is
The Modem Builder's the site, normally forcing all composed ofstandard, simple
Assistant by William Halfpenny rooms to be lit by windows on mouldings. Such deal (fir or pine)
B 1742. The ample proportions of either the back or the front; panelling was always painted.
mid-century architect-designed staircases were ofien very dark. Dull and muted colours
houses were gradually squeezed WHP predominated, although stronger
I by the economic pressures on
speculative building. The
@A drawing room on the ~oor
above the entrance level in a
dark colours such as this shade of
red were also popular. DC
cities (often made available by landowners on a lease- w ealth and status. Elaborate plaster and stucco work,
hold basis) account for the dense planning of the Geor- w oodcarving and specialist paint effects and gilding
gian town house. In terraced/ row houses in particular were very expensive both in terms of materials and
every effort had to be made to ensure that as many labour and w ere reserved for the houses of the gentry
rooms as possible were lit by windows and consider- and the richer merchant classes who wished to ape
able ingenuity went into the disposition of the main them. Most ordinary houses had plain paintwork,
rooms and their attendant closets, which were either w hose function was as much practical as cosmetic: it
"light" (with a window) or "dark". These secondary protected the structure from wear and tear. Exterior join-
rooms fulfilled a number of service functions and often ery was almost invariably preserved w ith paints com-
provided sleeping accommodation for servants, for the pounded from white lead w hich w ere extremely
average town house in the 18th century was lived in by resilient. Interior paintwork w as given some variety by
a large number of people by today's standards. the addition of muted, earth-based pigments. The
Services became rather more civilized during this painter's work became increasingly important as the
period, though for a limited section of the population. 18th century progressed and the use of less expensive
Piped water reached a good proportion of the better sort imported Baltic fir and pine (generically termed "deal")
of houses in towns and the need .for adequate drainage supplanted native woods such as oak. These softwoods
was recognized. Away from the urban centres things were less durable than the indigenous woods and so
remained much more basic. Artificial lighting contin- paintwork became increasingly important. In the early
ued to be a very simple matter throughout the period decades of the period, bright, strong colours were
and was mostly provided by candles in movable stands. extremely expensive and they were difficult to apply
The grander class of house would have had an enclosed evenly, but by the middle of the 18th century techno-
lantern in the main spaces such as the entrance hall and logical improvements brightened paintwork. Parallel
chandeliers in the principal rooms; such lights were advances in papermaking and printing saw the refine-
often supplemented by wall fixtures . How ever, ment of wallpapers and printed textile hangings, so that
throughout the period the provision of a great deal of by mid-century even the middle-class English house had
illumination was a costly luxury. become much more colourful and sophisticated than its
The decoration of houses was a similar indicator of counterpart of fifty years before.
74 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
Doors
he main door is the principal ornamental feature of fielded panels in two vertical row s. Early doors were tall,
T the Georgian facade . It was, except in costly build-
ings with stone details, the work of the joiner, who kept
filling the entire opening, but have often been cut down
later to accommodate a fanlight. All front doors were
abreast of fashion by studying pattern books. painted in dark colours or grained to imitate wood.
In the earlier decades of the 18th century, Baroque The evolution of internal doors follows a similar
doorcases have elaborately carved elements including pattern. In grand houses doors on the principal floors are
heavy brackets supporting a hood, sometimes formed as often double, and set in deep reveals. They have
a shell. These brackets are usually carved with stylized handsome ring handles to the rim-locks. Ordinary doors
animals, foliage or cherubs, or designed as classical w ere fitted into plain doorcases with architrave
consoles with scrolls. In the 1720s and 30s, Palladian mouldings and other joinery details en suite with the
designs based on the temple form became popular. room. Upper floors, below stairs areas and all lesser
Columns and pilasters followed exact rules of proportion. houses have simpler varieties of the fashionable panel
The door itself is always panelled, often with heavy door. Plank construction hangs on in country areas.
EARLY GEORGIAN 75
0 Two variations on the standard 0 A heavily rusticated doorcase Q) and 0 Two designs from
Ionic doorcase from The Builder's from james Gibbs' Book of William Salmon's P.illadio
JeweL 1746, by Batty Langley. Architecture, 1728. Emphatic Londiniensis of 1734: a sober ~
0
The arch-topped opening would be keystones are typical of Gibbs' Doric doorcase and an enriched 0
Q
suitable for a fanlight. BJ designs but were widely copied. BA Corinthian doorcase. PL
I~ I
I
In the first halfofthe 18th CD A carved shell hood with small (]) An incised fiat architrave on A broken fiat pediment by
century external door heads brackets, from Essex, c.1 710. consoles in cut brick, 171 7. john Wood, Bath, 1729.
developed from projecting hoods @ An Ionic segmental broken A typical composite form ofthe @ A deep pediment on full
to complex pediments. pediment with carved inset, 1717. 1720s, Rugby Street, London. columns. London, c.1755.
Porch brackets,
1710-30:
A scroll, c.1710.
------ -
76 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
0 A finely proportioned Q) A doorcase of c.1740-50 in CD and@ More correct Pattern books reproduced the
doorcase, c.1720. which the arched top ofthe door classicism ousted freer forms on a most commonly used classical
0 A good Doric doorcase with a void breaks into the pediment. MN straight entablature. motifs: these grotesque and egg-
segmental pediment. The door @ The pediment often has a (!) Some pediment mouldings and-dan mouldings were used on
contains later glazing. OC carved canouche (panelj inset. had continuous carved ornament. the lintel or jambs ofa door. TA
1 2
(J) to CD Five designs for small pattern books as practical rusticated and solid doorcases l'Opere d'Architettura, 1584.
doorcases (or window guides for speculative builders recall those of]ames Gibbs (see The finest buildings had carved
surrounds) by Batty Langley who needed dear directions page 75), but all such ideas stone rustication; less grand ones
from his City and Country about proportions and details, derive from Italian 16th-century had wooden doorcases, carved
Workman's Remembrancer, such as the placing of keystones. sources, for example the treatise and ofren painted white or
1745. Langley issued several These designs for heavily by Sebastiana Serlio, T utte stone-colour. BL
This fine Doric doorcase, The fanlight became an pattern were altered during the Heavier ironwork offered
c.1725, from Spitalfields, increasingly important element in mid-century: this makes precise security, as well as extra interest
London, with triglyphs and the design ofthe front door as the dating of the various types of above the door.
metopes in the usualyattern of 18th century progressed. In the fanlight quite difficult. The @) Fanlight/transom light forms
five and four on the frieze, is first two decades the entire door simple forms are usually the become increasingly fanciful as
based on pattern book designs. void was usually filled with a tall earliest. Later fanlights have an doorcases become more sober
As ofren happened in the later door. Gradually it became more inner arch divided into segments. after c.1730.
18th century, the door has been popular rractice to reduce the 0 Early fanlights/transom The doorway ofan older
shortened to allow the height of the door, replacing its l!ghts are ofsimple, geometric house could be given a new touch
introduction ofa fanlight/transom t;pper register ofpanels with a forms with rather thick glazing of fashionable detail, such as this
light. The upper panels of the fiXed glazed panel that admitted bars. Cothick panel, c.1750.
reveals (the inner surfaces ofthe light to the hallway. The new Later on, wooden bars give @ The classic form, with
doorcase) indicate the proportions arrangement was so beneficial way to thin iron frames with radiating panes resembling the
ofthe missing part ofthe door. that nearly all doors ofthe older decorative details in cast lead. leaves Ofa fan.
- ------------------------- -
78 EARLYGEORGIAN 171 4-1 765
(J) A doorcase in Fournier A Doric doorcase of the early @ An imposing Baroque @ This Ionic doorcase has fluted
Street, Spita!fields, London. 1720s from Twickenham, composition from Montpelier columns supporting a frieze and
This is the grandest door in a Middlesex. Note how the Row, Twickenham, early dentillated pediment. A good
street of fine houses erected shallow hood breaks fonvard to 1720s. The complex panel Gothick detail fanlight/transom
between 1725 and 1728. The fiJrm a correct cornice. p_attern ofthe door is rare. light of the mid-18th century
Tonic columns with bases and Q) A doorcase of the early (D A transitional type of surmounts the door.
segmental pediments, combined 1720s in which slight, fluted doonr~ay which unites the earlier
with a richly carved projecting Doric pilasters are rather heavy hood on brackets with an
porch, are unusually elaborate clumsily combined with carved arch-topped, rusticated door
features. hood brackets. void. Mid-1720s.
EARLY GEORGIAN 79
vo
co<:
0
0
Q
4 5
In grand houses internal doors is typical ofsuch doors. 0 A shallow pedime/11 was vety CD The grandest Palladian
on the ground or next fioor were 0 A vety grand group would r_opular on overdoors. enrichment is seen in the mld-
given elaborate and fully have a fully imesrated door and @ The broken pediment was 1720s, for example in this
architectural treatments. overdoor panel for a painting. By fashionable in the 1730s. It saloon door from Mereworth
0 A correct classical entablature Batty Langley, c.1729. could frame a vase or a bust. Castle, Kent.
6==================~
J
CW iWiLLiViijiiULLt
lr=lll
Door heads in middle-status tiny dentil ('toothed') blocks. The architrave mouldings are common, but continuous fioral
houses are elega111. The basic fonn 0 This richly carved doorhead around the door frame at this or leafornament was also popular.
is that ofa classical entablature. from &iinham Hal~ Essex, has date are frequently enriched with A prominent central tablet
@ Plain door heads, such as this the "eared" lintel typical ofdoors carving. 'variations on egg-and- ("label") often added enrichment,
one from York, c.1730, ofren have and chimneypieces in the 1730s. dart and beaded rope patterns as in this York door, c.173 5.
80 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
CD A simple two-panel doori a type common 0 This six-panel arrangement was the Q) A simple pair ofdouble doors in a 1720s
throughout the 18th century for upper floors standard pattern for internal doors ofthe first house in Spitalfields, Londoni they nm to
ofgood houses and in more modest half ofthe 18th century. This example has the full height ofthe room and match the
dwellings. DC flat panels and simple mouldings. DC panel detail. DC
4
@An extravagant Gothick door, c.1750: @ A front door would have a large fixed of the period, although door knobs became
the entrance to Horace Walpole's "little knob and possibly a knocker. A bell-pull increasingly popular.
plaything castle'~ Strawberry Hill in could be attached beside the doorcase. There Plain rim-locks ofbrass or iron (left) were
Twickenham, London. SH are no letterboxes/mailslots at this date. standard in most houses. A very grand lock
CD A detail ofan internal door of 1730 with 0 A wrought-iron latch. (right) would be brass or gilt and engraved
thin mouldings and fielded panels. M Drop-handles are typical of interior doors or chased after designs in pattern books.
EARLY GEORGIAN 81
Windows ~
0
0
Q
hilst casem ent window s w ith glazing bars or always six-over-six, unless the proportions of the house
W lead ed panes are still usual in vernacular build-
ings, fashionable houses have sash window s. The prin-
dictated another arrangem ent. The glazing bars of the
early decades are thick and of blunt profile, w hile later
ciple of the double-hung sash, with pulleys and they become more attenuated. The crown glass (early
counterweights in sash-boxes, remained unchanged, as w indow glass that w as blown and spun) w as held in
did the arrangement of internal folding shutters. place w ith metal "sprigs" and putty. From the beginning
Sashes w ere originally placed flush with the outside of the 18th century Baltic softwood was increasingly
w all surface, but the Building Act of 1709 (which cov- used and had to be protected by w hite-lead paint. This
ered the City of London and was extended in scope by distinctive paintwork is now regarded as typical of
the Act of 1724) required them to be inset by the depth Georgian fenestration.
of one brick (4 inches/ 10cm). This radically changed the The inner leaves of shutters tend to be of flush con-
appearance of sashes from the outside. struction, but the outer face and the window surround
The preferred pattern of panes for sash windows was are usually panelled en suite with the other woodwork.
82 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
1 2
-~
~
LJD~/
3 4
n/
v
0 The most usual arrangement
ofpanes in the double-hung
sash window is six-over-six -
that is, with one horizontal and
two vertical astragals (glazing and stonework lintels. The window from before the 1709 @ The sash window that
bars) div1ding each sash into bottom three show decorative Building Act. The frame is set conformed to the 1709 Act had
'!!!right rectangular panes. emphasis of the keystone. flush with the wall, with the a frame set back 4 inches (10cm)
(3.) Typical patterns for cut brick 0 A diagram ofa sash sash boxes revealed. from the plane of the wall.
Q) and@ Two windows from those shown in detail have cornice or parayet to light rooms (rom The Gentleman's and
the English edition of Sebastien le plain, robust mouldings. The within the roof-space. Builder's Repository, 1738,
Clerc's A Treatise of use of casement-type windows, Particularly popular in the late by Edward Hoppus. Designs
Architecture, an influential though customary in Continental 17th century, they are more apt for ornamental lattice windows
pattern book of 1724, which Europe, was old-fashioned by for deep hipped roofs ofthe proliferated in this periodi they
made French models available to this date in England. TA mansard type than the discreet, were inserted in houses, as well
British architects and builders. 0 to@ Four aesigns for shallower roof pitches favoured as being used in the construction
These designs are for windows dormer or gable windows from ~the Palladians. TA of tea pavilions, gazebos and
on the piano nobile and have le Clerc's Treatise, 1724. (!}) and@ Two designs "(or other garden frivolities in the
substantial console brackets: Dormers were placed above the windows in the Chinese taste" Chinese or Gothick styles. EH
EARLY GEORGIAN 83
5 6
(J) The same window is illustrated, top and picture) come next, followed by rectangular in Spitalfields, London, do retain authentic
bottom left. It has typical 18th-century hinges. Flat bars with catches are often examples. Provincial vernacular use of
domestic window shutters. When not in use, supplemented by iron bars that fit into exterior shutters was more common. DS
the leaves of the shutters fold back into sockets in the reveals. Knobs can be wood or CD Mtd-18th-century shutters have refined
shutter boxes in the jambs (bottom picture). metal. Shutter boxes often have ong)nal profiles. The panel details and mouldings
The outer leaves have decorative panels p_aint finishes. DC often match the other joinery in the room. OC
while the inner leaves are of flush panel Q) Extenor shutters were never as popular @A Gothic Revival window of the late
construction, ofa single plank width. Early in Britain as in Continental Europe. Some 1740s with fragments of 16th- and 17th-
hinges are H-shapeCI. Butterfly forms (top early 18th-century houses, such as a group century stained glass set in the heads. SH
EARLY GEORGIAN 85
Walls
3!0
Q
z
~
At the beginning of the century, walls in fashionable battens or cheap timber boards. Wallpapers too
f\.. buildings tended to observe a three-part division into became increasingly available. At this date they came
frieze, field and dado, deriving from the proportions of in individual sheets (about 3 x 2 feet/90 x 60cm), which
the architrave, column and base of the classical Orders. were pasted onto a fabric backing nailed to the battens.
Wooden panelling to the full height of the room was Silk and paper hangings were usually finished with a
fashionable until c.17 40. As a result of less expensive carved or moulded fillet, often elaborately pierced.
woods being used, panelling came more usually to be Plaster or stucco walls w ere thought appropriate for
painted in this era, in flat oil paint or various fancy dining rooms (fabric absorbed smells) and halls. Stucco
effects such as marbling. Decorative carved elements walls were left plain, or scored to resemble masonry.
could be picked out in contrasting colours or gilded. Cornices and other features could be elaborately orna-
Walls could be panelled or plastered up to the dado mented. Ordinary builders' plastering was widely used
rail and the field hung with tapestry or decorated w ith in belowstairs areas and in modest dwellings. It was
stretched silk brocade, supported on a structure of often colour-washed or limewashed.
86 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
(J) A fully panelled room ofthe
early Georgian period, c.1730.
..&" ~ Note the way in which the rails
(horizontal elements) and stiles
1\ -
(vertical elements) are arranged
to observe the basic three-part
division ofthe wall into frieze,
field and dado. As is usual, the
most elaborate joinery and all
~
~ the carved detail are confined to
[J!Ql iii the chimneypiece. By this date
;== r== oak, cedar or walnut panelling
~ was very rare: most rooms were
ofdeal (pine or fir), invariably
........... ..........
....._
;==
~
r==
= = p.ainted.
A detail ofplasterwork
decoration, c.175 5. Freely
== ==
DDs,t .D JIID modelled forms, often combining
natural elements with formal
scrolls, are a feature of the
""' Rococo period.
5 6
(}) Two profiles ofdado rails of upper edge is characteristic. moulded conposition. enrichment was often picked
the type commonly to be found Although early examples are 0 Two profrles ofskirting out in contrasting colours or
in houses ofsomeyretension usually carved in wood, this boards/baseboards derivid gilded.
toward the end of the first half form ofornament was later from the detailing of classical
of the 18th century. The ~at applied as a stnp ofpress- column bases. The
EARLY GEORGIAN 87
Ceilings
imple ceilings are formed from the underside of the detail worked in much shallower relief. Modillion
S floor timbers above, perhaps with the spaces
between roughly plastered. Many more sophisticated
cornices and other 11 correct" friezes were composed of
classical motifs. By the 1730s and 40s asymmetrical
ceilings follow this pattern, with the basic elements Rococo designs, with freely modelled leaf, shell and bird
plastered over and enrichments added in the gaps. forms , had become fashionable, only to be ousted by
Coffered ceilings are of this type, with the compart- strict Neo-classical detailing in the 1750s and 60s.
ments made regular. The standard early Georgian The fashion at the beginning of this period for elab-
ceiling is of rather more intricate construction, compris- orate painted ceilings was confined to palatial buildings,
ing light battens that are nailed to the joists and covered but small painted insets with scenes or coats of arms
w ith a uniform layer of plaster. This surface is usually remained popular. There is insufficient evidence about
decorated with mouldings around the edge, often with ceiling colours. Whitewash predominated but picking
a circular element at the centre. The heavy ornament out may have been quite common, with details reserved
popular in the late 17th century gave way to Palladian in white against 11 sky tones", grey, yellow or pink.
EARLY GEORGIAN 89
D
).,
Workman's Treasury, 1745.
~ The 17th-century penchant for
" massive ceiling motifs gave way
to more refined mouldings and a
Roman splendour. The n"chest
ones were ~ilded and painted in
various co ours. However, a
unifying des~n of broken white
~
accorded we with the chaste
( Palladian principles of
decoration. BL
\
"
~
Modi/lion cornices from Batty
La7fc'ey, A Sure Guide to
) Bu ders, 1729. Modiflions
I (brackets formed as enriched
. - -
scrolls) alternate with panels,
l( .:--~-
~
~
~
.
each of which contains a patera
or rosette. This remained one of
the most popular options for
fi)nd ceiling cornices. A
Another cornice design. This
\1 ~
J'
~
~ {;C,e, with dentil ('toothed')
'i ocks, is lighter in tct than the
~ modillion cornice. !, e leaf-scroll
~ anticipates the Rococo in feel. A
Floors
1
he lowliest flooring found in early Georgian houses boards or, by the mid-18th century, boards of Baltic fir
T was beaten earth, used in country cottages and even
in the basements of some town houses. Bricks bedded
or pine (collectively termed "deal") . Planks from the
early decades are often more than 12 inches (30cm)
edge-on or thick slate tiles were better, but the preferred wide: these were left untreated and were regularly
finish for areas below stairs was plain stone paving. scrubbed or scoured with sand. Later boards are
Stone floors laid on joists are typical of entrance halls. narrower (8-10 inches/20-25cm) and, in the principal
Elaborate paving, including inlaid marble work, is rooms, were stained and polished at the margins to
confined to grander houses with strong brick-vaulted frame a carpet.
cellars. Several pattern books of the period give designs Oriental carpets and English "Turkey" and floral
for geometric paving and these were widely adopted. carpets were fashionable floor coverings . Druggets
Wood plank floors, laid over joists, were the norm protected stairs and main thoroughfares; ornamental
elsewhere in the house. Oak floorboards are common painted and varnished canvas floorcloths were resilient
in houses built early in the period; later houses have elm and considered suitable for dining rooms.
92 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
@A design for geometric Carwitham shows many ~oorcloths. Trompe 1'oeil Treasury of Designs by Batty
paving from john Carwitham's geometric patterns which could patterns, such as this one, were Langley, 1739. The most
important treatise Various be cam'ed out in stone, both p_opular. }C complex ofthe motifs is the
Kinds of Floor Decorations indoors and outside on terraces. (D and (}) Two pages ofdesigns central design on the first page. It
Represented Both in Plano He also suggested that they for paved and inlaid floors from is described as a "pavement of
and Perspective, 1739. were suitable models for painted the Builder's and Workman's parallelopipedons interwov'd '. BL
5 6
EARLY GEORGIAN 93
Fireplaces
"'
:
0
0
Ei
he fireplace forms the visual centrepiece of an early lintel and often a brick hearth, with a freestanding cast-
T Georgian room. Ornate fireplace surrounds reflect
the great variety of pattern book designs, which were
iron fire back and andirons for the logs.
Coal became widely used in town houses. Early in
tailored to the class of house and the importance of the the period it was placed in the fire basket (dog grate)
room. The finest examples are of carved white statuary which was intended for wood. This stood on a stone
marble, often with inlays of coloured marbles or rare or marble hearth slab within the open brick arch of the
materials such as porphyry. Scagliola work is an inex- fireplace. However, to burn efficiently, coal needs a
pensive imitation of marble. All the most popular smaller grate than wood, and the grate must be raised
designs were made in wood, in sections, with carved to draw the fire and to collect ash. New coal-firing grates
or applied composition details. Figured marble cheeks appeared from the 1720s in the form of stove grates,
or slips (strips that fill the space between the surround hob grates and early types of enclosed or register grates.
and the grate) are a standard feature of fashionable fire - Kitchen fires began to be supplemented by primitive
places. The simple country fireplace has a stout wooden cast-iron ranges, some with fan-driven spits Qacks).
94 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714 -1 765
(j) A van'egated marble consoles that span the upri_ghts. William Kent. 1744. with enervated Ionic columns.
chimneypiece, c.1726. The Q) A favourite Palladian form with Q) A stepped and eared lintel with 0 A fanciful Gothick
cusped lintel is typical. fianking herms (busts on pillars), inset carved panel and simple chimneypiece from the same source.
0 A design by William jones, often used by William Kent. scrolls. William]ones, 1739. A break-front pattern with a
173 9. The lintel with a frieze of @ Consote;ambs and a richly CD From B. Langley's Builder's carved head and sun-burst panel
Vitruvian scrolls rests on vast carved linte, after a design by Director or Bench-Mate, 1751, on the lintel. From Bath, c.1730.
A detail ofthe richly carved @)A finely carved Palladian @Two 11Gothick Cornices 11
lintel from a chimneypiece in lintel from a chimneypiece in suitable for use as fireplace mantel
Castlegate House, York, c.1730s. Red/and Court, Bristol. The mask shelves, tom Batty Langley's
The symmetrical stems and and swags are typical motifs. Builder s Director or Bench-
scrolling acanthus leaves emerging A characteristic central motif Mate, 1751. Langley's Gothick
from the central basket are still from a chimneypiece ofthe late chimneYf.ieces are among his most
wholly in the Baroque style. 1730s, in the form ofa lion mask. successful inventions.
EARLY GEORGIAN 95
(!) An exceptionally pure and austere Q) This type of surround was popular in the
surround in veined marble, 1720s. The 4 1720s. It usually had more robust details.
"swan's nest" grate is c. 1770 or later. DC The attenuation ofthis example was
0 An elegant example ofa surround with a necessitated by the modest scale of the room
fiat lintel and jamb, typical of the mid- and the corner location of the frreplace. The
1720s. The lintel is embellished by a grate is from the second halfof the 18th
serpentine profrle. DS century. DC
@ This surrounr; with robust decorative @ This chimneypiece is of very high quality.
details, typical ofthe period 1720-30, is It is from the Octagon at Orleans House,
from the drawing room ofa house in Twickenham, and was designed by james
.pitalfrelds, London. DS Gibbs. oc
(2) The brick jambs and the arch of the 0 A Gothick chimneypiece based on a
hearth are revealed in this fireplace of the medieval tomb. It is in the Great Parlour at
1720s. The firedogs with bottle warmers are Strawberry Hill, Twickenham, and was
more typicaf of country areas at this date. DS designed by Richard Bentley in 1753-4. SH
96 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
1 3
0 A dettlil ofa chimneypiece from @ An ingenious design for an chimneypiece, dating from c. 173 5. in the Gothick and Chinese
john Vardy's book ofdesigns by integrate/:1 chimneypiece and 0 A chimneypiece and tastes. The juxttlpostion of
Inigo jones, 1744, typical of overmantel with a frame for a ovennante/, of a rare type with full- alternative designs, as in the first
]onesian proportions. mirror or paintin& 173 7 blown asymmetrical shell and feaf example here, is thought to be
(2) An elaborate overman tel CD This rather coarse design for a forms in the Rococo style, 1738. AS the ongin ofthe asymmetry
designed by E. Hoppus, 173 7 chimneypiece and overmantel, and Two desisns by W typical ofthe Rococo style. Note
0 A carved ornamental frame, 1745, typifies Batty Langley's ttlste. !nee in the manner of Thomas the grates, which are designed to
dating from c.1740-50. @A finely carved example ofa Chippendale for Rococo fantasies be in character. IN
EARLY GEORGIAN 97
Staircases
ashionable houses have a main staircase and a for carved or fretted decoration on the tread-ends. The
F 11
secondary backstairs" for servants. Ordinary houses
have one wooden staircase of straight flights joined by
turned balusters of the first half of the century are
usually placed two or three to a step. Cantilevering is
landings, or a winding flight for each story. The most rare until the end of the period.
elaborate decoration is reserved for the main flight from Apart from the handrail which was polished, the
the entrance hall to the floor above. Staircases become woodwork, including the treads , was wood-grained
plainer as they climb the building and are at their in oil paint or finished in a flat colour such as chocolate.
simplest up to the attic and down to the basement. The treads were protected by a narrow strip of carpet,
11
During this period the closed string" staircase, with or drugget, tacked to the steps.
balusters spaced along a continuous diagonal board Particularly fine houses with stone staircases have
11
masking the steps, was supplanted by the open wrought-iron or, from the end of the period, cast-iron
string" for main flights . In this type the balusters are balustrading. The very best examples are in steel,
fixed into the treads , which are exposed: this allows finished with gilt details.
EARLY GEORGIAN 99
l~ lJ==
(J) A newel post ofsimple, heavy Lewes, East Sussex. @ A similar arrangement, but a very good terrace of1717-18. The
baluster form carved into facets. 0 A characteristic arrangement of here showing architectural newels are Corinthian columns.
0 A sophisticated and very finely two newels and balusters on the detailing and carving and joinery CD The terminal sweee ofthe
carved double-twist newel, dating turn ofthe stair or half-landing in a ofa very superior order. From 6 main staircase in 15 ()ueen
from the late 1720s, Castle House, mid '/8th-century house in Bath. Cheyne Walk, Chelsea, London, Square, Bristol.
6 8 9
11
Built-in furniture
here is a clear distinction to be made between the panelled rooms the chimneybreast is usually flanked
T below-stairs fixtures of grand houses (and the
very similar built-in furniture in more modest houses),
by built-in cupboards; these were used for dry storage.
Of the fixtures in elegant rooms the library would
and the fashionable fitments in the best rooms of town generally be the most elaborate, often with arrays of
and country houses . Kitchens contain sturdy oak and shelves above cupboards, topped by a cornice that is
elm dressers, surmounted by graduated shelving, and continuous with the wall joinery. The best pieces are
fixed work surfaces supported by stout turned made from mahogany or oak; lesser examples are pine.
balusters. Housekeepers' rooms are often fitted with Shelved alcoves may incorporate a built-in bureau or a
ranks of drawers and shelves and similar cupboards simpler flap -down writing slope. Niches and corner
are placed on upstairs corridors for the storage of linen. cupboards with shaped shelves were popular at the
The joinery is plain but elegant; the wood was beginning of the period. Those with panelled doors
commonly painted in drab colours and the drawers were used for storage; glazed doors were intended for
and cupboards lined with old wallpaper. In modest display. The latter often had carved shell-heads.
EARLYGEORGIAN 101
1 2
01~1
(]) One ofa pair of niches Q) A niche with open shelves @A shallow cupboard with CD The built-in dresser in the
~anking the chimneypiece in a for glasses and crockery at 1 double doors built in front of the kitchen of a house in
London breakfast room. It has Pierrepont Place, Bath. The ~ue ofa canted {corner) frreplace Spitalfrelds, east London,jthe
f!)!lzed doors. carved shell head was a ofthe mid-1720s. DC 1720s. Note the gradual
~ A design of c.1750 from a favourite moti(in the frrst half of shelves and baluster supports
series by W !nee showinp the 18th century. and the open storage below. DC
"Bookcases for Recesses'.
102 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
Services
(])A lead cistern or tank for water. These 0 A lead hopper head/leader head for storm
essential items usually stood in the area (the water. Its (unction was to join the gutter and
sunken yard in front ofthe house) or inside the the pipe. Many ofthese bear dates, initials and
basement oftown houses. Early 18th-centUI)I decorative motifs.
examples were ofien highly ornatei this Tiled niche with plumbed wash basin, from
example has cast ornament. Today they are a house in Bath. A conspicuous luxu'Y feature
ofien found as plant containers. AL ofthe period, in an entrance hall or dining room.
he services available in early 18th-century English few very fashionable houses had water pumped to the
T towns were not as primitive as is often imagined.
Storm water drained along roof valleys and gutters and
upper floors and this made flushing water closets
possible, though they remained a rare luxury until
was carried into down pipes/downspouts via lead hopper much later. Another luxury was a plumbed wash basin;
heads/leader heads. Water was carried by pipe to soak- these sometimes took the form of a wall fountain in a
aways or into butts for use. Some houses had fresh water niche. Household drainage went into septic tanks dug
piped in by water companies. Supply was by wooden under the back yard. These had to be emptied
pipes, with insufficient pressure to rise above ground-level regularly. More usual in modest houses was the use of
and only at specified times of the day. This made large earth closets (privies or offices), located as far from the
lead storage cisterns essential. house as possible.
Throughout the period, most urban households relied Kitchens had wide, flat sinks, made of stone or of
upon the services of the night-soil men and the dust- lead sheet dressed over a wooden framework, and
men for the disposal of domestic waste. By the 1730s a coppers (large vessels for heating water).
EARLY GEORGIAN 103
Lighting
1
II
ighting in the early Georgian house was an impor- usually with six or more curved arms supporting candle
L tant indicator of status, with elegant fixtures for fine
beeswax candles at one end of the social scale and filthy
holders. Wall brackets, or girandoles, were also widely
used, in sets of two, four or more. These would be of
tallow dips and dim rush-lights at the other. Simple oil- brass, silver, gilded or silvered wood, or, in a more
burning lamps were confined to outside lamp brackets modest house, pewter or even tin. Some examples
and standards (which were often provided with link- incorporate reflective panels of glass or polished metal,
extinguishers, a link being a long torch) and, occasion- while others are found en suite with the chandelier.
ally, hanging lanterns in the hall. Refined oils and Enclosed lanterns were popular. These came in a great
improved burners for indoor use had yet to appear. variety of fancy shapes but simple cylindrical types were
A grand room of the period would have a central favoured for hallways and staircases.
chandelier, which hung only just above head height. Direct illumination by which to read, write, play
These were made of wood or metal and could have cards, eat or go up to bed was invariably provided by
glass or crystal drops. They were very varied in form, movable candlesticks and candelabra.
104 EARLYGEORGIAN 1714-1765
Metalwork
This house ofthe 1730s in Berkeley Square, "ovenhrow '~ composed of elaborate wrought-
London, has typical simple iron railings with iron curlicues. Note the link extinguishers on
cast spiked finials. The railings are enlivened the standards, used to put out the torches
by a lantern supponed on an elegant which were carried through dark streets.
t the beginning of the 18th century all architectural houses. A secondary gate would either close off the area
A ironwork, such as gates, railings and lamp brackets,
were handcrafted in wrought iron. The cast-iron railings
steps, which were guarded by a simple handrail, or open
into a void, in which case a pulley would be used to
commissioned for Sir Christopher Wren's St Paul's lower goods into the basement. All exterior ironwork
Cathedral (1714) and James Gibbs's church of St was protected by paint, usually black. Dark green was
Martin's in the Fields (1726) in London set a new fashion also popular early in the period, a paler green later, but a
and popularized the robust baluster forms and elaborate strong bright blue was the favourite. On the best work,
spearhead finials which prevailed well into the next finials and details were often picked out in gold leaf.
century. Wrought work became a luxury, generally Circular, cross- or X-shaped plates may still be seen
confined to panels for specific spaces such as fanlight on some facades. These anchor internal tie-rods which
grilles; these were gradually supplanted by cast units. were added after construction to strengthen the
Railings with a main gate, sometimes surmounted or structure. Small lead plaques, that identified properties
flanked by lanterns, became a standard feature of town covered by fire insurance, may also survive.
EARLYGEORGIAN 105
@ Finials from Hampstead, railings of the 1720s, in Fournier and hammered decorative (tnials. houses including the popular
London. Street, Spital(telds, London, A selection of ornamental thistle, pineapple and baluster
0 These details, from front area feature hammered spikes and cut cast (tnials from front railings of designs, c.1726.
- - -----------
106
COLONIAL
1607-1780
(]) Mount Pleasant in 1
Fairmount Park, Philadelphia,
1761 -2, is a prime example of
Georgian architecture. The
imposing fron t door, symmetrical
fenestration and decorative use
of materials are all notable
f~atures. MP
@ The Dutch Colonial
Abraham Hasbrouck House,
N ew Paltz, New Yo rk, 1692, is
a single-story building with
typically low walls and a deep
roof Originally, it probably had
.---l~l .,
two windows and a single door
on this side. AHH
The ground-floor plan of
Bacon's Castle, Surry County,
Virginia, c.165 5. This was a
Tudor-Baroque style manor
f Cha~ I ( Xa/1
front door that opened directly into the hall. This bays and often an off-centred door which opened
was the main living room of the house. To the left, directly into the kitchen.
partitioned off, was the parlour, a more private room. The introduction of the symmetrical Georgian facade,
A staircase would be located at the back of the house. typically fronting a plan of four rooms surrounding a
Most New England houses of the period present a central stair hall, was revolutionary. It was introduced
marked contrast. They tend to resemble English in the second quarter of the 18th century by wealthy
medieval post-and-beam houses. In the later 17th cen- merchants and planters who had access to English
tury substantial houses became more common and had pattern books by James Gibbs, William Salmon and
Tudor and Elizabethan features, such as jettied over- others, and often had first-hand experience of England.
hangs with pendant drops and massive central The earliest Georgian houses, particularly those in the
chimneys . The "saltbox" house developed at this time, South, were large mansions, meticulously based on
evolving from rear extensions which were covered by published designs. There were few architects in the
steep, sloping roofs. Windows were small and few in 18th-century Colonies and most houses were designed
number and ceilings were low. Internal flourishes by builders, with advice from the patron. These larger
include chamfered ceiling beams and joists, turned or houses quickly exerted an influence on the style of
sawn balusters on staircases and panelled doors and smaller dwellings. The large middle class of merchants,
walls. This type of house continued to be built in New craftsmen and yeomen-farmers created a demand for
England throughout the 18th century. The two-room well-built and stylish dwellings. Often, the builders who
plan is quite different from the southern arrangement. A erected the mansions also built the more modest villas.
small entrance hall would contain a staircase that led to They were given a free hand in these designs and
a single-space upper floor. A central chimney and a adapted fashionable forms to their traditional methods
parlour were located beyond the hall. and materials, thus creating distinctly American build-
German and Dutch settlers usually built stone or half- ings. Existing houses were updated and given Georgian
timbered houses with a three-room plan of a kitchen, facades or interiors. Eventually, the style influenced
hall and parlour on the ground floor. The facade had four houses of nearly every region, ethnic group and class.
108 COLONIAL 1607-1780
Doors
~
I I
,.
~
A merican doors from the 17th century are generally the late 17th century. Two panels in low relief are typical.
n battened; that is, constructed of vertical boards Heavily moulded doors are a development of the early
nailed together with two or more horizontal battens on 18th century, but it was not until the 1730s and the
the rear. German and Dutch colonists used dovetailed advent of the Georgian style that the door reached its
battens. Doors were decorated with scratched designs fullest elaboration. At this time the raised-panel door
on the vertical boards, chamfering on the battens or became increasingly common and, under the influence
sponge painting. Surrounds are simple, comprising the of immigrant craftsmen and imported architectural
structural timbers of the house, which are usually pattern books, classical surrounds became popular. In
chamfered. Door fittings tend to be simple and chunky, most cases patterns were used freely; this gave rise to
made of wrought iron or wood. Batten doors continued strong regional variations. The plantation houses of the
in use throughout the Colonial period, and beyond in South have the strictest designs. Classical porches were
smaller houses and secondary rooms. popular throughout the country and were often added
Panelled doors began to appear in better houses by onto older houses. Door fittings became more refined.
COLONIAL 109
1 2 "'"'
0
0
0
DO
Q)A batten door from New
England, c.16 70. The nailing
t:.attem is exceptional.
A classical doorway from
Rhode Island, c.1730. 5
Q)A fashionable surround,
early/mid-18th century.
0 A classic early Georgian
brick surround, c.1750.
CD The unique Connecticut
River valley doorways depan
radically from pattern book
fqrms. This example is c.1758.
@An unusual surround with a
keystone, fanlight and Tuscan
columns. Virginia, c.1770.
Q)More rectilinear; ~at forms
appeared in the late 18th
century. Massachusetts, c.1770.
::2
1 2 3 0
0
Q
~
(J) to(}) Interior doors. stiles and thin panels. The Georgian house was ofien used
(!)Broken pediments were second, c.171 0, is an early as a room, and the shutters A typical handle and latch.
popular in American architecture raised-panel door with applied acted as a screen door during A typical iron bolt, 1768.
for some time after they had mouldings. Note the hinges. the summer. Box locks were made of
gone out of fashion in Britain. (VA doorway from Odessa, wood, iron or, as here, brass.
This is a fairly early example on Delaware, late 18th centul)l, @A wrought-iron lock, c.1750.
an interior door, c.1730, from with louvered door shutters. The @A brass box lock and detail
Charles City County, Virginia. main hall ofan American ofthe knob, c.1722.
0 and 0 Wall panellmg was @An escutcheon and handle,
used to enhance the framing of a c.1768.
doorway. The first, elegant @A Moravian box lock, 1773.
doorway, c.1720, from New @ A front door latch-lock, mid-
Hampshire, has a deeply
tf 18th centul)l.
moulded surround. The second
is from Annapolis, Mal)lland,
c.1740.
@ The dining room door from
[J @A brass doorknob, Nonh
Carolina, late 18th centul)l.
@A typical brass escutcheon
p_late, late 18th centul)l.
@to @Hinges: a tulip-finialed
.
Gunston Hall, Fairfax County,
Virginia, c.1758, designed by strap hinge; an H-hinge, early
,----- 17th centul)l; an early butterfly
William Buckland. An elaborate
doorway, which reflects the hinge with leather washers and
imponance of the room. iron nails; a typical H-L hinge; a
CD and (}) 1wo New England New Mexico-American Indian
panelled doors. The first, L-- H-hinge, late 18th centul)l; an
c.1650, has moulded rails and
t early cock's-head H-hinge.
112 COLONIAL 1607-1780
Windows
0 0 0 0
~D CJ
'
0
D D
DOD
12 =:~~~~~c 13
~o~o~oc
J D D [
~~~=hc::::Jd::
J~o~o~d
D D [
~~~o.c=s:o.z:
7A9AQ~
15~
..""'
~
"
t
1!!!1
~
Ill
t-
1!111
DOD
@ and (j) Two elaborate sash example has a window seat. is gabled, while the others are hold louvered shutrers open.
windows, from Fairfax County An upyer-story rusticated set into the roo( @ Three plan sections of
Virginia, c.1755, and North window from Virginia, @ Elaborate feaded glass was windows with wooden mullions
Andover, Massachusetts, late c.1770. found in better houses from the and iron standards, c.163 7
18th century. The influence of to@ Dormer windows late 17th century. @ Profrles of typical glazing
English pattern books is evident cam'ed the fenestration pattern @ A typical casement fastener. bars (top to bottom) of the 1770s,
in the ornament. The second into the roof The frrst example @An iron shutter dog used to 1750, 1740-60 and 1735.
114 COLONIAL 1607-1780
0 One of the two impressive Palladian thereby maintaining the symmetry of the
windows that light the central hall on the 5 extenor without sacrificing the symmetry of
main upper floor ofMount Pleasant, the dining room interior. HHH
Philadelphia, 1761-62. It has Ionic @Part of the carved shutters and soffit
pilasters, a pulvinated frieze capped with a panel ofa companion window from the same
dentilled cornice, supporting brackets at the room. the extension of detail to this level of
base and voussoirs (wedge-shaped blocks complexity is uncommon. HHH
aanking the keystone) to the arch. MP (DAn elaborate Rococo bullseye window
0 The interior of the same window, which from a from gable pediment. This is an
spans the width ofthe hallway. The unusually rich window treatment for the
architecture echoes that of the exterior. MP Colonies at this period. HHH
Q) A jib window from the Hammond- 0 An interior view ofa sash window from
Harwood House, Annapolis, Maryland, Cliveden, Philadelphia, 1764-6 7. Although
1773-74. This window doubles as a door Cliveden and the Hammond-Harwood
- - -- --
when the sash is raised and the lower House are at the same social level, this
panels are opened. From the exterior it simple architrave surround is in marked
appears to be a door, from insrde a window, ~ . . ~-
contrast to the windows ofthe other house. cv
Walls
30
0
z
~
This wall of c.1740 in the Great plantation houses stuck closer to the country at the time. Although chair rail and fluted pilasters all
Hall ofDrayton Hall, English architectural ideas than the grain of wood was not meant contribute to the grandeur of the
Charleston, South Carolina, did their northern to show under the paint, it is room. DH
represents the earliest instance of contemporaries. The triglyph evident that the Colonists
Palladianism in Amencan and metope frieze just below the enjoyed the use oflarge, old
architecture. Builders ofsouthern cornice was probably unique in trees. The large panels, low
arly in the period, the walls in finer houses were usu- cases the dado was wainscotted, and in the most elabo-
E ally plastered, with the exception of fireplace walls
which were often sheathed with wooden boards. In
rate rooms of the finest houses panelling could run from
floor to ceiling. In general, the more formal the room,
many smaller houses and some substantial ones, the the more elaborate the wainscotting.
structural framing is left exposed, particularly on upper Paint was used from an early date on all walls except
floors. Wails generally had no skirting boards/base- wainscotting of the finest woods. The palette included
boards or cornice mouldings, although the broad earth tones of yellow, almond, red and brown, and very
expanse of plaster could be interrupted by a post sup- bright blues, greens and yellows. Walls were usually
porting a ceiling beam. decorated with a flat coat of a single colour although
Decoration became more elaborate in the 18th cen- graining and marbling were popular. Abstract patterns
tury. The advent of lath-and-plaster ceilings coincided and murals were rare until the 19th century. Wallpaper
with the introduction of cornices and base mouldings. was used in some American houses in the 18th century,
Chair rails appeared in the early 18th century. In some particularly block-printed and flocked types.
116 COLONIAL 1607-1780
1 u u u u u u u u u u u :1 (J) Vertical board sheathing
(F~ from Saugus, Massachusetts,
- - c.1687, topped by crown
~I
= - mouldings and a chamfered
"" lintel. The pro(rle, right, shows
the recessed (rreplace.
A detail ofa cornice, c.1740,
with egg-and-dart and
modi/lion mouldings. DH
0 Heavily moulded panelling
from Lebanon, Connecticut,
~:c=
c.1710. The large panel would
"" have contained a painting.
3 @ Painted walnut-grain
panelling from the southeast
parlour ofthe Hunter House,
Newpon Rhode Is/ami
c.1758. NHH
0) The stair landing at the
Hunter House, Rhol:le Island,
c.1758, has wainscotting
beneath a plain plaster field.
The dado has shadow
mouldings which echo the lines
of the staircase balusters. NHH
This dado wainscotting with
very deeply moulded panels is
from the central hallway of the
Hunter House. It has been
restored to a period shade of
blue. NHH
0 This blue floral flocked
wallpaper fragment is from an
upstairs room in the Peyton
Randolph House in
Williamsburg Virginia. The
blue strip on the edge is the
original, unfaded colour. CWF
5
118 COLONIAL 1607-1780
Ceilings
ollowing precedents in Britain and Continental touch. The ceiling could be left untreated or it could be
F Europe, early houses have very low ceilings with
exposed joists and summer beams (main, structural
whitewashed or painted decoratively, although sur-
viving evidence for the latter is scant.
beams). The treatment of the exposed undersides of In the later 17th and early 18th centuries, plaster
the floorboards is ajeir measure of the quality of the ceilings became more popular in new houses, and
building. In the simplest houses, joists and beams have many earlier open ceilings were closed in. Usually, the
rough adze or saw marks or even unstripped timbers joists were simply lathed and plastered, resulting in a
with the bark intact. Such ceilings are often found on slightly undulating surface. The juncture of ceiling and
upper stories of finer houses as well. In slightly better wall could be marked with a planed or carved cornice
houses, the framing is planed and squared. Further moulding. Occasionally, but more often in the later
refinement consisted of chamfering the joists and 18th century, the plaster ceiling was elaborately
beams and terminating the chamfers with decorative moulded. A completely different, Germanic tradition is
stops . A simple planed cornice moulding was a final seen in heavily moulded Baroque-style ceilings.
COLONIAL 119
1 2
3
0 An early 18th-century
plaster ceiling, moulded in situ
rather than applied. It reflects a
Baroque European tradition, as
executed by German crafismen
ofsoutheastern Pennsylvania.
Q) and@ Part-plans ofthe
library and dining room ceilings
in Kenmore, Virginia, c. 1775.
These plaster ceilings illustrate
the variety ofmotifs used in the
best work.
(]) The hand-carved central
medallion on the small drawing
room ceiling at Drayton Hall,
South Carolina, c. 1738. DHH
Floors
1
ost Colonial floors are of close-grained, wide, rare but can be found in covered porches or in halls,
M smooth pine boards, without stain or varnish.
Small but significant variations in quality include
usually laid diagonally in a checked pattern.
Painted floorcloths were the most common forms of
random or matched widths, revealed or hidden nailing, covering. Marbleized diamond patterns are typical but
the degree of smoothing and the method of joining the more elaborate designs existed. They were usually
edges. Butting square edges, the least expensive method, found in the central hall, dining room or parlour of
leaves cracks. Better methods included half-lap, tongue- Georgian-style houses. Inexpensive rag-strip rugs are
and-groove or spline joints (where the grooved boards also typical and were even employed in some of the best
are connected by a strip of wood). Many early houses houses. Rush matting was used occasionally. Carpets
had compacted earth floors, enlivened with scratched were rare: fine woven or knotted carpets of Europec.n
designs or covered with straw. Brick floors were most or Oriental origin were reserved for the richest houses
common in cellars. In the later 18th century some floors during the early 18th century but became far more
were painted in imitation of stone. Real stone floors are common after the American Revolution.
. - -- - --
COLONIAL 121
Fireplaces
As the social centre of the this evolution was the separation the southern Colonies, where most
household, the fireplace always of the kitchen and socia f rooms, of the gentry class were Eng/ish,
received some decora tive which left the parlour (!replace and the plantation llfestyle seemed
emphasis in Colonial houses, unconstrained by the needs of to demand a grand coun try house.
but the promotion of the hearth cooking. This example, from the The decorative motifs in the
to the most important Grea t Ha/1 on the second floor of overman tel are typical of a
architectural feature of a house Drayton Hal/, Charleston, fireplace of this status. (The
did not occur until the early 18th Sou th Caro flna, c.1740, reflects family crest is belleved to be a 20th
century. An important factor in the popularity of English styles in century addition.) DH
12
COLONIAL 123
(]) The parlour chimneypiece in the Hunter In private, family rooms decoration is less
House, Newport, Rhode Island, 1758. No important. Here, ornament is restn"cted to the
expense has been spared in the marbleized panelled chimney breast and to the eight-
Corinthian pilasters and the rich, complex panelled doors (not illustrated) on the same
mouldings of the panelling and the wall. A deep Italian moulding frames the
surround. NHH (rreplace opening. NHH
0 This frreplace in the Hunter House, imposing marble surround and to the foliated Chippendale-style pediment and by the
Rhode Island, is restrained but impressive, consoles which support the moulded mantel carving which is vety similar to that on frne
with grain-painted panelling a landscape shelf Both the ovennantel and the surround Philadelphia furniture of the period, and was
ovennantel and delfi tile slips. Note also the are "eared'~ a fashionable embellishment at possibly executed by one of the same
elegant wrought-iron andirons with brass this date. cv crafrsmen. MP
~nials. NHH CD The chimneypiece in the dining room of @ The marble surround and simple
0 The parlour chimneypiece in Cliveden, lvlount Pleasant, Fainnount Park, moulding give an accent to this frreplace
Gennantown, Philadelphia, 1764-67, is of Philadelphia, 1761-62, is similar to the last which is placed on a plainly panelled wall.
an elegant design. The carving is restricted to example, but has a more ornate, elongated The fanciest frreplaces of middle-class houses
the egg-and-dart moulding around the chimney breast. This is distinguished by its ofren looked much like this. MP
124 COLONIAL 1607-1780
CD This large hall fireplace has typical heavy
bolection mouldings. The wood panelling
and surround have marbled paintwork. It is
from the joseph Reynolds House, Bristol,
Rhode Island, c.1698, and is 7 feet (2.1 Om)
wtde and more than 4 feet {1.20m) high.
1 3
Staircases
The double mahogany stairway in Drayton their homelands on American soil. This was
Hall, Charleston, South Carolina, 1738-42. probably the most elaborate staircase in the
Reminiscent ofEnglish Palladianism, it is an Colonies at the time ofits construaion and
expression of the colonists' striving to recreate w,;;s highly in~uentia . DH
ost early staircases were rudimentary, consisting service wing of substantial Georgian houses. The
M of a simple ladder or open tread up to the loft in
single-story houses. Some 17th-century New England
handrail was often attached to the outside wall.
In classically designed houses the stairway was
houses have a joined and moulded staircase leading conceived as a showpiece. Central hall staircases tend
from the lobby-like entryway, while turned balustrades to be open-string (with the stair-ends visible) and have
are more common in Virginia. A common Colonial moulded, turned and carved decorations. Newel posts
stairway was the box winder, usually contained in the and handrails are the pinnacle of the turner's art. Some
space next to the chimney flue and hidden behind a balustrades have a repeated pattern of three different
door in the fireplace wall. This was often balanced by a turnings, typical of early Georgian designs. The sides of
cupboard or pantry door on the other side of the hearth. staircases are decorated with carved stair-ends and
Such an arrangement is typical of small but often fine panelling. Cantilevered and double staircases are rare;
houses of the 18th and well into the 19th centuries. Box open circular staircases were not found until the post-
winders were also frequently used as a back stair in the Revolutionary period.
COLONIAL 127
10
Built-in furniture
A fine built-in cupboard, one ofa display the ceramics and silver.
pair fianking the fireplace in the Alternatively, many cupboards
dining room at Mount Pleasant, had glass doors, particularly later
Philcidelphia, 1761-62. The in the 18th century as glass
doors were ofren lefr open to became less expensive. MP
uilt-in furniture in a Colonial house was a sign of formal display space above and a less visible, everyday
B quality and permanence. Early settlers and later
frontiersmen had good movable furniture but only rudi-
storage area below. A shelved alcove behind panelled
or glazed doors, above or beside the fireplace, is most
mentary shelving or roughly-framed built-in bedsteads. typical. Corner or wall cupboards are more elaborate.
As people became more settled, built-in furniture Here, pewter, ceramics, and silver were displayed, set
improved. Cupboards were the most common type. off by some of the richest architectural detailing in the
The few surviving examples from the early 17th century house. The shelves can be scalloped and occasionally
tend to be small shelved spaces behind panelled doors, the niche has a shell-head.
built into the fireplace wall, although some houses had Beds built into a wall are characteristic of German and
more sophisticated dresser walls or hanging wall Dutch Colonial houses, as are built-in benches, usually
cupboards. By the second quarter of the 18th century found in porches. Most Colonial kitchens had movable
the built-in cupboard had become an important feature furniture but some were fitted with dressers, shelving,
of American architecture. Most were divided into a cupboards and occasionally work surfaces.
130 COLONIAL 1607-1780
2 3
DD []
6 8
D~
, II ' Jl '
D'
L______
.p
D [li ='
~
(J) and 0 Two New England Massachusetts, c.1750-70. be compared to the first two ~replace. Late 18th century.
cupboards. The first is from Q)A glazed corner cupboard, cupboards, but the marbleized @A late 17th/early 18th-
Salem, Massachusetts, c.1720; Connecticut, late 18th century. paintwork and the rare early use century built-in dresser.
the single door is unusual The (DA late 18th-century cupboard of swags are extraordinary. Massachusetts.
second is from Lime Rock, from Delaware with double A corner cupboard from @A typical mid-18th-century
Connecticut, c.1720-30. Both doors above and below. Laurel, Maryland, c.1750. It fireplace wall with storage
have shell-head interiors. @An early 18th-century has remarkable window tracery closets behind panelled doors.
An elegant corner cupboard cupboardtrom Connecticut, with and Corinthian capitals. @A cupboard built into the
Fairly narrow at two feet (60cm) a regiona , rosette morif. This cupboard from Virginia wall above a fireplace, Rhode
wide, it has a moulded cornice Q)A corner cupboard from is unusually located in the Island, c.1760. It is typical of
and shaped shelves. Virginia, c.1725. The form may middle ofa wall, opposite the the southern states as well.
-- - -
..
COLONIAL 131
Services
(]) Cutten.ng became popular on
larger houses in the late 18th
1 century. The top and middle
hopper heads/leader heads are
from Connecticut. The bottom
example, from New jersey, is of
a type still seen today.
A six-plate stove, cast with
moralizing emblems. The fancy
~
s are unusual. 1760s.
A Pennsylvanian jamb stove,
ted 1760, bearing a Low
Cennan Biblical quotation.
@ A Dutch ten-plate stove,
possibly imported.
(I) A detail ofLord Botetourt's
Stove, i~orted (rom London,
c.1 770, or the Covernor's
Palace, illiamsburg, Virginia.
t was unusual for Colonial houses to have any to use wood-burning stoves, which could be very elabo-
Iovens.
specialized services apart from fireplaces and bake
When better facilites are found, they are usually
rate ceramic plate structures. Winston-Salem, North Car-
olina, a Germanic Moravian settlement, supplied cold
indicative of higher status. Most houses, for example, running water to several houses and public buildings
had no guttering system, and rain water simply ran through a gravity-fed system of wooden pipes. Some of
straight off the roof shingles. A very few, grand houses the Winston-Salem kitchens had heated surfaces or
had gutters and capped down pipes/downspouts in the stoves not unlike range tops. These were also found in
British style. Gutters became more common after the the French settlements of Louisiana and Quebec.
Revolution. In urban areas, houses could have a brick or A detached privy was the most advanced.system of
stone drain at ground level which directed water away waste disposal. These were often moved about,
from the building. although more permanent large brick privies were used
Some of the most advanced services were in German- on some plantations. A few kitchens had stone sinks.
Dutch settled communities. They were among the first These were hand-filled but sometimes had a drain.
-- - - - -- - - ---
132 COLONIAL 1607- 1780
Lighting
ew Colonial houses had any sort of built-in lighting. examples used small pieces of mirrored glass on a
F Colonists relied on rush lights, oil lamps, Betty lamps
(boat-shaped or saucer-shaped lamps filled with grease
concave reflecting surface, which cast interesting
patterns of light on the walls. Perhaps the rarest and
or oil), candles, and the glow of the fireplace for night- most elaborate were quillwork pictures, made by young
time illumination. Chandeliers and hanging lamps were girls as school projects. These were scenic pictures built
exceptional in domestic buildings prior to the third up from small pieces of scrolled paper and wax dusted
quarter of the 18th century. These were only rarely the with mica (lustrous minerals). The picture was set in a
elaborate glass types often displayed in restored deep frame with an iron or glass candleholder in front.
Colonial houses. Usually they were much more modest By the mid- to late 18th century some finer houses
hanging candleholders made of wood and iron, iron, or began to have exterior lanterns, either attached near the
tinned sheet-iron. front door or as part of a fence or gate. These usually
Sconces may have been much more common. The consisted of an iron framework with glass sides which
simplest type was of tinned sheet-iron. More elaborate contained a cup for a candle or oil lamp.
COLONIAL 133
Metalwork
([)A high-quality wrought-iron from Drayton Hall, South imported from Englandi similar
gateway with a lamp: a mark of Carolina, c.1740. DH designs were American-made.
status. Charleston, South Q) The iron entrance gate from @ Chunky cast-iron
Carolina, late 18th century. Westove~ Charles City County, balustrading{rom the entrance to
0 An elegam iron stair railing Virginia, 1730-34. It was a house rn L/bertytown,
Maryland, late 18th century.
0) Balustrades of iron stems
with applied wrought-iron scrolls
were popular in the early to
mid-18th century.
@Pronged and bud-like iron
finials decorated fences and
SE_tes. Mid- to late 18th century.
(]) Weather vanes are important
examples of Colonial folk art as
they allowed blacksmiths and
tinsmiths a free rein. Fretted
dates were common, as on the
first e.,mmple from
Pennsylvania. The second vane,
from Albany, New York, mid-
17th century, takes the popular
cock form. It is brass. The last
vane is a Germanic design of
1670 from Pennsylvania.
Boo/scrapers were used in
towns and on some farms. Most
4 were plain bars, but these 18th-
century examples are more
imaginative.
CJ
Aside from lamps, andirons, and hardware, the iron- ironworkers made them in fairly fanciful shapes. They z
A work commonly found in American architecture were wrought or cut out, like scrapers, and decorated ~
CJ
::::;
includes bootscrapers, weather vanes, fences and gates. with arrows, scrolls, letters, dates and sometimes figures
Bootscrapers were often placed near the entrance of of animals or people . Some of the fanciest had a brass
Colonial houses, particularly in towns and cities where or copper ball pierced by the shaft of the vane.
the streets could be especially muddy. They were Iron gates and fences, like weather vanes, were most
wrought, or cut out of sheet iron, and set in masonry or often a feature of public buildings, but their mark of
in the ground. Usually, they were quite plain, but some grandeur made them popular on pretentious domestic
are flanked with scrolls, knobs or finials . buildings. The fanciest work was generally reserved for
Weather vanes were most often found on public front gates which included very elaborate scrolled and
buildings but were occasionally added to domestic foliated wrought or cast ironwork, sometimes including
structures. Many are considered examples of folk art, a lamp to illuminate the entry. Porches often had
since there were few guidelines for their forms, and local wrought-iron balustrades.
134 COLONIAL 1607-1780
Woodwork
3 1)(\1)1)1)
LATE GEORGIAN
1765-1811
(i) The Adelphi development on 1 ,!!iiJiiji~i5~ by j ohn Plaw, 1794, showing
the River Thames in London, I! the attention that was pard to the
1768-72, initiated the reign of proportion and symmetry of
Robert and j ames Adam as the mral villas. JNP
leading architects of the late 18th @A detail ofMoray Place,
century. This original drawing Edinburgh, a development of
shows how the development was terraced/row houses built on a
conceived as a whole, wharf and duodecagon (twelve-sided) plan
terraces/rows together. RA around a garden in the early
A ground floor plan ofa 19th century. The deeply carved,
typical gentleman's country crisp rustication is characten'sitc
retreat of the late 1790s. ofEdinburgh architecture at this
Although simple and small, the period. Note the authentic lamp
house is very comfortable and standard. SP
has an internal water closet. JM <D The entrance front to Horne
Q)A gentleman's country house House, London, c.1775, by the
Adam brothers. The fine porch
takes the fonn ofa temple
2 portico, a very fashionable
feature oflarge town houses.
ollow ing the Peace of Paris, w hich ended the Seven Adam (1728-92) and Sir William Chambers (1723-96)
F Years' War with France and her allies in 1763, build-
ing in Britain gathered momentum and the 1770s and
made these monumental facades fashionable and intro-
duced to Britain a grandeur derived from Roman prece-
80s w ere boom decades. The Palladian principles of pro- dents, w hich had already inspired the Neo-classical style
portion w hich h ad governed domestic architecture in in Continental Europe.
the first half of the 18th century continued to be applied Adam was the most successful British architect of the
to almost all houses, but the detailing of terraces/row s second half of the 18th century. He built some of the
and villas became more delicate and more uniform. grandest tow n and country houses of the period, but his
The uniformity recommended in Palladian pattern development of the Adelphi, overlooking the River
books for terraces/rows and squares of private houses Thames in London (1768-72), w as perhaps his most
w as rarely achieved in the first half of the century, influential work. The terraces/rows of brick houses
ow ing to the profiteering of developers. How ever, the w ere united by the treatment of the facade, with swags,
"palace" facade, in w hich the centre of a terrace/row is ribbons and arabesques on the exterior walls, echoing
marked by pilasters and a pediment, was increasingly the treatment of the interior. This must have appeared
preferred after 1760, not only by architects and theo- revolutionary to eyes accustomed to the propriety of
rists but by speculative builders w ho found that this Palladian design. The pattern books of the 1770s and 80s
new magnificence helped to sell property. The first such rapidly translated these devices to more modest houses.
developments w ere the Circus and the Royal Crescent The 177 4 Building Act defined the architectural stan-
in Bath, parts of the grandest conception of unified dards within which the new ornament could be
urban planning seen in Britain. The architects Robert employed. This ambitious Act laid down categories or
lATE GEORGIAN 137
0 Sculpture galleries were an integral pan of early 1770s, shows classical statues and 0 The stairwell at Home House, London,
the best houses in this age of connoisseurship. busts in a complementary setting complete c.1775, is an exercise infight and space:
This detail from Newby Hall, Yorkshire, with highly decorated alcoves. NH Raben and james Adam at their best. HH
"rates" for houses, ranging from first to fourth rate. could be finished with stone. In Bath the local soft stone
These grades were determined by a combined calcula- was the universal facing for the facades of walls built of
tion of the value and the volume of the property. Among stone rubble, although the dressed ashlar had a tendency
the structural requirements, the Act introduced revised to crumble . By contrast, the hard stone used in Edin-
fire regulations concerning sash windows. Following burgh was structural and finely tooled.
legislation in 1709 these had to be set back from the Lime mortars had been used as a finish since the time
building line by 4 inches (10cm); now they had to be of Inigo Jones and were known generically as stucco,
sunk within the wall face. This meant that only a fine from the Italian term for plaster. A patent "Roman
line of wooden frame was visible from the street, a cement" was introduced in 1796. Both materials were
necessity which sat comfortably beside the prevailing used to simulate stone and modified architectural fea-
taste for sinuous, elegant lines. tures in the last thirty years of the 18th century. They
In tandem with the development of the city terrace/ were applied over brick and were generally marked out
row, the later 18th century saw the construction of large in horizontal and vertical lines to resemble ashlar blocks.
numbers of small suburban houses. Developers took Stucco was then painted a warm yellowish tone, in imi-
advantage of the less expensive land to erect houses on tation of Bath stone. Houses were either stuccoed
larger plots . These owed something to the Palladian through the basement and ground floor facade or fully
villas of the 1750s, which were modest country houses stuccoed; the latter is especially found on grander devel-
without porticoes or basements. Many of the later villas opments from the end of the period. John Nash's ter-
were plain classical boxes, which aped in miniature the races at Regent's Park, London (1811-28), are the apogee
symmetrical country house facade. Others were built of this taste. An invaluable innovation was Coade stone,
in semi-detached pairs, usually unified by simple applied an artificial stone composed of a terracotta-like material
ornament to suggest a single house. However, the but white in colour. This could be cast and so the effect
Gothic Revival house, with agee-arched windows and of carved ornament came within the budget of the pop-
doors, or "Gothic" tracery inserted into conventional ular builder. A huge diversity of Coade stone details was
round topped windows, was also considered suitable marketed, but it is perhaps the keystones with faces in
for a more rustic setting. At the end of the century the high relief which are the most notable castings. These
Picturesque fashion in architecture led to the introduc- decorated many facades between c.1775 and 1810.
tion of asymmetrical villa plans, with small houses Other innovations played their part in the period. The
sporting "Tuscan" towers and eaves, reminiscent of the hob grate, which had been introduced in the 1750s,
follies and towers seen in the paintings of Claude Lor- ousted the less efficient, dirtier basket grate, and
rain. Other fashions and fads were adopted, such as the improved oil lamps were introduced to the houses of
taste for Egyptian motifs, which touched even specula- the rich: thus by 1800 the average house was warmer
tive building at the turn of the century. and cleaner to live in, and the grand house was also
Brick remained the staple building material. In London better lit. All areas of design fell under the influence of
grey stock brick, darkened by the smoke of sea-coal Robert Adam and his associates, and even these grates
fires, gave the city a grimy patina. The grandest houses and lights reflect the prevalent classical taste of the era.
138 lATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
Doors
The black-painted front door of enhance the light levels in the
a house in Bedford Square, hall. A Coade stone keystone
London, 1775-80, is typical of and Coade stone slabs, in
the discreet umformity of late imitation of volcanic rock, add
Georgian urban design. In this grandeur to an otheiWise plain
case narrow flanking windows and simple pattern.
he basic carpentry of the Georgian door changed and porticoes have an angular, Grecian simplicity.
T very little in the late 18th century, but detailing was
influenced by the prevailing Neo-classical taste.
Typical street doors and internal doors remained six-.
panelled. The modest house door is deal (fir or pine) and
The casing of the street door was modified by the has plain fielded panels; grand street doors may be oak.
fanlight. Early in the period fanlights are generally All were painted, black and sometimes dark green.
simple and rectangular, but the semi-circular or Toward the end of the century the occasional bright
segmental type, which is particularly well adapted to blue door relieved the sobre streetscape.
filigree ornament, became increasingly fashionable. Most internal doors are of painted deal, but the best
Fanlights were made in wood or, for grander houses, are mahogany, with polished panels framed by incised
wrought in metal. At the end of the century cast-metal ribs or a beaded moulding. Inlays of unusual woods
tracery became very general. A Coade stone surround such as ebony, holly and cherry are also used. The vogue
echoes the graceful sweep of the fanlight above some for painted Pompeian and Etruscan decoration within
later doors. By contrast, other late doorcases, porches the door panels ran from the 1770s onward.
LATE GEORGIAN 139
V>
1 "'00
0
'7
5 6 I
The actual front door tended to be (3) and@ The fanlight above CD and The;5randest (J) This doorcase is from an
plain: it was the surround that the door was an important area elaboration of forms early London speculation by
indicated the status ofa house. of enrichment. The simple semi- incorporated wrought ironwork john Nash, 1777-8. The Ionic
(D A classical pediment circular light within a brick not only in the fanlight but in pilasters are Greek Revival
supported on engaged columns arch, lefi, follows the same the fianking windows. This elements.
(partly sunk into the wallj adds basic form as the more elegant was particularly fashionable in Variations on the simple
cjjsnity to this house in Bath. doorcase from a house in Dublin. The fiamboyant second spoked fanlight include
0 A Coade stone keystone could Guildford, Surrey, right. The example shows the fashion for Adamesque Roman detailing,
enliven an austere doorcase. scalloped motifabove the door giving the name of the occupant geometric forms and the agee
Numerous facial designs existed. is particularly graceful. above the front door. BM arched Gothic form.
]
140 LATE GEORGIAN 1765 - 1811
c-
1 3 ~ ~
:I
I
Q lc:q .I: 0
0
Q
! : ~oo
!0
'
_,
~'
~I
fl
DO
DO
5 6
;
(@) Ordinary houses had plain
metal or wooden door knobs of
rleasing curvaceous forms. '
A set ofpolished brass
~ttings, late 18th century. 11 .
@ A brass box lock with a
turned hardwood handle, c.1 790.
LATE GEORGIAN 143
Windows
~
0
Q
mrmmr
llml
2
(]) This handsome tn"partite pediment. The balustrading A ~rst-rate London house of
window from the garden facade form s a counterpoint to the 1789. The hierarchy of the ~oors
of Home House, London, c.1775, classical windowcase, a typically is re~ected in the fenestration.
is articulated with Con"nthian dynamic statement o(Robert The piano nobile, the pn"ncipal
pilasters, engaged columns and a Adam's architectural style. HH ~oor, receives the most attention.
1 2 6
I ~
~
::::::u:::::JCl
~
!:::::t=
f:::o=
~ ~
~ ~
::II::
0 and Sash windows could ~ lj::I:c
be round-headed (left, c.1790) :::::c::!!::::1 p::c=
or even agee-headed, in a
11
30
0
z
;
(]) The central pediment draws these three fioor-length sashes. Note the "spider's web" @ An attenuated window with a classical
windows together as a group. The string tracery ofthe round-headed sash. stone surround,,early 1770s. The shutters
course forms a running sill. @A plainer version of the previous example. are contemporary. NH
0 These windows are united by the This is typical ofmodest town houses in Bath. (j) A detail ofa shutter at Newby Hall,
architectural enrichment Gfa shared CD Deep-cut rusticated stonework was Yorkshire, showing a guilloche mottf NH
entablature, engaged pilasters and an popular at the entrance-level. The dropped
engaged catved stone balustrade. keystone is a Palladian motif which dates the
Q) A Venetian window, comprising three window as c.1750-60.
146 lATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
Walls
iilll!i!!i! !il!!llll lll !ll!jj !! !l li\\IJiii!!i llii!i! !\!\i !\ l i ill!ll i\! l!il l ili!ll!i!! \l l\lllll! i! i ! liilli jj !\l j(i! il
The Neo-classical style{rovided House, London, c.1775, Adam's decorative palette. candlelight from the integral
a complete architectura designed by Robert Adam, such Pilasters frame mirrored panels_. girandoles. Note how the wall
vocabulary with which to decoration was nch with filigree giving elegant spatial ambiguity and ceiling decoration are
ornament a wall. At its grandest, gold patterns. Here, the gold is to the room. The mirrors also unified. HH
as in this example from Home offset by the cool greens of re~ected and enhanced the
ost fashionable houses of the 1760s had a panelled more general use in the 1770s and patterned flock and
M dado with fabric hangings stretched on battens
between the chair rail and the cornice. Velvets and silks
printed designs supplanted textiles as fashionable field
decoration. These was either stuck directly onto the
were the most opulent and expensive materials; wool wall or hung from battens; the last method allowed
damasks were very popular. Modest houses had plaster costly papers to be removed. Paper was commonly used
w alls or they had cotton hangings above the dado: this to line all walls before painting, except the entrance hall
w as an acceptable material in even quite grand houses. w hich would be painted plaster. Popular colours were
Wooden panelling w as increasingly eliminated from the pea green, turquoise, deep pink and Chinese yellow.
dado after 1760. It w as replaced by plaster, usually The surface was varnished if a high finish was required.
painted in flat white or a stone colour or marbled in a Stucco ornament on a plaster ground enlivened the
stronger or deeper colour for greater grandeur (this grandest decorative schemes. Motifs such as acanthus
disguised the fugitive nature of the pigments). The chair leaves, honeysuckle shoots, swags and ribbons were
rail continued to be made of wood. Wallpaper came into used at the cornice and to frame plaster medallions.
LATE GEORGIAN 147
I[
4
IQ][[g] lQ]j
~
[]] []] ! [] [[]
!] ~ f 19 [!
~~~l~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ ~~
Consistent ornament was used (J) and A profile and section
5 throughout an interior to create a ofsimple panelling from an
unified design. This principle was ordinary house. It would cover
applied to plain panelling and the whole wall.
ornamental plasterwork alike.
0 This plaster wall with
windows, d790, shows how
the chair rail continued to define
6 the proportions ofa room even
when there was no panelling.
The mirrors between the
windows enhance the sense of
light and space in the room.
0 This plaster wall, designed
by William and james Pain in
1790, has a columnar screen
that supports a gallery. Running
garlands in the cornice appear
also in the doorcases.
0) This fluted pilaster form,
with additional tongues in the
lower portion, was ofren used in
grand plaster designs.
Q) Plasterwork ofren included
@ Painted filigree "grotesque" figurative motifs. A medallion of
work was maae famous by a woman tending a sacred
Robert Adam. It derived in part flame is typical of the Roman
from original Roman examples taste ofthe period. Another
and in part from Italian fashionable motif was crossed
Renaissance prototypes. EM arrows.
148 LATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
2 3
~
space than on the dado rail. BM
~ 10 JIMllllm litulifilTI!mnmrnrnrr
~ i!"
J
@and (J) Two examples, one This detail ofa wall at restricted to the upper-middle @ Ribbed decoration was
Gothic, one classical, of the Avenue House, Bedfordshire, and aristocratic classes. It typical of both the cornice and
junction of wall and ceiling. shows the junction of the tended to imitate even more the dado rail. This example of
The first is from Brockha/l in moulded dado rail with a expensive materials, such as a panelled dado with plain
Northamptonshire, by john doorcase. The vertical member ~ocking in place ofdamask, or, wooden ribbing is from
Nash, c.1790; the second is decorated with simple in the case of this typical hand Barbreck House in Argyll,
comes from a house in Bedford beading and a laurel motif AH block-printed paper, coffered Scotland, and dates from
Square, London. Wallpaper was a luxury, plastei'1XIork. su 1790.
LATE GEORGIAN 149
Ceilings
V>
()
z
~
u
odest houses had plain plaster ceilings through- A shallow saucer dome on pendentives (concave trian-
M out the 18th century, with only the simplest of
cornices. In houses one step up the social scale, the
gular corner vaults that support a dome above a square
room) is a hallmark of the architect Sir John Soane, the
cornice might have simple dentils (series of blocks) or chief exponent of the Greek Revival style which became
an egg-and-dart moulding, but little more. fashionable at the end of the 18th century.
Heavy coffering and robust Palladian ornament fell Figurative decoration was generally painted on
from favour in the 1760s and were replaced by the canvas or paper and fixed to the ceiling. Robert Adam
balanced Neo-classical plasterwork espoused by Robert employed a number of artists such as Biagio Rebecca
Adam. Adam divided the ceiling into segments and and Angelica Kaufmann, who painted mostly mytho-
panels, arranged around a centrepiece. Humbler ceilings logical scenes as ceiling inserts. The framing plaster-
had moulded rectangular or circular frames. work was painted in delicate palettes: pea greens with
Halls and stairwells of grand houses might have barrel pinks, and lilacs with greys were characteristic of the
and quoin vaulting, embellished with classical details. 1770s and 80s.
150 LATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
This
panel richly detailed
harmonizes with ceiling
the
motifs and colours of the wall
5 !~~~~~~~-~-~~~--""'J---~ ...J 0 This ceiling from 2 Bedford
Square, London, has vety
simple decoration. The ground
frieze. The whole group evokes plan ofthe room is reflected in
ancient Rome in the spirit ofthe the outer moulding: the oval
Adam brothers. NH moulding and the rosette focus
attention on the centre ofthe
ceiling.
(J) More modest than the first
example on this page, but still
highly elegant, is this plaster Q) A running acanthus motrf
ceiling from Barbreck House, supports the cornice ofa
Argyll, Scot/anti of 1790. The handsome ceiling from the
central circular pattern 1780s. The use ofanthemion
complements the cutving and egg-and-dart mouldings
ornament in the rectangular and beading in the cornice
panels at either side, creating a creates a sense ofdignity
unified design in a rectangular appropriate to a reception room.
space. AH
LATE GEORGIAN 151
~: - : :::: : .. ~~~ nvv'-~- ~ '-~!: ~r
'-'~- -~' - ... ' .. " ..
innovative in form and style. It is hall ceiling from a house in
a shallow dome supported on Edinburgh and represents the
pendentives (curved triangular fullest application ofthe Gothic
sections). The pendentives and ~-~~: ...: ..;.;::.,::.,;-~~~,; ..-;-..,":: .... ~.:...".:~~ ....~:';,':;,:';. ~..:;~~:.. ....... : ....... ~.,...':._..,_.,,:;..-;_;...."; .:-.. - :. ~: .... style: a ribbed vault.
6
152 LATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
Floors
This magnificent engraving London, designed by Robert design, with a symmetrical executed in marble, but similar, if
illustrates the paved floor of the Adam by the end of 1760. The pattern stretching out from a simpler designs were made in
anteroom at Syon House, floor has the popular centralized circle. The finished version was less expensive stones. RA
. - - - --
lATE GEORGIAN 153
Fireplaces
he simplest fireplace surround is a plain wooden classical in the latter part of the 18th century, as seen in
T frame, of two uprights and a beam: this arrangement
formed the basis of almost all chirnneypiece designs in
the strict geometric lines of Sir John Soane's Greek
Revival designs.
the period and encouraged a strictly rectilinear treatment. The cast-iron hob grate saw improvements from the
Chimneypieces were made in marble, stone or wood, 1750s. It became universal in smaller houses and also
and their enrichment with medallions and classical featured in the simpler rooms of mansions. But the hob
motifs is one of the most characteristic features of late grate was still inefficient for the burning of coal, mainly
Georgian architectural decoration. That this should be because of the size of the chimney flue. Sir Benjamin
so speaks for the profound influence of Robert and James Thompson, Count von Rumford, designed a reformed
Adam, the chief exponents of such classical designs. Fine hob grate in the late 1790s with canted sides and a
stone chirnneypieces are often enriched with inlays of narrow flue. This was altogether better, giving out much
different marbles, and the grandest usually have over- more heat with less smoke. The grandest rooms have
mantel mirrors. Surrounds became more austerely architect-designed hob or dog grates.
LATE GEORGIAN 155
3
IIlli II IIIII
'=
!
I
11' ~
~ 11
= '
I _,
=
~
""""'
7 8
'I
0.
.
. '=
>Lf:.li.t-
If. a~
'
.
-
~ w
2- ~
~
ical of the 1780s. AH
A detail from a frreplace of
t e 1780s. The influence ofthe
Adam style is clear in such motifs
as the urn and ribbons. AH
Blue and white earthenware
tiles, in imitation ofDelfiware,
were ofien used to line the slips
or cheeks of the frreplace. AH
lATE GEORGIAN 157
7
@ The plain lines and weighty forms ofSir
john Soane's mirrored chimneypiece at
Wimpole Hall, Cambridgeshire, 1791, are
lightened by girandoles. The mirror doubled
the light of the candles.
0 Rococo designs were popular in the 1750s;
this overmantel mirror frame from Charlotte
Square, Edinburgh, stands on a later,
classical surround ofthe 1770s.
Robert Adam's chimneypiece composition
in the hall at Kedleston, Derbyshire, c.1765,
combines an alabaster chimneypiece with
delicate, classicized plasterwork. This
presents a contrast to the near-contemporary
Rococo overmantel.
158 LATEGEORGIAN 1765-1811
I
" I
I
I
Ill i[iIIl I
I
II
1:
! i :l lil tl ll II I
'I
I
I 1
11 I I I
I
1
I I
I 1
I
I I I
I till I I I I I
Staircases
Grand houses can have large A more dramatic architectural exceptional width ofthe entrance centralized flight that splits at the
staircases hung along two or feat is seen at Home House, hall allowed the architea, Robert halflanding and returns to the
three sides of the entrance hall. London, c. 1775, where the Adam, to create a grand floor above on either hand. HH
he plan of the standard town house allowed for curve as decoration. Most staircases w ere fir or pine,
T little change in the position or structure of the
staircase during this period. The greatest development
painted in flat drab; the grandest w ere polished oak.
Cast-iron balustrading comes more to the fore
is in the form of balusters and newel posts. Wood because casting techniques improved in the middle of
continues to be the chief material used and almost all the century. Acanthus leaves, w reaths and Greek key
staircases are now open-string, with a stepped profile patterns abound. Stone staircases are found only in
rather than a straight one. The barleytwist balusters of grand town houses. Both William Chambers and
the earlier Georgian period go out of fashion after 1760, Robert Adam designed dramatic imperial staircases,
replaced by simple tapering uprights, turned for a which rise in a single cantilever flight from the entrance
circular profile and planed for a square profile. The hall to a half landing, then divide into a double sweep.
handrail is flatter and finishes in a smooth turned circle Area steps, leading from the street to the basement,
of wood; this tops a simple newel post. Tread-ends are were adopted in many new town houses, providing
similarly restrained and have often no more than a plain ready access for tradesmen and services.
160 LATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
-- -
LATE GEORGIAN 161
7 II
6
Q) This balustrade from a house c.1795. The (rrst shows how A detail of the distinctive 0 and Even fairly ordinary
in Charlotte Square, Edinburgh, delicate and ornate railings could Greek key balustrade from houses had decorative
late 1790s, has a pawing be at the end ofthe century. The Steine House, Brighton, c.1800. balustrades and newel posts.
curvilinear design which does second design is simpler and The railing nms on both stdes of The (rrst example is similar to
not conform to the strict Neo- employs the popular S-shape. an imperial staircase: that is, one the second staircase on this page,
classical style ofthe time. The textured ornament and which rises centrally and returns with a curling motif at intervals
@and CD These patterns are powers could be gilded. These in two pights to a landing The between straight balusters. The
from I. and]. Taylor's designs would have been used in newel post resembles a turned second design alternates straight
Ornamental Iron Work, grand town houses. wooden type. and curved balusters.
162 LATE GEORGIAN 1765- 1811
Built-in furniture
An elegant dining room cupboard table and for storage. The top is onginally have been hung with flush with the wallj: this was
within a niche, c.1775, which ' inlaid rosewood. The brass rail fabric to protect the wall. Note inserted later to give servants
would have been used as a side running around the niche would the jib door (a disguised door better access to the room. HH
uilt-in furniture became more sophisticated in the cases are sunk within a niche, their cornices flush with
B late Georgian period, appealing as it did to the Neo-
classical taste for balance and unity of design. Built-in
the wall, or stand proud of the walls, picking up the
motifs from the cornice. Dining room and library pieces
cupboards would follow the lines of apsidal rooms and would probably be made of high-quality woods such
oval ante-rooms . Such cupboards, glazed above and as mahogany, which would be polished. In other good
panelled below, would be used to display china, silver rooms, built-in furniture would be painted in flat grey
and glass . Dining room pieces might include a built-in or colours evoking stone. Some very grand, fashionable
sideboard or a serving table, cut to fit into a niche. These hallways have console tables, made of wood or stone.
would usually be confined to one end of the room, near Built-in furniture was also used below stairs and in
to the service door. The wine cooler beneath the serving modest houses. Simple china cupboards and built-in
table or sideboard would be designed en suite and so shelving were standard, as were kitchen cupboards and
was considered to be part of the architecture. dressers . These would in all cases have been painted;
Libraries achieve a restrained magnificence. Book- dark or sage green and drab were popular.
lATE GEORGIAN 163
....
~
11===~===4
DO
Services
([) This conical rainwater head CD Rainwater was collected and
has fine cast detailing. AH stored in large lead cisterns,
0 Stoves were essential in located in the area ofa town
large, ~agged entrance halls; this house or on the back wall of a
example was made c.1800 for country house. Here, the date of
Pencarrow House near Bodmin, manufacture is recorded.
Cornwall.It provides a plinth for @ Lead hoppers/leader heads
a double colza oil/amp. ofren bore the initials ofthe
occupant of the house and the
2 date of installation. Note the
Adamesque decoration (right).
fter the introduction of steam pumping in the 1760s capital investment, which was rarely entertained in the
A it might be assumed that water supplies in Britain
improved dramatically. But this was not the case, as
congested areas of cities, and was certainly not seen as
a public duty by the government. A few landowners
steam power was rarely used for domestic purposes. supplied new London houses with sewerage pipes, but
Almost all households received their water at ground drainage was primitive and could only cope with liquid
level, and no higher. A very few iron pipes were waste; this did not make the privy, the standard earth
provided by water companies, but wooden piping closet, any more sanitary. There were a few internal
(installed in some places as early as the 17th century) water closets in the first half of the century, and many
remained the chief conduit for water until the 19th more after the 1760s; but because of the low pressure
century. Because of the inadequacies of this system, in the pipes they required special pumping to make
rainwater was still funnelled down pipes and stored in them work and they remained the privilege of the rich.
lead cisterns. One innovation was the wood- or oil-burning stove,
Piped sewerage, like piped water, required considerable used in the centre of a hallway.
166 IATEGEORGIAN 1765-1811
Lighting
3 4
10
0 Girandoles could be fixed to
mirrored overmantels. This
design is by Robert Adam, 1773.
Railings ofren supported
lamp brackets. This elaborate
example, 17n holds an oil
lamp. BM
An alternative was the
overthrow. This example is from
Bath, late 18th century.
@ Another imaginative lamp
standard, c.1795. UT
@ Link boys gutded people
through dark streets and
extinguished their torches (links)
at the destination. Snuffers were
provided on railings for this
purpose; this dragon's-head
example is from Edinburgh.
he great breakthrough in lighting technology was Candlelight remained the general source of light for
T the colza lamp (or Argand burner), fuelled by rape-
seed oil. This was invented by Aime Argand, a Swiss
all, and sconces and individual candlesticks were the
usual accessories. Elegant Neo-classical silver candelabra
physicist, and patented in England in 1784. It had a provided light for dinner parties, but even the three
cylindrical wick, housed between two concentric metal branches of a candelabrum would have been consid-
shafts; this arrangement encouraged air flow and ered extravagant for a middle-class family dining alone.
produced a brighter flame. The colza lamp gave ten Chandeliers, even in the most opulent households, were
times the light of an ordinary oil lamp of comparable used only on showy occasions. Girandoles became
size, and it was less dirty, which meant that it could be integral to many grand chimneypiece designs; they
used indoors. It was a luxury item and lent itself to were built into the overmantel so that their light would
elegant metalwork and sober Roman design. After the be reflected in the mirror glass and brighten the room.
tum of the century magnificent central fixtures with Interior lanterns and outside lamp standards took on the
five, six or eight lamps were made. more delicate lines and ornamentation of the period.
lATE GEORGIAN 167
Metalwork
(J) The railings ofthe Circus in Bath are vety
plain, their austerity relieved only by the
overthrows which support lamps.
@ and @Balconets fronted ~oar-length
windows on raised entrance levels arid upper
~oars. The first example incorporates ovoid forms
within the handrai~ with anthemion-/ike shapes
depending from it. The second example uses
similar motifs, but within a quirky composition
reminiscent of/ate 18th-century Gothic forms.
@An impressive anthemion motifwas used by
Robert Adam at Newby Hal~ Yorkshire, to lend
grandeur to the railings ~an king a principal
entrance. JVH
ne element stands out above all others from late level. At the very end of the century a delicate cast-iron
0 Georgian ironwork, and this is the balconet, or guard
iron. These small railings, fronting windows one and
canopy might surmount such a balcony. Such stru~tures
are partly glazed and partly roofed in copper or zinc. They
sometimes two floors above street level, prevented developed in the early years of the 19th century into the
people from falling through deep sashes and provided a elaborate two- and three-story verandas seen to best
light and stylish miniature balcony. Cast-iron balconets advantage in Brighton, Sussex.
come in numerous designs, including diagonal patterns Designs for cast-iron railings and arched lamp supports
with rosettes, crossed spears and Gothic tracery. Many become rather lighter from the 1770s. Smart little urns
were added to earlier houses, but from the 1770s onward and other classical motifs supplement the existing spear-
they were often installed when the house was built. headed finials. Gates display a similar development, with
Balconies also came into fashion. These are shallow, increasingly sophisticated lines and ornament.
rectangular, and usually run across the width of three Ordinary rural houses have little ironwork; a simple
drawing room windows on the floor above the entrance cast-iron porch might be fitted to a front door.
168 LATE GEORGIAN 1765-1811
(J) to @ Balconet fronts display anthemion - a frequently used CD and @ A similar delicacy Builder's Magazine, 1778, are
the high quality ofcast work. motif which became the standard appears in rar1ings from the typical ofthe best designs in their
The last example shows the decoration on Regency balconets. 1780s; these examples from The lightness and intricacy. BM
5 :~ ~ ~ .l ~ -~ ~.l~ 6 :,.. 8
~~r--
l11111 l!l!1I ,I
I
rv
t ~ t
~
L
'\ 7 '\
,
I .I
It t t I t~
IIi! . ~ !1111 i'11.1 ' iIill!!' I' !' '11: ,;, ~ iI' '".::,1.. <' li a: . 1: Ill!1~ --
15
12
I I
I
=H==I ~
170
'
T
(j) The elevation, seaion and plan ground floor and the f/oor direct!)' has ~~//-length windows that give numbers at the beginning ofthe
ofa "Second &te House" from above are the most elegant; the onto a balcony NN 19th century Although modest in
The New Practical Builder and latter has front and back drawing Designs b)' Nicholson for a scale, the)' have good basic
Workman's Guide, 1823, b)l rooms which are divided b)' "Fourth &te House". Such proportions and interesting and
Peter Nicholson. The raised- double doors, and the front room houses were run up in vast ofien refined details. NN
egency is the term generally accepted to denote the of the classic London building material, Portland stone.
R period 1811-20, when George, Prince of Wales,
acted as Regent for his mad father, George III, and the
Since the Building Act of 177 4 all new town houses
had had to conform to one of four ratings, applicable
decade of his own reign as George N, from 1820 to 30. to domestic buildings . Fourth-rate houses were the
Often, too, it is taken, with reasonable justification, to lowliest and first-rate the grandest. These grades
include the short reign of his younger brother William were firmly established in the minds and practices
N , who died in 1837. It is a fascinating transitional of builders and architects by the early 19th century.
period in English domestic architecture, at once the cul- Aside from differences in scale dictated by the impor-
mination and final, most sophisticated expression of tance of the street, facades tended to bear features
the classical trends which had been current for a which could be read as marks of status. First- and
century, and an era highly self-conscious of its own second-rate houses had an order and proportions
modernity. which third- and fourth-rate houses could not attain.
The Prince's own tastes were important at the These distinctions are marked in the design of
smarter level of patronage, and his early espousal of terrace/ row houses, as is well illustrated by the
French styles in architecture and decoration and his different rates of houses shown in Peter Nicholson's
later love of the exotic were both influential. Fashion- influential publication The New Practical Builder and
able architects of the period such as Sir John Soane Workman 's Guide of 1823.
(1753-1837) or the Regent's favourite, John Nash (1752- In the interiors of the Regency period there is a
1835), took as their starting point the crisp and correct striking emphasis on architectural elements, with
Neo-classicism of the 1770s and 80s, but treated its strongly accented mouldings, a great deal of crisp, linear
accepted canons with an almost Mannerist wit and wil- detailing, such as reeded or incised patterns, and a liking
fulness. for lean-profile d arches . A clever use of subtly varied
Similarly, ordinary architects and even the specula- planes is also characteristic; for example, w ide
tive builders of terraces/ rows of town houses played doorcases, flush with the wall surface, and enclosing
with the established forms and proportions of the doors with shallow but complex panel details were
Georgian house. Windows were elongated, mouldings highly fashionable. Often the same spatial games are
attenuated and areas of rich decoration, such as repeated in niches or blind arches, which are set back
ironwork balconies with late-Roman or Greek motifs, only a few inches from the wall-surface. Decoration
were contrasted against plain areas of brick or fashion- reflected the boldness of the architecture. In grand
able stucco. Stucco and the similar patented "Roman houses a certain flashiness of taste can be discerned.
Cement" were widely used as less expensive imitations Bright gilding, rich silks in high colours and lavish
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 171
(J) "Elevations of a Series ofFirst and Second fine terraces, especially in South London, Q) A rather grand cottage orne in the
Rate Houses". This plate by Richard Elsam were erected on this pattern. RE "Elizabethan" style, c.1843, showing the
appears both in his Practical Builder's The garden front o(the Romantic poet garden front in perspective and the main
Perpetual Price Book of 1825 and in later john Keats' house in Hampstead, London. facade in elevation. Many books offered
editions ofNicholson's The New Practical Verandas were typical of refined "village" such designs for gentlemen's rural residences
Builder and Workman's Guide. Many houses such as this. KH in a Romantic style. FG
curtain treatments are conspicuous in the furnishing a new, Romantic sensibility are fully reflected in
manuals of the day, such as the works of George Smith Regency architecture, decoration and garden design.
or the colour plates from Rudolf Ackermann's Repository The delight in the rustic and the picturesque gave rise
ofArts, Literature, Fashions Etc. (published in parts through- to a novel form, the cottage orne, a pretty and elegant
out the period). Even in more modest houses there house which represented an idealized conception of a
seems to have been a strong emphasis on rather graphic country dwelling. Most of these houses were asym-
effects and a definite preference for sharp colours in metrical in plan and many had thatched roofs and
unusual combinations, such as acid yellow with lilac. weatherboarding. The entire village of Blaise Hamlet,
With a widespread increase in wealth throughout the Gloucestershire, consisted of cottages ornes, designed by
period (in spite of the Napoleonic Wars of 1801-15) John Nash in 1811. This same Romantic sensibility is
came a noticeable broadening of the base of middle- reflected in the growth of new kinds of suburban villas,
class patronage. Many new areas of the major cities and which were often built in semi-detached pairs, or
prosperous towns - including London, Liverpool, village houses planned as the centrepiece of a miniature
Bristol, Cheltenham and Edinburgh - were developed estate : a charmed world in which flower-gardens and
as genteel residential districts. At the same time the rise rustic seats, trellis arches and summer pavilions all con-
in popularity of villas and houses in semi-rural areas tributed to the delights of life, protected by pleasingly
engendered several new forms of building. Highly char- irregular fences of twig-work or painted wooden
acteristic of the Regency is the rapid development of planking.
seaside towns, of which Brighton on the south coast of The revival of historic styles of architecture and dec-
England was the most fashionable. Houses planned for oration was a potent influence upon contemporary
leisure, with spacious reception rooms and tall, curved practice. The most serious and lastingly influential of
bays, from which elegant windows opened onto these revivals was that of Greek styles and motifs,
balconies and verandas, enjoyed a well-deserved vogue. which joined the more familiar Roman forms and
Similarly, houses in inland areas which commanded details in the Neo-classical repertoire. The purity of
pleasing prospects were, it seems, more or less planned Greek architecture gave an unsurpassed austerity to the
around their fenestration. final phase of Georgian classicism. However, a Byronic
Changes in taste in the fine arts and literature toward love of the exotic and dramatic is a strong thread
172 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
running right through the story of Regency taste, and w ay, but also began to be treated with a new-found
many forms of "Fancy" architecture and decoration respect and archaeological strictness when its appro-
enjoyed either brief or more long-lived popularity. Chi- priateness for religious or institutional uses started to
noiserie was given the Royal imprimatur by the be explored. It is a development which presages the
Pavilion at Brighton (1815-23), but the Egyptian and increasing seriousness w hich came over English
Turkish styles also had their day. Gothic, which had building from the 1830s onward, weighing down the
been intermittently popular as a style for frivolous essential lightness of touch of the great Regency archi-
building since the 17 40s, continued to be used in this tects and designers with a new and ponderous gravitas.
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 173
Doors
he front door remains the principal decorative doors themselves are richer and more inventive, with
T feature on the facade of the English town house,
but the elements are usually confined within the limits
reeded mouldings defining geometric panelling, or with
studs, in imitation of Ancient Greek or Roman forms .
of the door void (opening), which is defined by a brick Most doors were painted black or bronze-green.
or stucco arch. Elaborate architectural doorcases give Internal doors follow a four- or six-panel division,
way to plainer entrances in which pilasters or stylized with crisp, attenuated panel mouldings. Surrounds are
console brackets flank the door. Shallow porches, wide and shallow. In grand houses the doorcases some-
unfashionable since the mid-18th century, enjoyed a times have an architectural head in the Neo-Grecian
return to vogue: they are supported on scrolled brackets taste or details in one of the "Fancy" styles of the day:
and often have classical details on the architrave. Also Gothic, Chinoiserie or Egyptian. A notable feature was
popular were deeper porches with lead or copper roofs the introduction of tall double doors into ordinary
in "pagoda" forms. Fanlights/transom lights are less houses. These would divide front and back reception
extravagant than those of the 1790s; by contrast, the rooms on the ground floor and the floor above.
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 175
4
V>
c<:
0
0
Q
(j) A street door, c.1825, with aush panels at the bottom. details on the door are in the revivalists favoured the late
fiuted quarter-columns set in 0 A reeded door-arch with Greek Revival style. Perpendicular style. This door
sylayed jambs below a simple typical roundels enclosing an Q) A decorative panelled door from Clifion Place, Brighton,
fanlight. The door, made to elaborate fanlight and door, in a plain door-arch, c.1820. has both good-quality
resemble a narrow pair, has c.1810. 1he anthemion leaf @ The Regency Gothic stonework and intricate joinery.
Q) Aporchwithapanelof
anthemion ornament, c.1820.
8~M
~ ' ~
1
~~~ : ,
~-~
running patterns and architrave
ornaments used on doorcases
and porches. NN
'1
'.
Q)A well-proportioned internal door. It has narrow. The doors are ~ush, without raised very popular in this period This is a very
six panels and a reeded frame with corner or sunken panels, and are made of gg_od example ofthe desired ef(ea. cv
blocks. The door is made from sofrwood with mahogany with decorative dark bands. UF () A curved internal door at Dickens'
a wood-grained faint {tnish. KH Q)A detail ofa typical internal door with a House, London. The wide, ~at architrave
@A {tne pair of tall double doors dividing mortice lock and brass door knobs and key pro(tles echo the shallow (telded panels
the drawing rooms in Sir john Soane's escutcheons. Extravasant wood-graining to which are edged with a quirk mould (a V-
house, London. The frame is very plain and imitate rosewood or flame-mahogany was shaped incision). DK
177
(!)to@Four
influenced b street doors, ornamentedd
c.1815i and aod from Brighton,
rdeas about rhN:tclassica/ central roundel ;or wrth a
ancients A B e hoors of the ff!,rk, London, /~~1R2egent's
c.181 oi .a Ba;ffdton door,
rosettes in coa;
11ersioor wah
a richly
\.U Typrca/ 1:
mouldings ::o rles ofdoor stiles
panels. '
@A
basedwrought -rron fanlrg ht l"'
on concentric gn te,
rectangu Ia ~ a,rcs, c.181 0.
r:7\
\.U A
transom light r{t rghtl
The curled ba:J5 eaded panes.
colouredg/a55. are ofien of
A star-patte
Clifion r,
Brist I rn ,anlight from
' o, c.1815
An mternal
witharu
d
oorof1815
nnrngp
architrave and attern on the
@ An internal drner roundels.
superlative des. oorcase of
shallow ped" rgn, wrth a
acrotenons /ment and
r.ieces) and /ornamental end-
@ A d. ron-mask boss
ragram of ..b es.
tting and con l
fi1825. NN cea e;dr rndoor, ~ush
the wall'
Windows
he 18th-century ideals of uniformity and regularity quently of red or other coloured glass.
T continue to govern the fenestration of Regency
Britain. Proportions, at their most mannered in the years
New notions of charm and grace led to the wide-
spread use of full-length French doors, leading into
around 1800, gradually become less extreme towards flower gardens at the rear of both town and country
the 1830s, although very elongated drawing-room win- houses. Houses with fine views often have very sophis-
dows on the floor above the entrance level are one of the ticated bow windows with wood or ironwork verandas.
chief delights of houses of the period. This taste for Window shutters were still almost universal during
refined forms is reflected, too, in the attenuation of the this period, and the contemporary pattern books vied to
glazing bars, thinner at this time than in any other period illustrate an ever-increasing variety of ingenious systems.
and characterized by sharp and often complex profiles. Rising or sliding panels remained rare; the standard fold-
From about 1815 the conventional glazing of sashes or ing multi-leaf type, fitted in either flush or canted boxes,
casements in plain squares,was oft~n varied by the addi- continued until shutters began to fall out of use in the
tion of narrow edges or "margin-lights"; these were fre- later 1840s.
- - - - -- - -- - -- -
~
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 179
1 2
4
~,--
------,
~
N JO .
Ern
@ Typical astragal (glazin 0 An elevation, plan and
ba~ profiles from the early 19th section of one of the standard
century. NN arrangements of shutters for a
large double-hung sash
7
" I -
8
window. The shutters fold back
into shutter boxes in splayed
~ 0
l reveals. YS
U',II A detailed diagrammatic
representation of the
arrangements offoldi~
0 ;oil I
01 shutters, usual in the ftrst half of
the 19th century. The plate is
CD The classic town house ofthe period 1815- 0 Raised ground-floor garden fronts or Q) The drawing room of Sir john Soane's
35 has two or three full-length sash windows facades fadng pleasing prospects were often house, London. The original building had
to the front drawing room, which would be provided with full-length casements which full-length windows which opened out onto
found on the floor above the entrance level at opened onto a balcony or terrace. A folding a loggia. He added glass to the loggia in
this date. The cast-iron balcony is a standard sun blind/shade with a decorative fascia is 1832 and removed the original windows to
mass-produced pattern. ~tted into the window head. increase the size of the room. LIF
4 6
@ Full-length casements or French doors to CD A garden door of the 1820s at j ohn @ A bow window ofa type popular in the
a garden, c.1820. The margin lights, once Keats' House, Hampstead, London. It is late 18th/early 19th centuries in country
gfazed in coloured glass, were thought to provided with shutters set in shallow, towns and seaside areas. This example is
add charm to the view. M splayed boxes and retains rare coloured and from Christchurch, Dorset. SP
acid-etched glass in the margin lights. KH
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 181
Walls
ritish architects and builders of the Regency period silk and other fabrics remained a conspicuous luxury.
B were the last generation who automatically sub-
scribed to the architectural rules for the division of the
Themes based on carefully detailed architectural
forms in either a generalized classical manner or in the
wall into cornice, field and dado - a set of rules of pro- fashionable Neo-Grecian taste were carried out either
portion which ultimately derives from the five classical in relief or as painted trompe l'oeil effects. Contempo-
Orders. Throughout the period, in houses of any pre- rary pattern books featured colour plates illustrating
tension to grandeur, correct detailing of the cornice, whole walls. Designs based on the surviving wall paint-
dado rail and skirting board/baseboard is observed. Dec- ings at Pompeii, first excavated in the mid-18th century,
orative emphasis will usually be in the area of the main enjoyed a particular vogue, but many other exotic or
field, whether it is treated with plain or fancy plaster- historical styles provided inspiration. Among these
w ork, painted with a flat coat of paint or specialist paint- fancy styles, rooms in the Chinese, Turkish, Egyptian
work, or hung with wallpapers. These last became far or Gothic tastes were quite common; sadly, few of
more popular and widely available during this period; these survive.
182 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
Ceilings
(!) Plasterwork roses/medallions palmette pattern from a Regency formal Creek pattern and a room as the last rose/medallion.
increasingly became the only scheme at Belvoir Castle, more sinuous leafdesign. 0 A coffered arch, c.1820.
decorative element on the Nottinghamshire. The others are 0 A plasterwork cornice with Each compartment is cast with
ceiling. The first here is a rich from Bath, c.1830, and show a Creek motifs, from the same egg-and-dart mouldings.
2 - - - -
6
~.
~
_/
@A diaper cornice (one with mouldings with Creek elements cast-iron ornaments, these from classical precedents:
an all-over pattern of small (!om Befvoir Castle. designs were adapted readily to lozenges with a formal flower
repeated motifs) in the French @Part of a page of"roses" plasterwork. SF device alternate with panels of
taste by john Nash. From a and other floral motifs 0 A typical cornice detail of the ''guttae" (small projections,
house in Carlton House published by LN. Cottingham period 1800-1830. The motifs, usually seen on Doric
Terrace, Stjames's, London, in his very influential Smith which would have been crisper architraves). From Charles
1827-32. and Founder's Director of before layers of pai11t began to Dickens' house in Doughty
Q) Plasterwork cornice 1824. Primanly intended as obsure their detail, are derived Street, London. DK
. ---
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 185
Floors
~
0
0
<i
ooden planks laid across joists remained the stan- ing well beyond the mid-19th century. The favoured
W dard flooring for most stories of most houses .
Deal (fir or pine) boards, stained, polished, or even
motifs derived from archaeological sources and often
included words such as Salve (welcome).
painted and varnished were the norm; the use of better The variety of carpets available to even more modest
timbers or parquetry and inlay work in the French taste purses increased enormously. English-made "Turkey"
was confined to the very richest of rooms. and other traditional patterned, pile rugs and carpets
Grander town houses and some on a more modest competed with looped-weave and flat "Brussels" types.
scale continued to have stone-flagged entrance halls. Less expensive pileless or "Scotch" carpeting and
Stone was considered the most appropriate material for druggets were also popular. The most fashionable inte-
kitchens and basement areas in terraced/ row houses riors were now laid with all-over patterned wall-to-w all
and for the service areas of village or country houses. carpeting (stitched from narrow widths) or "body-and-
Several of the pattern books of the period give designs border" carpets, which were made up from convention-
for mosaic floors for halls; these enjoyed a vogue last- ally woven strips to fit the architecture exactly.
186 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
0 Common deal (fir or pine) @ A design of 1820-30 by polished paste of marble dust Goldicutt's Specimens of
floorboards are typical ofall james White for an elaborate with plaster and coloun.ng) Ancient Decorations from
stories ofordinary houses. border ofparquetry work which imitated inlaid marble. Burghley Pompeii, 1825. These could be
Narrower than in the 18th would have surrounded a carpet House, Stamford, Lincolnshire, adapted to fit a given space.
century, the average width is s_eecially woven to size. c. 1801-1803. The "SALVE" (welcome) panel
7-9 inches (18 - 23cm). (:D Scagliola (a hardened and @ Mosaic panels from john was for an entrance hall. JG
3 4 5
y: ...... ~
r. ~
r. ...~
Y.~
,.
-.~r.
I."''
Fireplaces
n comparison w ith 18th-century types, Regency fire- were preferred, w hile more extravagant designs occa-
Iprofile.
place surrounds became simpler both in outline and
Flat jambs rising from plain, squared base blocks
sionally introduced luxurious materials such as por-
phyry or other rare, coloured marbles. In more modest
support straight lintels which are also flat-surfaced. The houses, surrounds are wood, often painted in imitation
most characteristic type of the period has attenuated of marble, or ornamented with composition (amalgams
reeded"decoration along the members and comer tablets that incorporated paper or wood pulp, whiting and glue
w ith roundels. The mantel shelf, now a distinctly sep- which could be moulded and set to a hard finish).
arate thin shelf, often with a reeded edge, grad'.lally Steel grates became rare other than in the very finest
increases in depth and projects further at the sides; its rooms, and the manufacturers of cast iron, such as the
greater dimensions were influenced by the increased Carron Company, supplied almost every need. Elegant
availability of mantel-docks and other paraphernalia hob grates continued in fashion, but the better perfor-
such as candlesticks and candle-shades. Creamy-white mance of the newer register grates had made these all
statuary marble or lightly veined grey or white marble but universal, certainly in the towns, by the later 1820s.
188 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
2 ~
3~
I~ r
1 2 mlll-=<~-~~~e:.>~~:ell~ 3
:-:-.-:. _- _. _
*~ I
i
1~1 I
-~ ~:0,
~ e "i
rl
~ @ ~
~
4 The ~replaces ofsmart Regency grate from RudolfAckermann's
drawing rooms were Repository of Arts, Literature,
complemented by overmantel Fashions Etc., early 19th century.
mirrors. The unity ofthe motifs and
Q) A standard reeded surround ample proportions are typical of
with an en suite mirror; it has grand drawing room ~replaces.
standard corner roundels. The surround is of black marble
@ A surround with Greek and and the grate of steel; all the
Egyptian elements, topped with mounts are gilded. AK
q_[5ilded mirror frame, c.181 0. 0) This example features an
(2) A subtle design in which the "improved" ~replace opening
French-inspired arch of the wtth canted srdes to mcrease
mantel is echoed by the shape of burning efficiency. AK
the mirror frame. From T Hope's @ From Ackermann, an
Deepdene, Surrey, c.1806-20. Egyptian ensemble ofgreat
@ A chimneypiece and matching grandeur. AK
5
190 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
(J) A surround ofpale, veined A cast-iron hob grate: the Q) A simple, rather pretty @ The idiosyncratic Sir john
marble from a house in St restrained type ofthe 1820s surround in the Gothic Revival Soane designed this surround in
Chad's Street, King's Cross, and 30s. The gentle curve of the style ofthe 1830s. (The inset black fossiliferous (containing
London. The wide jambs and fire-bars with three balls is bn"ck arch is later and the gas fossils) marble with inset
heavy scrolled brackets gained related to chair-backs of the fire dates from the 1920s.) cv classical reliefs for the breakfast
populan"ty in the 1830s. cv day. GV room of his house, 1812. UF
3 4
Staircases
u
""''III
r I
I '"' ! ;:;
;:;r
I
~
>~
\ - ~ !
~
A ~
r _v 2
t'::
~ ..........
~ Ill I
I
194 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
Built-in furniture
1
...
. .. ......
.... ..
......... .. ..
... ..
Q)An engraving showing a variety of built-in London, had built-in seats and shelving. HF by john Britton, 1837. A typical Regency use
shelves in a Neo-Grecian taste. This is one of 0 A built-in cupboard, c.1820-30. The oia library as a family sitting room. CP
the three rooms fitted out c.1807 by Thomas central door is pierced to allow ventilation for 0 Wine-cellar shelving: this is one ofseveral
Hope for his collection ofancient vases. Other linen stored inside. service areas which changed very little from
rooms ofthis house in Duchess Street, Q) The library at Cassiobury Park, drawn the 18th until the late 19th century. KH
n marked contrast to the taste of subsequent eras, writing flap or even a built-in bureau.
Icoupled
austerity was admired during the Regency; this,
with a general paucity of personal possessions
In grander houses the library had built-in bookcases,
usually of an architectural character. During this period
by modern standards, meant that there was relatively the library tended to become one of the most used
little need for storage space in the houses of the period. family rooms in the house. More artistically minded
Cupboards are few, especially in town houses. Shallow gentlemen such as Thomas Hope or Sir John Soane also
cupboards about 12-15 inches (30-38cm) deep, with had elaborate built-in pieces made for the reception and
panelled doors , were sometimes fitted in the recesses display of their collections of antiquities; these two
that flank fireplaces in bedrooms. These were provided favoured a classical idiom, while others preferred
with pegs for clothes that wculd be hung flat rather Gothic detail for libraries and private museums.
than edge-on, as is the practice today. Similarly, on the The built-in furniture of servants' areas such as
main floors, recesses held built-in china cupboards and kitchens and housekeepers' rooms remained as plain
bookcases which sometimes incorporated a small and utilitarian as it had been in the 18th century.
196 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
Services
([) A rainwater hopper @A st011e kitchen sink,
2
head/leader head of cast lea4 hollowed from a single slab and
with personal initials and the supported on substantial brick
date of completion, 1811. piers. It is supplied with cold
0 A rare sutvival of the water from a tap/faucet and
1820s: a "copper'~ a large drains to an exterior gully The
vessel built into a brick hearth, lead pipes have "wiped' jointsi
the standard method of heating that is, bulbous soldered
water throughout the period. connections.
Note the wooden lid to consetve CD An illustration and working
heat. DK. diagram of the earth closet,
Q) A sink could be made from which continued to be common
sheet lead dressed over a in areas without a plentiful
wooden box-shaped water supply and public sewers.
frameworki this required "Privies" were sited as far from
strongly dovetailed corners. _ the house as possible. SB
5 4
n all -essential respects, the services in most British mentary provision, or none at all, in slum areas charac-
Icentury.
houses changed little from those of the late 18th
There was a slow improvement in the
terizes the system of drainage in the period. As before,
storm water flowed through gutters and pipes into
provision of water, mainly owing to the gradual storage tanks or to soak-aways. A greater problem was
replacement of wooden pipes with iron ones. These posed by the increasing volume of sewage in towns and
leaked less and could sustain a higher water-pressure, cities, which threatened to overwhelm such sewers as
which allowed water to reach taps above ground level. existed; these problems were only addressed by civil
The frequency of supply improved greatly in fashion- engineers in Queen Victoria's reign.
able quarters of cities and many larger towns, and In the average house the kitchen still had a single
became constant in the best streets in London. water tap/faucet, fed by public supply or tank water;
Elsewhere, notably in poor areas, a single outlet often this was positioned near the shallow stone or lead sink.
served many households. A "copper" was used for heating water as required, for
A similar pattern of good services for the rich and rudi- cooking and washing.
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 197
Lighting
CD A candle-lantern
incorporated into a fanlight.
From Bristol, 1800-10.
A (rne crystal chandelier,
c.1815, hung with diamond-
shaped drops.
to Designs for exterior
and interior light (rxtures from
L. N. Cottingham's Smith and
Founder's Director, 1824.
The (rrst is a bracket-lamp for a
grand facade; the second is a
hanging oil/amp based on
classical sources and suitable for
a hallway; another hall/amp is
~anked by srand exterior lamp
standards, for oil, or later, gas
lighting; the last is a staircase
standard - note the two
designs for cast-iron
balustrading. SF
lJ
ne of the first houses in Britain to be lit by supported on brackets or on standards at the foot of z
O gas was Abbotsford in Roxburgh, Scotland, the
mansion of the Romantic novelist Sir Walter Scott.
staircases. The variety of designs increased enor-
mously, as is seen in contemporary pattern books.
~
lJ
:::;
The lighting was installed in 1823. Such extravagance In more modest houses candle-lanterns fulfilled a
remained very rare until later in the 19th century. The similar function.
Regency in general saw the transition from The colza-burning Argand lamp (see page 166) was
candlelight and crude oil-burning lamps to improved freestanding . Its bright light transformed social
oil lamps, mainly invented in Continental Europe. patterns . However, candle sconces remained the
These were brighter and cleaner and used whale or essential lighting fixtures, and also played an
colza oil (rape-seed oil) which smelled less than important decorative role in the Regency interior.
animal fats . These oil lamps, often based upon In more modest dwellings and on the bedroom
antique models, were popular for halls and entrances floors of smart houses hand-held chamber sticks and
of grand houses, where they hung by chains or were simple brackets remained the norm.
198 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
Metalwork
ne of the chief glories of Regency Britain is its the later 18th and early 19th centuries. Though in a
0 ironwork, which gives such a distinctive feel to
the facades of terraces/ rows and villas of the period.
sense standardized, the range of the castings bought
"off the peg" by builders is enormous, and regional vari-
By this date cast iron had almost completely super- ations or even preferences for particular patterns within
seded wrought work, which is found only in special small districts are observable. For example: balcony
cases such as the individually shaped handrails for area patterns are very distinctive and a particular "cake
steps. These had to be hammered to fit the needs of basket" form is popular on the south coast, classical
the staircase. The rest, including most railings for patterns predominate in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire,
entrance steps and boundary fencing, light brackets, and a small repeating Gothic design is prevalent in
balconies, with their rails and brackets, and even vast Islington and other London areas . Nearly all the
multi-arched verandas, are all the work of foundries , common designs occur in one pattern book of the
great and small. These sprang up in the north of period, the architect Lewis Nockalls Cottingham's The
England and also in Kent in southeast England during Smith and Founder's Director, first published in 1824.
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 199
@A typical gate to area steps. London, c.1815-25. 30. The first and second groups
From Clifton, Bristol. @An elaborate iron entrance have Greek overtones. The
@ Geometric cast-iron fencing gg_te from York, c.1830. central"bud'~ urn and acorn
from Camberwell New Road, ~Typical finial forms, 1810- would punctuate the mn.
10
) -
-<;
G\.. =
13
200 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1 837
0 An elaborate veranda, roof was popular. AA the most widespread ofall Q) Designs from].B.
similar to a design of 1818 by 0 A bafcony in Clifton, Bristol, Regency patterns - a Gothic Papworth's Rural Residences,
Papworth. The pagoda form c.1820. The rail features one of arch and quatrefoil. SP 1818 for ornamental railings in
iron. These would be found 011
3 grand estates with parks. Note
the gilded details. RR
. . ------ -~-
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 201
' I
~l'.llt,.'lt:"ll.
"""'~~
~
11: 'It'
:"'t :I(
~
~ ~
1'111
=-::
;)~(!)(
*
~ '*lJII
:~ ~
I
~~w m
~
~~
lf I~ )I! XJ11
- - -- - -----
202 REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 1811-1837
Woodwork
E7./TRA 1\' CE
GAJ:'ES
L ILLUlf!
Designs for entrance gates, freld the occupant of the house and
sates and formal and rustic owner of the land were ofren
fencing. From]. Plaw's Ferme added to gates, as seen in the
Omee, 1795. The initials of top two tllustrattons. ]P
efore the 18th century, decorative woodwork was the enhancement of country estates, the pretty wood-
B used extensively on the facades of British houses. The
building regulations of the Georgian period increasingly
work fences, gates and cottage details, such as porches
of twig- or fret-work, were rapidly adopted for small-
forbade the use of wooden doorcases, cornices and other town and suburban villas. Some of the designs of these
elements which would fuel a fire. These had to be made garden-orientated architects seem also to have been
of brick or stone. Also, with the growing availability of taken up in grander town houses, where it became fash-
cast-iron fixtures in the late 18th century, woodwork ionable for the first time to enhance backyards or gar-
ceased to mark property boundaries to town houses. dens with trellis-work, tiered stands for pot plants and
Woodwork detailing remained rather out of fashion in other charming features. It is to these Regency ideals of
smart buildings until architects and garden designers such rus in urbe ("the country in the city") and to the associ-
as J.B. Papworth and Humphry Repton introduced a new ated designs for rustic woodwork that we may trace
taste for the picturesque and rustic at the beginning of many of the intellectual and aesthetic origins of more
the 19th century. Initially intended for the most part for modem concepts of suburbia.
REGENCY AND EARLY 19TH CENTURY 203
8 9
204
A !though English architects after 1760 were design- Island, and in other cities built houses that still reflected
.1""\.ing new structures in the Neo-classical manner, earlier Georgian tastes. However, some leaders of the
American builders did not adopt this style to any new Republic were looking for an architecture that was
advanced degree before the Revolution began in 1775. philosophically appropriate for the nation. Many ap-
The "Neo-classical" movement was the reinterpretation plauded the work of Robert and James Adam and their
of classical architecture. Ponderous Palladian elements followers in England as a suitable model, while others,
derived from Roman public buildings were abandoned; venerating simple and utilitarian ideals, searched for a
inspiration instead came from recent archaeological style more related to Continental European versions of
finds, particularly of Roman domestic buildings. A few Neo-classicism and Classical Revivalism.
new dwellings planned in the 1770s indicate some trans- The Federal or "Adamesque" style became familiar by
lation of English Neo-classicism in certain details, but the end of the 1780s. This architecture achieved elegance
economic downturns in certain Colonies, as well as a through attenuated forms , curved or elliptical features
colonial conservatism which often venerated the "neat and sophistication of detail: polygonal or curvilinear
and plain" in buildings, prevented acceptance of the bays, concealed hipped roofs behind balustrades, elon-
movement until after 1782. As late as the early 19th cen- gated windows with large panes and thin glazing bars,
tury, an important English emigre architect in the United decorated cornices, and entry porches with thin, tapered
States, Benjamin Henry Latrobe (1764-1820), complained columns in the "ancient taste". Rooms tended to be open
about the craftsmen who were still tied to the traditional and airy, with occasional use of oval shapes on walls,
styles of the early Georgian period. vaulted or shaped ceilings, and flat plaster walls deco-
After 1783 and the conclusion of the American Revo- rated by en suite fireplace surrounds, door surrounds,
lution, some wealthy merchants in Providence, Rhode dadoes and cornices. Grand rooms were often further
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 205
embellished by ornamental plaster ceilings, and wall- and John McComb (1758-1853) in New York. Know-
papers with festoon borders. The Adam brothers' work ledgeable patrons pressed for the Neo-classical style
was translated to the United States largely through the when remodelling earlier houses, George Washington's
pattern books of other designers, especially those of changes to Mount Vernon, Virginia, in the 1780s being a
William Pain, whose Practical House Carpenter (1766) and supreme example. New houses such as Gore Place in
Practical Builder (177 4) may not have reached the Colonies Waltham, Massachusetts, and terrace/row houses in
before the 1780s. The spread of this fashion was also Boston, particularly those designed by Bulfinch, reflected
related to the presence of newly arrived craftsmen from the new Federal taste.
England, and especially by the rise of the architect, A nearly concurrent movement in American architec-
replacing the predominance of the house carpenter of ture was the Classical Revival. This style, usually associ-
the previous generation. Regional and nationally promi- ated with Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), rejected the
nent designers included classically trained aristocrats Neo-classicism of the Adam brothers, and looked to
such as Charles Bulfinch (1763-1844) in Boston and French models and to renewed inspiration from Palladia
Gabriel Manigault (1758-1809) in Charleston, and forrner and Roman public buildings. Immigrant architects who
craftsmen, such as Samuel Mcintire (1757 -1811) in Salem were familiar with the later English Neo-classicism were
206 FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 1780-1850
encouraged by Jefferson; young students such as Robert on Federal architecture, but Benjamin's work kept
Mills (1781-1855) of South Carolina and William Strick- pace w ith the times in a series of revisions. The Builders
land (1788-1854) of Philadelphia also began their careers Assistant (1819), a pattern book by John Haviland (1792-
under Jefferson's aegis. At least one English architect 1852), was an early attempt to adapt Greek forms to
practising in the United States, however, pursued a purer construction needs.
version of the English Regency- William Jay (1793-1837) Houses of the Greek Revival movement reflected the
in Savannah, Georgia. view that the real or imagined Greek temple was the
The movement presaged an American classicism of a most perfect creation. They were block-like buildings,
more robust sort which relied more on form than applied with low hipped or temple-form gable roofs, and usu-
detailing. The houses feature round or lunette windows, ally featured porticoes of single or double height with
fanlights/ transom lights, and prominent one- or two- columns of various Orders, including Doric and espe-
story porticoes . They reflect a classicism of a unique cially Ionic with oversized capitals. Detailing, particu-
type, sometimes termed Roman Revival but actually a larly on masonry examples, could be rather austere: wide
little more individualistic than this would suggest; fol- cornice trims and some door and window surrounds
lowers were versatile enough to eventually embrace the were decorated in the Greek manner with anthemions
Greek Revival movement as well. (honeysuckle), key frets , or egg-and-dart mouldings.
Enthusiasm for the simple elegance and monumental- Windows and fanlights / transom lights were no longer
ity of Greek remains in Italy inspired the Greek Revival rounded but square or rectangular. Townhouse forms
movement, although detractors deplored the emphasis were particularly dependent on columnar door sur-
on the Greek temple form. Early practitioners who rounds and entablatures for decoration. Uniform brick-
admired the simplicity and functionalism of the style work with clean, narrow joints, and stone for lintels and
included the English architect George Hadfield (c.1764- steps added to the handsome simplicity. Inside, the same
1826), and native American architects such as William decorative devices were applied. Wainscotting was no
Strickland, Ithiel Town (1784-1844) and Thomas U. longer used but decorative papers, carpets and furniture
Walter (1804-87). This period marked the real emergence contrasted with the simplicity of architectural ornamen-
of the influence of American rather than English pattern tation in door surrounds, ceiling decoration and fireplace
books. The earliest of these, such as The Young Carpen- surrounds. The Greek Revival style was still favoured by
ters Assistant (1805) by Owen Biddle, and Modern Builders some prominent patrons until the 1850s, and later still in
Guide (1797) by Asher Benjamin (1773-1845), were based vernacular buildings.
- - - - --- -
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 207
Doors
Istylenprovides
a Federal or Adamesque house the entrance door
the main emphasis of the facade. In a high-
house the addition of a semi-circular or elliptical
Interior doors are frequently grained to look_ like
mahogany. Neo-classical door casings are decorated
with wooden tracery and applied stuccowork.
fanlight derived from pattern books identifies the build- Before the end of the Federal period most doors were
ing as Classical Revival or Adamesque. Federal door- six-panelled, sometimes with ovolo mouldings. How-
ways are often framed by pilasters and surrounded by ever, Greek Revival doors were usually of the two- or
delicate wood carvings of oval paterae and classical four-panelled forrn which became standardized through
motifs. In terrace/row houses the door architrave might the pattern books of Asher Benjamin and Minard
serve as the only exterior ornamentation. Porticoes of Lafev-er. Exterior door mouldings, which became heav-
large houses gradually increased in size; in the South ier, featured classical motifs; pilasters supported a simple
they eventually took the forrn of multi-storied galleries. entablature or plain lintel with corner blocks and a cen-
Exterior and interior doors are usually made of pine, tral panel. Internal doorcases were framed by flat Doric
with some regional use of maple, poplar and cypress. pilasters, with classical mouldings in grander houses.
208 FEDERALAND EMPIRE 1780-1850
(]) Two late 18th-century doors. are suggested as architrave from Minard Lafever's The An elliptical Corinthian-
The (rrst from c.1790 illustrates decorations for the second. WPB Modem Builder's Guide, columned portico designed by
the transition from Colonial An ornamented doorway 1833. MUB Samuel Mclmire in1805.
Georgian to Neo-classical. The with elliptical fanlight and stde (j) An early 19th-century A two-tiered porch featuring
~
second is similar but its . !tts with tracery, c.1809. Classical Revival temple-front anachronistic Chinese
delicately fluted pilasters An early Classical Revival doorway. Tuscan columns Chippendale railings and plain
support a broken pediment; the on11ay. The fanlight is semi- support an entablature columns, 1803.
oval paterae are distinctly Neo- circular; the spokes are elegant surmounted by a pediment @) The classic Greek temple
classical in style. but less attenuated than which is decorated with a Greek front: four Ionic columns support
0 Two patterns from William Adamesque fonns, c.1817 fret. a fidl entablature.
Pain's The Practical Builder, Q) A Greek Revival door
1774. Ionic columns suprort the framed by Ionic columns,
broken pediment ofthe ftrst c.1830.
design; a volute and a console @An eight-panelled front door
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 209
(J) The entrance door to the
1 Old lvierchant's House, New
York, 1832. Classical Revival ~
0
features include Ionic columns, 0
stone quoins and keystone, a
boldly spoked fanlight, and
the detailing on the architrave.
OM
3 5
..
with typical H-L hinges and a
box lock. NR
-------
Shown from the interior, this -
fanlight surmounting the I
[][]
n
(J) The ornately decorated
pilasters and head of this door, Builder's Guide, 1833. An
c.1800, would have matched the elaborate frieze decorates the
other elements in the room. head, and rosettes are featured
A fine Adamesque doorway, on the surround. WP, MUB
c.1816, with gougework, rope CD A swan-necked pediment
moulding ornamental corner surmounts this early 19th-
blocks and a central fluted centul)l doorway.
P.atera on the doorhead. (6) to Three 19th-century
Q) and@ Examples ofpattern doorhead details. The first has
book doorways. The late 18th- fluted pilasters and paterae. The
century doorway (lefr) was 0 second has similar pilasters and
designed by William Pain and is decorated with swags and a
features classical swags, a central urn. The third example is
central urn and console brackets. a Greek Revival design from
The Greek Revival doorway on Lafever's Beauties of Modern
the right is from Minard Architecture, 1835.
Lafever's The Modern A simple two-section exterior
wooden door, c.1790, which is a
late example ofa Colonial style.
@A typical two-panelled
12 Greek Revival parlour door.
Internal door shutters, 1820s,
which folded back into the
surround when not in use.
(12) Late 18th-/early 19th-century
door knockers. The first is cast-
iron; the other two are brass and
incorporate thfeopular eagle
and shell moti s.
@A silver-p ated door knob
and escutcheon plate from a
Greek Revival house.
@A cast-iron thumb latch of the
type used in service areas well
into the 19th century.
A t)!pical H-hinge.
15 0 0
' : @ to (!) Two spring locks and a
box lock; both types were in use
from the late 18th to the early
0 0
19th century.
-- ----------------------------------------------------- - -- ----
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 211
Windows :2
0
0
0
everal features distinguish Federal windows from to-ceiling windows, opening on to balconies; the detail-
S those of the preceding Colonial period. Glazing bars
are thinner with ovolo-shaped profiles; glass panes are
ing of elaborate interior surrounds matches that of the
doors and fireplace . Late 18th-century Palladian win-
larger; and window heads (often with a central key- dows have delicately moulded pilasters and fanlight
stone), made from marble, stone or wood, are flat. tracery. Semi-circular and oval windows are used on the
Entablatures may include delicate Adamesque decora- upper stories. Dormer windows are generally gabled or
tion. The nine-over-nine configuration of panes pre- pedirnented. A feature of early Jeffersonian classicism is
dominated in many areas until the early 19th century the use of round and semi-circular lunette windows. As
when it was gradually replaced by six-over-six double the style progresses to full Greek Revival, window
sashes, and sometimes triple sashes. forms become simpler: for example, Palladian windows
Adamesque architrave detailing is minimal; however, evolve into rectangular tripartite forms. Lintels are plain,
some windows are set in recessed arches for added a simple central panel and comer blocks being the only
interest. In grand houses main floors often have floor- embellishment. French doors remain popular.
212 FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 1780-1850
\ ~ I
1 3
rEF
1 I
_.&,
~ Alii\\
~ ------=;r
~-
6 8
ui ;~
IQi [g]
r-- r--
i=== I==
~ii~ r==
i====
i====
I==
I==
~i ~ i====
F==
I==
F==
uI
i==
.____ ~
~
;;;;;
- '==
=~ ~~==
11
(D A typical classical six-over- relieving arch, and a stone or cresting on the architrave. The
six sash window with a stone or stucco lintel with a central second is a~ood example of
stucco window head. It could keystone. The third is a 19th- Thomas]e erson's Roman
have louvered shutters. century flat-headed example. Revival stye (c.1817). Note the elaborate arched surround with
A window design from Asher @ A Venetian or Palladian triple sash, lack ofarchitrave a keystone and capped by a
Benjamin's The Architect, or window, c.1800. Note the mouldings and semi-circular broken-bed pediment.
Practical House Carpenter, attenuation of the mouldings fanlight and keystone. The third @ Three window architraves,
1830. Note the thin side ponions compared with Colonial example, French doors {1838}, 1820-40. The top example is
ofthe surround, and the plain windows. has a Greek Revival surround Neo-classical in style, and the
central panel with Greek key (D A Neo-classical tripanite ~Jpical of this time. other two Greek Revival.
motifs. window with louvered shutters. (V A late 18th-century @ The constmction of a sash
0 three Federal window @ to Three floor-length pedimented dormer window frame and shutter, from Asher
heads. The top and mtddle windows. The first, witFz interior with louvered shutters. Benjamin's The Architect, or
examples are from the late 18th louvered shutters, is in the Greek @ From the same yeriod, a Practical Carpenter {1830). AB
century and show a segmental or Revival style (1830); note the detailed drawing for a more @A typical glazing bar profile.
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 213
Walls
1
(!)joseph Dufour's "Monuments ofParis" Ovolo moulding on the panels and a carved popular form of wainscot decoration. NR
paper was yrinted in 1815 and is a good guilloche enrichment at skirting board/ @ Typical of the Federal period, this
example of the popular French-imported baseboard level are typical features. AL hallway wallpaper (c.1810} features a
scenic wallpapers. cr Q) A gousework pattern (1808} created by variety ofNeo-classical architectural motifs.
Beading edges this wainscot, 1816. the use of a hollow bladed chisel. It was a The main colour is grey, in two shades. J1,1]
uring the Federal period the greatest change in wall imported from France. Dadoes and entablatures are
D treatment is the elimination of full panelling in fash-
ionable rooms, other than on fireplace walls. The wain-
decorated with gougework, carved foliage and frets,
together with Adamesque applied composition designs;
scot on the remaining walls is taken to dado level only. ancient motifs are featured on the early Classical Revival
The field between the dado and cornice is usually plain- walls . The panelling and composition work was often
plastered with a whitewash finish. painted, or grained to look like mahogany.
In the best houses the walls of the finest rooms would By the 1830s wainscotting generally had been elimi-
be papered. Until the end of the 18th century, wallpa- nated in favour of heavily moulded grained or mar-
pers were often plain but with elaborate festoon bor- bleized skirting boards/baseboards. Walls are painted in
ders at cornice level and around the wainscotting and terracotta, stone colours, deep pinks or grey, or are hung
doors. After 1800 wallpapers were floral or striped, and with wallpapers reflecting the interest in Greek Revival
geometric and Neo-classical motifs were common. architecture, with cornice friezes either left plain or dec-
Houses of the wealthy displayed scenic wallpapers orated with anthernions and key patterns.
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 215
(J) and 0 Two wall pattern
1 treatments. The first, (Tom
William Pain's Practical
House Carpenter, 1766,
shows Adamesque
interpretations ofNeo-classical
details. The lower example,
(Tom Minard Lafever's The
Modem Builder's Guide,
1833, shows the simplicity ofa
Greek Revival wall treatment.
WP,MUB
CD Four complete entablatures
showing cornice and fn'eze
decorations. The frrst (top lefr) is
a wooden arcaded cornice,
c.1818. The interlace and dentil
pattern (top right) closely
2 ..,.-:_:_ ----- -- ::P. ~~ 3 ============ resembles a version by William
-
Pain. On the frieze of the
~ of)~
t-"
I
(9
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example bottom lefr, c.1800, a
dentillated cornice surmounts
the stuccowork garlands. The
founh example is a Greek
Revival plaster treatment with
I
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egg-and-dan and anthemion
mouldings.
0 Chair rail mouldings with
gEUgework decoration.
I ] (i) Neo-classical wooden
lc::J
rmmiiD UllII !!!l!fUIT!IIIII 11111111IIIII
panelled dadoes with
~;~
gougework decoration on the
.J. C~J .. ~~ chair rails. Applied composition
~_L ~ fl mouldings decorate the pilasters
Ceilings
0 Neo-classical plasterwork at plaster decoration, including Nathaniel Russell House in From the same house, a
its most splendid. This ceiling urns, anthemions, garlands, Charleston. The house was built more elaborate cornice and
section from the entry hall at the rosettes and foliage. CB c.1808 but this decoration ceiling treatment includes bands
Gaillard-Bennett House, 0 A simple Greek Revival probably dates from a period of of beading and guilloche, with
Charleston, South Carolina, moulded cornice and fioral band minor alterations made to the fioral motifs set into geometric
c.1800, has an abundance of surround an oval ceiling at the interior in the 1850s. NR shapes. NR
2 3
uring the Federal period simple houses had boarded in a strong colour and the plaster enrichments were
D ceilings which w ere usually w hitewashed; mid-
dling houses had flat-plastered ceilings; and grander
picked out in white paint or occasionally gilt. English
fashion encouraged a taste for segmented ceilings. In
houses progressed from plain flat plaster to English- the Greek Revival period, grand houses would some-
influenced decorative plasterwork. As new technology times have coffered ceiling divisions in one room and a
spread these ceilings were decorated with leaves, swags, dome in another. Less elaborate houses would have a
garlands, sunbursts and other Neo-classical motifs. Dec- simple plaster roundel with inner concentric circles and
orations were made of lime-enriched plaster of Paris, a a flat plaster moulding bordering the room.
lime putty "stucco" or, in some cases, papier mache; Pattern books provided a variety of designs for ceiling
they were moulded on site (wet plaster was moulded roses/medallions and borders using guilloche, Greek key
with a template or stamped with dies) or were applied and other motifs. Greek Revival designs incorporated
ready-moulded to the ceiling. combinations of acanthus leaves, anthemions, rosettes
In the late 18th century, ceilings were often painted and sometimes a Greek key border.
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 217
Iii ii I!
8 0 Fret and guilloche patterns @English architect William the Gibbes House, Charleston,
from William Pain's The jays designed this Regency South Carolina, 1780. The
Practical Builder (1774). They ceiling at Savannah, Georgia, middle example dates from
were wrdely used for wood and 1819. His Neo-classical c.1824, and the third is from
P,laster ornamentation. WPB decoration is held to be South Carolina and is copied
Q) A ceiling design for plaster reminiscent of Sir john Soane's from Minard Lafever's Beauties
ornamentation from South work. of Modem Architecture,1835.
Carolina, c.1800. The fashion CD to 0 Three plaster ceiling Moulded plaster ornament
for segmented ceilings re~ected roses/medallions. The first with comer rosettes used as a
an English in~uence. predates the others and is from ceiling border, c.1815.
218 FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 1780-1850
Floors
CD A patterned carpet from the celebrated example at
Morris-fume! Mansion, New Monticello, Virginia, 1804.
York, 1820. The Greek Cherry was used to fonn the
anthemion moll{ is combined centra/ squares with beech for
with a late Neo-classical design. the borders.
Such wall-to-wall carpets, CD to 0 Three examples of
usually woven in stnps and designs for painted floorcloths
tacked to the floor, were which were popular both as
indications of prospen.ty. MJ protection for carpets and as
0 Tongue-and-groove pine summer floor coverings. The first
floorboards, c.1800. Such floors shows a marbleized illusionistic
were usually scrubbed and pattern, 1802. The second
bleached. GB example has a starred pattern
0 The border of this floor has a and dates from the early 19th
stencilled Greek Revival moll{ century. The third floorcloth was
New York, 1842. BW laid in a hallway and dates
(4) Parquet floors were rare. This from the first half of the 19th
design shows Thomas jefferson's century.
4 5 6 7
looring materials changed little between 1780 and Kitchens and servants' quarters usually have brick floors .
F 1840. In the New England states white pine was
often used until the end of the 18th century. Then there
Floor coverings became more plentiful and varied:
plain or dyed straw-matting was used. Painted canvas
was a gradual shift to the use of yellow pine which had floorcloths were stencilled or marbleized; they were
long been employed in the mid-Atlantic and southern sometimes used as a protection for a good carpet. For
states. In better houses floorboards are tongued-and- the wealthy, carpets became more available after 1790.
grooved; more modest houses have random-width Carpets, usually imported and patterned with scroll-
boards nailed to joists. Wooden floors were sometimes w ork, polygonal shapes or floral and Neo-classical
painted in diamond patterns or were stencilled; some motifs, were often laid wall-to-wall and tacked to the
floors w ere painted in solid colours. Parquet was rare. floor. After 1800 carpets increasingly reflected various
In the grandest houses, entry halls are often white Classical Revival styles with gold star and laurel wreath
marble or sometimes patterned with alternating white motifs; in the 1830s and 40s patterned rugs offered a
marble and blue stone; flag stones were also used. vivid contrast to the architectural austerity.
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 219
Fireplaces
he pattern book designs of the Adam brothers and Greek key motifs, were worked in white, grey or
T strongly influenced the transition from the Colonial
style of fireplace to the Neo-classical form. Moulded
black marble. The same forms and detailing were used
for wooden chirnneypieces.
urns, swags, garlands, paterae and figures are applied to Cast-iron liners were a feature of some fireplaces.
wooden surrounds and overrnantels. The central panel They were designed to radiate heat. The Franklin stove,
often includes a mythological scene. Plainer examples which often incorporated a grate with the liner, was in
feature gougework, with simple alternating patterns. common use by 1785, as were various types of British-
Imported marble fireplaces were restricted to the imported hob grates (Bath stoves).
wealthy and often featured engaged columns support- Iron andirons were used by the less wealthy and in
ing decorated entablatures. A less expensive treatment service areas; brass andirons, embellished with classical
was the use of marble slips in a wooden surround. By urns or spherical finials, were usual in grander houses.
the 1830s chirnneypieces became bolder in style. Clas- Cast-iron firebacks feature Neo-Classical patterns or
sical Revival features such as Ionic and Tuscan columns, sometimes the popular eagle motif.
220 FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 1780-1850
- - - -- - -- --- ------- -
222 FEDERALAND EMPIRE 1780 - 1850
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(!)A fine Neo-classical fireplace
u
and overmantel from Rhode
Island, 1780s: fluted pilasters,
Grecian urns and floral devices
are surmounted by a swan-neck
p_ediment.
Two overmantels from the @ Federal andirons. The top set classical example (centre right}
coastal Carolinas. The first has is made ofiron. The other features an urn finial, spur legs
carved fanwork, an oval panel examples are made of brass and and ball-and-cfaw Jeet, c.1800.
and applied composition iron. The Boston andiron (centre The robust "turned ' andiron
mouldings, 1786i the second has left) has ball finials set on {bottom left) contrasts with the
a bowed entablature supported pedestals, 1820-30. The Neo- attenuated example (right}.
by Tuscan columns and carved
wooden mouldings, 1818.
Q) A marble surround and
overmantel with carved Grecian
floral and acanthus leafdevices,
dating from the 1830s.
0 Two coal grates. The mid-
19th-century example on the left
developed from the Franklin
stove (c.1785) on the right.
CD Patriotic American motifs.
The 19th-century cast-iron and 0 A simple wooden surround
brass fireplace surround features frames this 19th-century brick
an eagle on the lintel and cheeksi fireplace. From a southern
the same emblem appears on the kitchen, unusually located in the
fireback {not to scale). cellar ofa house.
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 223
Staircases
1
traight, quarter-tum and dog-leg staircases were the decorating the stair-ends were plainer than those of the
S common form in the late 18th and early 19th cen-
turies. The pattern books of William Pain and others
Colonial period. In grander houses the balustrade would
be mahogany or, less usually, wrought iron which
introduced sweeping elliptical and circular main stair- would be in attenuated Neo-classical form . There are
cases to grander houses: these were often located in the rare instances of cantilevered stairs.
curvilinear or polygonal projections of houses. In Neo- Grand Greek Revival houses occasionally had double
classical architecture the staircase was a significant fea - staircases or generously proportioned single stairs which
ture of the entrance floor, whereas in Classical Revival rose from the entrance hall and were crowned by domes
houses it was considered a waste of space and was less or skylights. Separate servants' stairs led to the upper
prominently displayed. floors. Detailing generally was well-crafted but heavier:
In most houses simple turned or square balusters sup- turned or tapered balusters and handrails were thicker
ported a thin handrail; newels could be twisted or atten- and newels were heavily turned or decorated with acan-
uated columns or tapering square posts. The motifs thus leaf scrolls.
224 FEDERALAND EMPIRE 1780-1850
@Various examples ofFederal 0) The termination of the The robust newel post of the 0 Thts entrance hall staircase t's
newel posts. In the first, wooden basement stair of the Bartow- Old Merchant's House, New made of marble and has an
balusters encircle one of iron to Pel/ Mansion, New York, 1842, York, 1832, is turned and richly ornate cast-iron balustrade
form a newel, 1800. The second is formed by a newel shaped in embellished with carved decorated with acanthus leaves.
is a late 18th-century attenuated a heavy and elaborate 5-scro/1. acanthus leaves; the curved Fluted columns support the
column, and the third a waisted The attenuated balusters are handrail receives the same landing which has a balustrade
early 19th-century example. The delicately turned. BW treatment. The turned and decorated with roundels, c.1836.
straight-sided newel is c.1804, waisted balusters are slender
and the heavy turned post on the and attenuated. The scrollwork
right is mid-19th-century Greek decorating the stair-ends is
Revival. characteristic ofthe Greek
Revival style. OM
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 225
Built-in furniture
-
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George Washington installed in form, but the glazing bars also
these bookcases at Mount show a Gothic influence. The
Vernon, Virginia, in the late panelled cupboard doors have
1780s. They are Neo-classical recently been regrained. MV
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Services
(j) An elaborate stove (rom the Bartow- @ The acme of Greek Revival bathroom
Pel! Ma nsion, New York, 1842, with luxul}l: a curtained and canopied bath,
Classical Revival motifs, columns and water closet and sinks are included in this
pilasters. BW plumber's advertisement. MY
0 A small parlour stove topped by an urn (D An 1830s stone kitchen sink with an
(in some models this contained water for attached pump; lever-handled brass
humidification), c.1850. taps/faucets are set into the panel behind.
Q) A late 18th-cenlLII)I Moravian-type OM
tile-faced stove.
reestanding six-plate heating stoves w ere popular a dressing room with portable close stools (chamber
F towards the end of the 18th century. Made up of six
heavy sections of cast-iron, they stood on legs and had
pots built into a moveable piece of furniture), wash-
stands and moveable iron or tin baths; these baths were
a fuel door and smoke hole . They were often embel- more generally available a decade later. Outdoor privies
lished with classical motifs, and some models were were common: elaborate multi-seated models with clas-
topped with an urn; a few were tile-faced. Many houses sical and Gothic architectural details could be found in
w ere heated by a combination of a stove placed in a cen- houses of the wealthy.
trallocation such as a hall, and coal fires which burned Running water was rare and restricted to grander
in parlours and upstairs rooms. In areas where winters houses. Outdoor cisterns were used for trapping rain-
were severe, the procurement of sufficient wood stocks water, and a very few houses had indoor storage tanks.
for the stoves was an important task. By the 1830s, By the 1820s the kitchens of most of the better houses
urban houses had larger coal-fuelled furnaces . had stone or metal sinks supplied with running water.
At the beginning of the period, major residences had Modest households continued to use well water.
228 FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 1780-1850
Lighting
uring the 18th century most houses continued to be popular with the middle and upper classes.
D dimly lit by a few single candles, rush lamps or by
grease (Betty) lamps which burned oil, lard or tallow.
Whale oil was commonly used as a fuel for the many
types of brass and glass lamps available in the early 1800s.
Lanterns, sometimes with reflectors, were used indoors These were produced as freestanding examples with
and outdoors. shades, and as chandeliers and wall brackets. The term
The patented Argand light (1782) was increasingly "girandole" at this period refers to candlesticks and candela-
available by the 1790s. It had a hollow wick which allowed bra with crystal drops, as well as to candle sconces attached
more oxygen to reach the flame (protected by a glass to mirrors. By the early 1800s, glass chandeliers and gilt
chimney), which resulted in a brighter and cleaner light; bronze chandeliers were imported by the wealthy from
whale and lard oil were generally used. Argand lamps, France or England, or in rare cases were made by American
produced expensively in silver or more affordably in Shef- craftsmen. They were reserved for the best parlour.
field plate, began to replace candles in the houses of the During the 1830s, gas lighting was gradually installed in
wealthy; hanging hall lamps in stamped brass remained urban areas as public supplies were provided.
FEDERAL AND EMPIRE 229
Metalwork
2
0 A decorative iron newel urn
at the entrance ofthe Old
Mercham's House, New York,
1832. OM
A mid-19th-century cast-iron
tethering post at the Gaillard-
Bennett House, Charleston,
South Carolina. This is an
example of a foundry-produced
object having a decorative as
well as a functional value. GB
Q) and 0 Two cast-iron
balconies. On the lefr,
anthemions and other Greek
Revival motifs decorate the
balcony from the Bartow-Pel!
Mansion, New York, 1842.
The example on the right, from a
Boston townhouse, is more
delicate and exhibits late Neo-
classical characteristics, with
Chinese panels and Greek key
motifs. BW, RS
he use of ironwork in the United States greatly tion established by the French and Spanish, output
T expanded during the Federal period, especially in
southern cities, such as New Orleans, Savannah and
increased after Louisiana's entry into the Union in 1803.
Craftsmen, particularly those from Germany, began to
Charleston. Cast iron increasingly appears, first as create delicate scrollwork for fencing, grilles, lunettes,
applied ornamentation to wrought iron, then, with balustrades and balconies which well reflected the atten-
improved technology, progressing to the ambitious uated Neo-classical style.
structural and decorative castings of the 1840s. Early motifs included lyres and anthernions. Exterior
Iron production increased towards the end of the 18th stair balustrades, embellished with C- and S-scrollwork,
century as iron ore sources were developed. Craftsmen provided emphasis to entrance doors, and iron newels
from Continental Europe were attracted to the new also became fashionable. By the end of the period,
industry and developed forms based on old European foundries were producing castings for double balconies,
styles but with Neo-classical influences. In New column capitals and window surrounds, but inevitably
Orleans, which already had a strong ironworking tradi- patterns became more standardized.
230 FEDERALAND EMPIRE 1780-1850
Woodwork
Q)An early Neo-classical portico, c.1765,
with tapering Tuscan columns, a central
Palladian window, and a pediment with
dentils and elliptical fanlight. Such two-story
wooden porticoes were rare before the 1780s.
M]
@A gate with robust posts decorated with Fence and gate sections showing with ~uted Doric columns and ~ush-boarded
oval paterae and ~oral garlands, surmounted interlacing diapering and other forms, from pediment.
by urns. This example is typical of coastal Asher Benjamin's The Architect, or (DA Neo-classical temple-form house of the
New England at the height of the Federal Practical House Carpenter, 1830. 1820s. The whole structure is wood,
period. RS @A single-story 1840s Greek Revival porch including the porch and the piazzas.
he great number of wooden houses which were portico added in the 1780s by George Washington to
T built during the Federal period provided many
opportunities for exterior detailing, and some achieved
Mount Vernon, Virginia, is a notable example. By the
1780s a popular feature of houses in the Carolina Low
great elegance. A typical house will have overlapping Country was the double-tiered piazza or veranda which
weatherboarding, usually of pine, cut in lengths and provided shaded outdoor living space.
often beaded along the edges. By the early 1800s, Neo-classical and Greek Revival houses featured
improved saw mills and the availability of machine-cut wooden balustrades for piazzas, walls and roofs; and
nails made finely finished houses more common. pickets or posts for fencing. Balusters were vase-shaped
Decorative elements included cornices and friezes with or straight and square-cut. In both North and South,
swags, dentils, modillions and other ornamentation. The wooden fencing was more common than iron: the posts
most popular trend was the addition of wooden single- were sometimes topped by urns, spheres or other orna-
entry porches (New England) or porticoes (mid-Atlantic ments. Occasionally latticework, Chinese Chippendale
and southern Colonies). The two-story square-columned and guilloche fencing patterns were used.
232
BRITISH VICTORIAN
1837-1901
One ofthe more in~uential books brimming Kerr devotes some of his chapters to designs "Mediaeval or Gothic Style'~ with its pointed
with practical advice for the aspin.ng and in a variety ofstyles, all based on the same arches, polychrome brickwork and elaborate
affluent, house-builder was The plan, all distinctly Victorian. Illustrated here cast-iron crestings on the roof ridges; and the
G'entleman's House by Raben Kerr; which are the "Cottage Style", which is somewhat "Scotch Baronial" version, with its stepped
ran to several editions in the 1860s and 70s. Italianate, and very grand for a cottage; the ("crow-stepped") gables. KE
ne third of the houses in Britain date from before lie building projects such as the new Houses of Parlia-
O 1914, and most by far are Victorian. The building
boom experienced in cities in the 1850s, 60s and 70s has
ment (Gothic) and the Foreign Office (classical).
In 1879 William Young, in his book Town and Country
been exceeded only by the ribbon developments of the Mansions, records the Gothicists' belief that in classical
1920s and 30s. architecture "the convenience of the plan, and utility of
The British High Victorian style grew out of revivals arrangement, were sacrificed to the architectural effect
of the past. Fashionable Victorian town-dwellers were ... too often, instead of the design growing out of the
bored by the monotonous classical terraces/rows of plain plan, the plan was adapted for the sake of the elevation".
Georgian houses, by now encrusted in soot and grime. Pugin saw Gothic as "pliable", and classical as "rigid" .
They wanted colour and animation. Such feelings were Speculative builders were uninterested in such academic
not peculiar to the landed gentry. In a period of indutrial- niceties. They often randomly adopted elements of sev-
ization there was a new generation of nouveaux riches, eral styles - including Greek Revival, Romanesque,
self-made industrialists, boastful of their success, who in Tudor, Elizabethan and Italianate. A house could have
the architecture of their houses advertised their achieve- half-timbered gables, classical sash windows, redbrick
ments in tangible form. Many favoured the mock Gothic and terracotta ornament, and a filigree cast-iron porch.
style as a romantic fantasy that implied ancient lineage. A true picture of the Victorian house must take-in two
The Gothic Revival had developed from the 18th extremes: on the one hand, the wonderfully inventive
century, and was boosted in the 19th by the chivalric country houses by great architects such as Richard Nor-
writings of Sir Walter Scott, Alfred Lord Tennyson man Shaw (1831-1912); on the other, the meanly built
and Thomas Love Peacock. Diligent archaeological flat-fronted terraces/rows of the poor. Between these
researches were carried out and published with mea- poles there are various identifiable types: the early Vic-
sured drawings of medieval remains, in the manner of torian semi-detached villa, based on Regency models;
the surveys of classical ruins of one hundred years before. the detached Italianate suburban villa with stuccoed
The influential theorist and designer A.W.N. Pugin ground floor (popular in the 1830s and 40s); the detached
(1812-52) and some of his contemp9raries tried to brick villa with asymmetrical plan and Tudor detailing.
encourage architects to adopt accurate Gothic detailing. The need for services and for privacy expanded the
Striped polychromatic brickwork, popularized by G.E. size of the upper middle-class Victorian terraced/row
Street in his Brick and Marble from Northern Italy and by house to unprecedented height and depth. This impres-
John Ruskin in The Stones ~{Venice, added colour to the sion of stuccoed gigantism is striking in such London
Gothicized exterior. areas as Belgravia, Bayswater and Pimlico. The grand
The vogue for Gothic left its mark not only on many classical terrace enjoyed a last blossoming in Glasgow
country houses and villas but also on whole suburbs, with the work of Alexander Thomson, especially his
such as those of north Oxford. It also brought great con- Great Western Terrace of 1869. By the 1880s, the trend
troversy- the so-called "battle of styles"- to major pub- toward suburban and rural dwellings among the upper
BRITISH VICTORIAN 233
AND AOOITIONS
Ffi-'lNT i!I..;VAf!ON
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' 'l.l'.!..!'
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middle classes had caused the terrace/row to become with tinted plates. Industrialization, of course, implied
declasse: it was now associated with the lower orders, mass production. The canals and railways enabled heavy
while the better-off tended to live in villas. materials to be widely and economically distributed: cast
At the end of the 1860s correct English Gothic returned iron from Scotland; terra cotta from the English Midlands
to favour. At the same time the lighter, highly influential and the southwest peninsula; slates from Wales and
Queen Anne Revival style was initiated: its distinctive Cumbria. No longer were houses necessarily built of the
features include white-painted sash windows, pretty bal- local vernacular materials, as had been usual in the past.
conies, curly gables and moulded brickwork or terra- Glass and bricks were less expensive than ever before.
cotta. There are some fine streets in this style around Identical terra cotta ornament graced exteriors from Scot-
Sloane and Cadogan Squares in London. land to the southwest of England.
Improvements in communications had a big impact By the 1870s a new middleman took centre stage in
on Victorian house building. The rapidly expanding the burgeoning building industry: the builder's merchant.
building trade kept up to date with periodicals such as He acted as agent for the manufacturers, supplying to
The Builder and The Building News, both founded in the the builder everything from kitchen ranges to door
middle of the century. Well-illustrated building construc- knobs, illustrated in splendid catalogues which today
tion books were widely available, and could be pur- give a fascinating insight into the late Victorian house.
chased in instalments by the less well-off tradesmen. Health and efficiency were both of great interest to
Particularly popular were The Builder's Practical Director, middle-class Victorians, as reflected by the catalogues'
The Encyclopaedia of Practical Carpentry and Practical descriptions of improved sanitary wares. Ventilation was
Masonry, all published between about 1855 and 1870, also important, not only as a way to clear smells from
234 BRITISHVICTORIAN 1837-1901
defective drains, but also to take aw ay the noxious fumes clearly defined social order. There w ere the public rooms
from gasoliers and fires. The great scientist Robert Boyle where guests were received and entertained, the private
founded a prosperous company manufacturing and bedrooms and dressing rooms, and the below-stairs ser-
installing ventilation equipment that led to innumerable vants' rooms, w hich for the first time were virtually out
cowls on rooftops, often disguised as turrets or belfries. of bounds to the family. Such gradations w ere expressed
Cleaner air was one of the benefits enjoyed by the architecturally, for example in the complexity of mould-
thousands who left the cities and penetrated further and ings and in the material of the fireplace, ranging from
further into the countryside in search of salubrious and marble through slate to wood. The morning room, at
affordable housing from which they could commute to the back of the house, was the feminine equivalent of
work by railway. Nostalgia for the countryside fused the study, which was a masculine domain. As well as
with the concept of suburbia to form a new ideal- the the dining room, larger houses w ould have their own
garden suburb, heralded in the 1870s by Bedford Park in breakfast room. Even in the poorest houses there would
west London, where individually styled houses brought be an attempt to maintain a parlour, which often had an
a welcome variety to leafy streets. unlived-in air, as if waiting for a guest important enough
Inside the house, the organization of rooms reflected a to justify its use.
BRITISH VICTORIAN 235
Doors
he porch to a Victorian house was designed not is usually an archway across the narrow hall, it was the
T only to protect visitors from the weather but also
to convey the social status of the occupants, a project-
convention to hang curtains in order to retain heat. Sim-
ilarly, a portiere, or curtain on a swinging pole, would
ing porch implying greater wealth than one that was hang behind a door to make a room warmer.
recessed. Internal doors are constructed in the traditional frame-
Front doors are panelled and sometimes arched in the and-panel manner. Doors leading to grander principal
Gothic style. They were often green or woodgrained. rooms can be up to 3 inches (7.5cm) thick with numer-
Glazed upper panels or fanlights above allow extra light ous panels and applied mouldings. Such features not
to enter the hallway. Foundry catalogues were filled only indicate the room's importance, but the greater the
with examples of door knockers and knobs and, from density of wood the more effective it was as a protec-
the 1840s, letterboxes/mailslots. tion against eavesdropping servants. Doors to more
The Victorians felt it important to insulate their houses modest rooms are often framed in wood less than one
against the cold. In smaller terraced houses, where there inch (2.5cm) thick with very thin undecorated panels.
BRITISH VICTORIAN 237
- '-
the "ledges" are the horizontal
fr_aming members.
\3) A /edged, braced and
battened door; the diagonal
~
"braces" add extra strength.
0 A framed and battened door.
DO
CD A modest front door with the before the introduction of the A rustic wooden porch. @ and@ Polychromatic
vestige ofa fanlight/transom P-_enny post. This grand classical porch brickwork reflects the strong
light. There is a knocker but no (]) and (j) These recessed could be constructed from stone, influence of}ohn Ruskin's
letterbox/mailslot, indicating that porches are typical of terraced/ or from rendered brickwork to wn'tings about Venice and
the door is probably pre-1840, row or town houses of the 1870s. reduce expense. MB Italian Gothic, c.1850. CL
10
238 BRITISH VICTORIAN 1837-1901
(])A front door to a small collars on the column shafis and front door. The door fittings and capitals in painted cement
terraced/row house. The red ~oriated capitals. the stained glass appear to be rendering. The checked tile
brick contrasts with the cream Q) Typical glazed panels for anginal; the painted house paving is authentic but the
galt brick of the facade. MJB front doorways, 1891. GF number is unfortunate. letterbox!mailslot is modern. RS
0 A more elaborate doorway. @ Letterboxes/mailslots were @Twinned doorways from 0 The side walls of recessed
The porch is enriched with ofien small and vertical. west London, c.1880, with porches ofien had colourful tiled
painted cement dressings, with CD A popular Gothic form for a foliated arched heads and panels. RS
5
BRITISH VICTORIAN 239
Grand internal doors will have
cornices and pediments above
the doorheads. These :2
0
"overdoors" were popular 0
0
throughout the period.
0 Three "classical" doors with
frelded panels and mouldin_gs
from the 1892 catalogue of
Hampton and Sons. They
were available in polished
hardwood or in p_ine with
carton-pierre (a form of papier
mache) embellishments ready
(9r painting. HS
0 Large panels frlled with
tongue-and-groove boarding: a
form ofjoinery usually
associated with doors to utility
rooms.
Q) Pointed crenellations decorate
this Gothic doorway. The door
has raised panelling and
elaborate pierced frttings, 1890.
4
2
I
'
I
I
'
I
"
I
i
I
il
6
@ A shelf for the display of
china is included above this
"Aesthetic" doorhead. TC
CD The panels to this door are
decoratively enriched, either
with carton-pierre mouldings or
trompe l'oeil paintwork. TC
Nine overdoor designs from I) j o f'Htt, t~, ,..~J jl>f' f,lmi i~C JS'
o..A, Waf ~t . '" ,\/ ~Mat""-' . "~
Hampton's 1892 catalogue.
They were supplied in pine
ready for painting or, more
expensively, in a polished
hardwood such as oak or
mahogany. These examples
show varying forms of debased
classical styles. For example, 11 -1" l 'tu t , frrm t,j J f.mrll~~, .l7J, (~f .
aa
IJ ~J i/i! L" ; , ) tt o '"
the design of the overdoor t i lt(, _,
~~ ~. f ~,.~- i
I" <-1 1[,
.1 f'"li'' '
f>Hio-1
@ A Tudor-style multi-
panelled oak door with ebony
frttings: the screws are concealed
behind raised ebony plugs,
c.1869. CR
4
BRITISH VICTORIAN 241
4
242 BRITISH VICTORIAN 1837- 1901
Windows
(J) The bay window was almost window box for ferns or aowers.
an essential feature ofall but the The ~'r!indows are large sheets of
most modest ofBn.tish Victorian plate glassi this was readily
houses. It allowed more light into available, albeit expensive, in
the front room (which was the Victorian period.
promptly reduced by heavy An elevation of a typical
curtains), and gave a good view High Victorian town house. The
of the comings and goings of elaborate door and window
visitors and neighbours. In this surrounds are terracotta, a vety
example from a London suburb, popular ntaterial dunng this
c.1880, there is a deep period. sw
bracketed sill to accommodate a
mproved glassmaking techniques produced larger, thick glazing bars forming the top sash to cut down glare
Ineeded
stronger and less expensive single panes of glass which
fewer glazing bars. As Victorian sash windows
from the sky, with a single sheet of glass below.
Casements, often using leaded lights, return during this
become plainer, so their openings make increasing use period, especially with Gothic-style windows, or
of decorative brickwork, stucco and prefabricated terra- "Tudor" (square-headed) in modest houses. In grander
cotta. By the mid-19th century, sash windows have two houses, the decorative tracery at the tops of the arched
small brackets or "horns" at each end of the bottom rail windows reduced the amount of sunlight, thus protect-
of the top sash. These are to help strengthen the frame ing interiors and furnishings from fading; on sashes, exte-
and support the heavier panes of glass. The abolition of rior blinds served the same purpose. Speculative builders,
the window tax in 1851 encouraged the greater use of keen to incorporate the Gothic pattern popularized by
glass, and the bay window with its wide centre sash and John Ruskin's The Stones of Venice (1851), inserted sash or
two narrower lights either side is a characteristic feature . casement windows into rectangular openings, with an
Some later sash windows have small panes of glass and arch fashioned out of multi-coloured brickwork.
BRITISH VICTORIAN 243
-!
I
G) A set ofshallow-headed sash casement, sometimes found in 0 Glazing bar profilestom bars. The lower one shows an
windows in the debased Gothic service areas. 55 The Encyclopaedia o unusual device for an applied
Sjyle with stone dressings. CL (3) A typical mid-Victorian Practical Carpentry and "screw on" bead to hold the
(3)An iron-framed fixe/1 shding sash window showing a Joinery c.1860. EP glass in place instead ofthe
window with a top "swing" section on the lefi. EP CD Two examples ofintersecting normal putty. EP
Walls
---~- -- -- -
BRITISH VICTORIAN . 247
CD Two examples o[panelling of panelling is found in halls, vertically grooved panels; that lustre finish. Empire-style wall
(rom E. L. Tarbuck s studies and dining rooms and is on the right, plain panels with panels (bottom right) are covered
l:ncyclopedia of Carpentry usually made from oak or pine. beaded borders. EP in wallpaper, silk or satin with a
and Joinery, c.1865. This type The section on the lefi shows 0 Brass bel/levers with china carton-pierre frieze. HS
furniture. These are found close @Four wall stencil patterns
1 to fireplaces and were used to designed by A.W N. Pu_gin. PC
summon servants. HD CD This stencil pattern from The
Q) Five typical elaborate wall Practical Decorator and
treatments suggested in Omamentist, 1892, re~ects a
Ha~ton's 1892 catalogue. 'Japanese" interest. DO
The trst shows a moulded high-
relie canvas dado with
embossed vellum field covering.
The centre top illustration shows
a wood panelled dado with
embossed leather set into
studded panels above, and a
handpainted fn'eze. At top right,
a design with printed tapestry
hangs beneath a shelt with a
leather-paper frieze above. The
Louis XVI-style satin wallpaper
panels (bottom lefi) have a silk
3
5
248 BRITISH VICTORIAN 1837-1901
Ceilings
1
V)
<.)
z
::l
;:;:;
u
IJ.'
(J) A design for an enn.ched plaster ceiling treatment is wholly Victorian. Robson also
from Robert Robson's The Mason's, suggests gilding as a finishing touch. MB
Bricklayer's, Plasterer's and Decorator's Catalogue illustrations from George
Practical Guide, 1868. There is an 18th- jackson and Sons showing three designs for
century theme to the ceiling but the foliage ceilings in fibrous plaster, c.1880. G]A
he ceilings of larger Victorian houses offered plas- employed because the amount of dirt which collected
T terers great opportunities to demonstrate their
skills. Elaborate swags, ribs, flowers and festoons
on ceilings - largely due to the use of oil and gas lamps
-made frequent redecoration a necessity.
showed evidence of their talents, as did the intricate Fibrous plaster was patented in 1856. This contained
patterns of the cornices. In the best rooms gasoliers canvas as a reinforcing agent, and enabled large precast
hung from ornate ceiling roses/medallions which plaster panels to be moulded and then nailed in
would sometimes double as ventilators. Ceilings position on site. Elaborate cornices, roses /medallions
tended to be high as this encouraged improved air cir- and other features could be made by the same method.
culation. More modest houses have a plain moulded Papier rnache and composition were acceptable al-
cornice and a simple central rose/medallion. ternatives. "Anaglypta", a compressed lightweight
A pattern book produced in 1892 by George and moulded wallpaper, was immensely popular for
Maurice Audsley shows large and impressive sten- adding texture to plain ceilings and became an inex-
cilled corner designs , but these were not widely pensive substitute for fibrous plaster.
250 BRITISH VICTORIAN 1837-1901
1~~;:::::=~~~~..'ll 2
3
ltf
rose/medallion. DO
0 More ceiling corner designs
(!om the same source. DO
0 A Tudor-inspired ceiling
paper produced for the architect
Richard Norman Shaw by].
A/dam Heaton, 1880s. DD
i
I
I
I
@ Richard Norman Shaw
de~ned this beamed and
0) Three papier machi ceiling
roses/medallions from a large I
coffered ceiling for the library at range supplied by George
Cragside, Northumbria, jackson and Sons in 1889.
completed in 1872. The They were also available in
elaborate features include fibrous plaster. G}A
walnut panels set in squares
with carved bosses. CR
!_ _ _ _ _____ -
- -- -----J
([) Frieze designs from the same
jackson catalogue. The
Aesthetic movement has
ir:uenced the sunflower design
o the first, and the second is in
t e debased Arts and Crafts
style. G}A
BRITISH VICTORIAN 251
Floors
No. 239. - FLOORCLOTH. No. 1028.- LI NOLEUM. No. SO. - INLAID LINOLEUM.
* *
.=
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m : ... .'V'
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No. 586.. - FLOORCLOTH . No. 194. - LI NOL EU M. Red. No. 996. - CORK CARPET. Blue.
HAMPTON & SONS, Pall Mall East, and Cockspur Street, Charing Cross, London, s.w.
3 4
Fireplaces
he fireplace is an essential feature of the Victorian T awards the end of the 19th century, mass-produced
T house and appears in virtually every room. It
consists of two main parts: the manufactured cast-iron
tiled register grates became available.
In fashionable houses fireplace surrounds were often
grate and the chimneypiece or surround, generally made changed when rooms were redecorated. Traditionally,
from marble, slate or wood. marble and slate and, later, cast iwn are found in the
Large open fireplaces have dog grates, but register principal rooms. Wooden surrounds are more common
grates, which are cast as one piece to combine the grate, in smaller houses and in the secondary rooms ofgrander
fireback and inner frame, are a feature of the main houses. These would have been varnished or painted,
rooms in most town houses. These grates are inserted depending on the quality of the wood. The overman-
within the fireplace and the efficiency of the fire is tel, with its central mirror and complicated array of
increased by the use of dampers which regulate the columns and shelves for displaying ornaments, became
supply of air. Panels of coloured patterned tiles on either popular later in the period. Gas fires were very gradually
side of the grate were popular, initially in larger houses. introduced in the late 19th century.
254 BRITISHVICTORIAN 1837-1901
CD A simple cottage-style
1 r_ainted wooden surround.
0 An elaborate marble
chimneypiece suitable for a
dining room or library.
Q) A contrasting style is shown
in the simple classical lines of
this 1880s Queen Anne Revival
chimneypiece designed by
Richard Nomtan Shaw. It is
made from pale marble, with the
pulvinated (convex) frieze in a
darker shade. The curb (hearth
surround) has a bolection
moulding.
0 A Gothic dressed-stone
fireplace and integral stone curb,
with heraldic decorations in the
spandrels.
@ Four examples of wooden were supplied in walnut or current movements. The first recalls at this time. The other two show the
chim~e)\ieces available in the mahogany or in pine ready for Elizabethan prototypes, while the influence ofthe Aesthetic movement.
1880s om C. Hindley and Sons painting. The designs reflect the second is in the Queen Anne Note the abundance ofornaments,
of 0 ord Street, London. They popularity ofperiod styles and Revival style, increasingly popular including]apanese fans. CH
BRITISH VICTORIAN 255
@ The overmantel with a mirror was with overmantel. Its bold Baronial style and Victorian feature. This 1890s three-tiered
fashionable. This example is typical of the unusual detailing make it an interesting example is resplendent with many
1890s Georgian Revival. RC example. RC "classical" features, bevelled mirrors and a
CD A polished wooden (treplace surround 0 Corner (treplaces were a popular central picture. RC
256 BRITISH VICTORIAN 1837-1901
7 8
(J) and 0 Pryke and Pa/mer panels was impressive. Tiles CD and @ As foundries became still retained the dog grate. Such
supplied tiled register grates in became increasingly popular: increasingly skilled, so their grates were origi11ally designed to
several standard sizes and these they were attractive, durable and mass-produced fireplaces gained burn logs, but the Victorians
two examples from their 1896 easy to clean. PP a sophistication ofstyle: these adapted them to suit coal by
catalogue would be suitable for @ A plain cast-iron standard two late 19th-century register reducing their size and enclosing
small town houses. The wooden, register grate. The oval flap at grates were from the William them with firebricks. Brass
stone or marble surround would the back of the grate could be Owen Foundry. HE ornamentation was ofien a
have been supplied separately. PP closed when the fire was not in 0 to @ Large open fireplaces, feature of these grates. These
Q) Pryke and Palmer's range of use to prevent soot from such as would be found in the four examples are from the
decorative multi-coloured tiles and descending the chimney. SB entrance halls ofgrander houses, Carron Company. co
BRITISH VICTORIAN 257
(J) This handsome open 0 A cast-iron register grate @ Gas (ires arrived late in the
(lreplace is lined with Italianate surround: its rather heavy period. Manufacturers were
majolica tiles and (ltted with a mouldings are relieved by a quick to point out their labour-
substantial dog grate. The central panel of fruit. RC saving advantages: no coals to
turned and calVed woodw;ork of 0 Considerable skill is shown carry, no ash to empty and 110
the surround is (lnished to a in the undercutting o(the ~oral chimneys to clean. However, the
high standard. Bournemouth, frieze in this Gothic Revival response was not immediate as
Dorset, 1894. RC tour de force at Strawberry they were expensive to run,
A smaller decorated {Ireplace Hill, Middlesex, c.1860. 5H tended to blow out and
which would be appropriate for CD A cast-iron surround with a depended on a repdar and
a bedroom. The copper canopy pulvinated (convex) frieze reliable supply of gas. These
is modelled with a sunburst. decorated with swags and are four typical examples, with
The splayed tiles feature swags roundels. An owl is featured on intricate casings and asbestos
and cherubs. RC the pilaster. RG heat elements. 55, 55, DC, DI
258 BRITISHVICTORIAN 1837- 1901
Kitchen stoves
1
he built-in range was the most commonly used Freestanding portable "kitcheners" were sometimes
T cooker in the Victorian kitchen; it was fuelled by
coal and made from cast iron. There was a choice
preferred because they could be installed further away
from the flue , connected by a stove pipe . They were
between the "open" and "closed" range; the latter, as supported on legs but the term "portable" is misleading
the name suggests, has an enclosed rather than open because they were immensely heavy; however, not be-
fire grate. The closed range became increasingly popu- ing built-in, they could be regarded as tenants' fixtures.
lar. Saucepans lasted longer and remained cleaner when Gas stoves began to make some impact toward the
heated on a plate rather than on an open fire . Another end of the century but they were expensive to run and
advantage was that the fire would stay in overnight. needed a reliable gas supply. Because they did not
Manufacturers offered plenty of choice but most provide constant heat they were marketed as ideal for
models had a central fire with a water boiler on one summer use when a cool kitchen would be appreci-
side and an oven on the other. Clean and economical ated. It was some years, however, before they began
fuel consumption was a important selling point. to seriously rival the traditional range.
BRITISH VICTORIAN 259
Staircases
This substantial polished oak staircase has heavy turned balusters and substantial electrical ~xtures to survive in England. The
designed by the in~uential architect Richard square-s1ded newel posts. These are stair carpet is held in place by brass stair rods
Nomtan Shaw for Crags1de, Northumbria, surmounted by carved lions, which clasp and clips, leaving a portion ofthe treads
dates from c.1876. Of closed-string form, it electric lamp standards - some of the earliest exposed on either side. CR
ictorian terraced/row houses usually have "dog leg" stairs, and was held in place by brass or sometimes
V staircases because they were inexpensive to con-
struct and economical on space. They are generally
wooden rods. The carpet was moved up or down a
couple of inches at each spring cleaning so that the wear
made from a softwood, such as pine, and in early- was even. The backstairs and those in modest house-
Victorian houses frequently have plain square-sectioned holds would often be covered in floorcloth or linoleum
stick balusters . As the period progresses, increasingly with polished brass protective nosings to the treads.
elaborate turned balusters and newel posts appear. In large houses the staircase will often be "open well".
These were mass-produced and were readily available Such stairs may be made from stone or marble with
from builders' merchants, together with broad mahog- intricately worked cast-iron balustrades and a polished
any or oak moulded handrails. mahogany handrail. By the late 19th century there was
The edges of stair treads and risers were often painted, a large range of balustrade castings to choose from. Stair
stained, or grained and varnished to resemble oak. A treads are usually cantilevered, and if carpet was used
strip of carpet was used as a runner up the middle of the the eyes for stair rods will be set into the stonework.
- -
~
260 BRITISH VICTORIAN 1837-1901
1 (i) and Steam power made elaborate. These four pine newel
the sawing planing and turning posts and the selection of
of wood quicker and less balusters (two cross-sections are
expensive. Balusters and newel shown on the right) are typical of
posts became increasingly a modest late Victorian house. TL
2
Q) Speculative builders villa is featured in G. A. and 1882 catalo~ue of version which was keyed into
welcomed the wide choice of W]. Audsley's Cottage, Macfarlane s Castings of the circumference wan the
mass-produced stair features Lodge and Villa Glasgow. Monograms for the Victorian spiral was
available from builders' Architecture, c.1860. CL shieiJs featured in the centre freestanding and often used
merchants, but an architect- 0 to Cast-iron and example could be supplied to outside. This example,
designed house would have bronze balustrades were an order. MC supplied by Macfarlane's
its own specially expensive but elegant 0 The cast-iron spiral Castings, has a typically
commissioned staircase. alternative to wood. These staircase was an ingenious intricate scroll pattern on the
This example for a Gothic three examples come from the device. Unlike the medieval treads and stair-ends. MC
4 6
11
. - - - - - -- -- -
BRITISH VICTORIAN 261
Built-in furniture
1
nthusiasm for built-in furniture stemmed largely a few feet of the ceiling where the top, decorated with
E from a desire to escape from the cluttered interiors
of the early part of the period, together with an
a cornice, would serve as a display shelf for busts of
classical writers and philosophers. Folio volumes would
expanding trade in m echanized joinery. One large be stored in the lower section of the bookcase, with the
company of household furnishers in their 1880s shelves above accommodating smaller volumes.
catalogue claimed to "give special attention to fitted A charming speciality was the "Cozy Corner", an
furniture" ; they were "pleased to prepare and submit intimate arrangement of built-in seats, often situated
estimates for fitting up libraries, boudoirs and bedrooms next to a fireplace or in the comer of a room.
in either hard-polished or painted woods". The kitchen dresser is a standard built-in Victorian
Publishing was a growing industry and Victorian built- fixture. Initially, open shelves were retained for the
in library bookcases are an impressive feature of larger display of china but later glass doors were added. Food
houses. Their shelves run between pilasters or Gothic lifts or "dumb waiters" served dining rooms in houses
shafts. The height usually takes the bookcase to within with basement kitchens.
BRITISH VICTORIAN 263
I ~ I
Services
A patent internal closet with
transfer-applied pattern,
manufactured by Daulton and
Company, London (c.1885). D
The Victon"ans were determined
to improve the insanitary
conditions which made disease a
continual threat. Glazed clav
pipes were introduced for '
underground drains, and the
1884 Public Health Act required
all households to have a closet of
some kind. In the case of many
poorer houses, these were still
sited in backyards.
The improved sewerage system
encouraged the use ofinternal
water closets. The previously
inefficient flushing techniques
had been replaced in the 1870s
by an overhead cistern which
discharged a gush of water.
Made of cast iron, it was
operated by pulling a chain. At
the same time, the trap ofthe
early water closet, which had
done little to prevent foul smells
escaping, was superseded by the
5-benatrap.
Water closet bowls began to be
made ofglazed earthenware
with transfer-applied patterns.
The model illustrated was
available with a choice of
flushing systems: one was
operated by raising the wooden
seat, the other by pulling the
chain. Boxes of paper were
included with the purchase.
From 1880 rolls ofpaper were
available.
ith the arrival of piped water on public supply, Showers also became popular. They were little more
W portable hip baths were replaced by fixed vitreous
enamelled baths. Washstands, formerly filled by hand,
than inverted watering cans operated by a hand pump
and chain until pressurized water fed by an overhead
were now plumbed in with brass taps/faucets, and tank became available . The water closet increasingly
plugholes allowed the water to drain away. The ceramic became an indoor feature and the word "lavatory", pre-
pedestal basin, often decorated with a transfer-printed viously used to describe a wash basin, was adopted as a
pattern, eventually overtook the wooden washstand. euphemism for this device. Houses with central heating
Methods of heating water went through several stages had large, sometimes decorated, cast-iron radiators.
of development (including the application of gas flames Ornamental ventilators were intended to help the circu-
directly to the underside of the bath) until the invention lation of fresh air. Victorian drain pipes/downspouts and
of the gas geyser in 1868. In spite of problems of noise, gutters are also made from cast iron, and the hopper
smell and a tendency to explode, the geyser attained heads/leader heads that connect the two are sometimes
popularity as a quick, economical way of heating water. inscribed with the date of the house.
BRITISH VICTORIAN 265
NO 12
1
@A representative example ofa and also to form the soap dishes. with lever taps/faucets, supplied by example is designed to fit into a
late Victorian "marbled" wash The brass taps/faucets are Emanuel and $on. AE comer. A
basin which would have been mounted onto a separate wooden The same manufacturer also Hampton's 1892 "Improved
plumbed into the t11llin water pjinel behind the basin. TE produced these two wash basins Housemaid's Sink" provided a
supply. The popular shell motifis 0 A late 19th-centwy ornamental mounted on white enamelled cast- slop sink, wash basin and water
used to mask the overflow outlet standard earthenware wash basin iron frieze brackets. The lower closet in one cabinet. l-IS
7
266 BRITISHVICTORIAN 183 7-1901
lrJ
II~,
l ~~
'<>
I
A .~ fl .
....../ =-!l-,1
m
0 A late Victorian cast-iron coil The rainwater hopper head!
case, used to disguise a heating leader head is a good example of
rjpe.SB Victoncm cast-iron workmanship
(!!)A decorative Gothic-style and many different styles were
"Boyles" patent air inlet tube manufactured. These four
which allowed the ingress of castings from the Steven Brothers
fresh air, c.18 90. Fitted to the and Company ran_ge (c.1885)
outside wall ofa room, it was are adapted to fit face-on or into
designed to combat the fumes of corners. One is inscn.bed with
gas appliances. BV the house date . SB
BRITISH VICTORIAN 267
Lighting
3 ~ .
6
10
Metalwork
A pair of iron sates, enclosed in a Gothic are modelled to look like medieval wrought
archway leadrng into Holly Village in iron. They are more restrained in design than
Highgate, London, 1865. The gates are was o~en the case. The lower rails are
likely to be cast at this period, although they interspersed with "dog bars".
0) Macfarlane's of Glasgow standardized parts could be This would have been suitable @ Fanlights/transom lights ofien
supplied this elaborate cast-iron assembled to make up different for a town house. The lamp was had decorative ironwork.
entrance porch from 1870. The designs. M C an optional extra. MC 0) Four examples from an
curved roof was glazed with A bracketed door hood with Q) A porch with frieze rails and extensive range ofcast-iron
small panes ofglass. The an ornamental balcony above. filigree cresting. MC brackets, c.1885. MC
t
10
11
Woodwork
AMERICAN VICTORIAN
1840-1910
2
(!)Broad gables and a well-integrated porch The Hale House, Los Angeles, 1888: a Q) A terrace/row in the Italianate style, in
are key elements of many American late sophisticated essay in wood and paint. This Philadelphia, with roof pediments, elegant
Victon(m houses. This example, with is an elaborate example of the Queen Anne porches and ornate eave brackets. Italian ate
overtones of half-timbering is in Newport, style. The original colours have been restored, was probably the most prominent townhouse
Rhode Island, 1875. SAL following meticulous paint research. HA style from rhe 1850s to the 1880s. WI
uring the second half of the 19th century, architects there was also access to an increasing variety of publi-
D in the United States began to lose interest in Greco-
Roman Classicism, and to adopt new domestic styles
cations on house building: trade catalogues, pattern
books and architectural periodicals.
based loosely on medieval and other non-classical forms Industrialization meant that for the first time in the
of building. While continuing to be inspired by foreign United States, very large houses could be built on a wide
models both old and new, they developed a robust scale. Tenements and, later, apartment houses went up
inventiveness of their own. This was made possible by in increasing numbers, as the population shifted from
a combination of new building technologies, an abun- country to town and newly arrived foreign immigrants
dance of raw materials, a plethora of architectural and sought accommodation.
housekeeping publications, and the financial where- At least eight distinct architectural styles developed,
withal of many Americans to build their own homes. along with numerous secondary styles and movements,
One of the most important technological develop- all of which are now incorporated under the broad head-
ments was the advent of balloon framing, whereby the ing of "Victorian". These styles overlapped in date and
framework of a house could be made out of uniform none had a specific beginning or end. To further com-
lumber; this was becoming increasingly available from plicate the analysis of 19th-century American houses,
commercial mills. The framing system comprised inex- many were built in a combination of styles.
pensive two-by-four-inch boards, combined as upright The first post-classical styles, beginning in the 1830s,
studs and cross-members and held together by cheap, were the Gothic Revival and the Italianate . The Stick
mass-produced nails. style followed in the 1860s and 1870s, and the late 19th
Eventually, by the turn of the century, balloon fram- century produced American Oueen Anne, Richardson-
ing replaced traditional hewn timber construction and ian Romanesque, Shingle and Colonial Revival styles.
simplified the making of more complex architectural At the same time Egyptian and Oriental elements were
features, such as overhangs, bay windows and towers. incorporated into American houses, imitations of Swiss
Advanced manufacturing techniques were also chalets were built, and the octagonal building plan
employed to mass-produce finished windows, doors, enjoyed renewed interest.
brackets and decorative turnings, often more elaborate The Gothic Revival and Italianate styles were loosely
and sometimes less expensive than their handmade based on English Regency prototypes, and grew out of
counterparts. Along with plentiful building materials, an increasing interest in historical architecture . Early
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 273
4 5
@ The Gothic Revival style is Houses (1850) he suggests an each style in all portions of the McKim, Mead and White,
characterized by steeply pitched interesting geographical basis Union." GE 1881-2. Note the veranda on
roofs, dormer windows, and a for the decision between Gothic CD The Shingle style, notable its turned supports, and the
curvilinear "gingerbread" trim and Italian: ''The former, for its plain shingled surfaces, two-story open pavilion,
along the eaves and gable generally speaking is best evolved in New England before which balances the round
edges. Gothic was greatly suited to our Northern, broken being disseminated to the rest of tower (on the left in this view)
populanzed by the architectural country; the latter, to the plain the country. It flourished from containing a study.
writings ofAndrew jackson and valley surface ofthe the 1880s to c.1900. This is a Asymmetrical planning of this
Downing (1815-52). In The Middle and Southern States - Shingle-style house in kind is characteristic of the
Architecture of Country though sites may be found for Newport, Rhode Island, by style. SAL
274 AMERICAN VICTORIAN 1840-1910
Gothic Revival houses are characterized by irregular, XN. The mansard roof was popular both because it had
picturesque massings and plans, sharply pitched roofs connections with stylish contemporary France, where
and gables, castellated parapets and multi-paned win- it was undergoing a revival at the hands of Second
dows sometimes capped w ith Gothic arches . To Empire architects, and because its generous width
enhance their perpendicular appearance, the walls of allowed for a large attic story of usable space. Mansard
modestly priced houses were often made with vertical roofs were often used on Italianate houses.
boards and battens. Compared with building in wood, There was also continuing interest in medieval styles,
stone or brick construction was always more expensive, which not only furthered the Gothic Revival but also
and therefore less common. inspired the Stick and Queen Anne styles . Stick-style
Italianate houses, somewhat inspired by the northern houses were loosely based on English half-timbered
Italian farm house, feature low-pitched roofs with broad buildings. Like Gothic houses, they reflected Picturesque
eaves supported by brackets, and windows with tall, philosophies, with their steep gabled roofs and over-
narrow proportions. The windows are often surrounded hanging eaves. However, for decoration the Stick style
by classically inspired architraves . In the 1850s, Ital- relied on exposed roof trusses, rafters, and a raised "stick
ianate became the most important town house style. Its work" pattern on the walls, made by vertical and diag-
success was partly due to the fact that it could be suc- onal arrangements of boards.
cessfully applied to a square volume, whereas Gothic Stick, along with elements from Gothic and Italianate,
demands an irregular volume for full effect. provided the prototypes for the American Queen Arme
The Italianate style continued to be used through the style. Lasting from the 1880s until 1910, American
rest of the century, while at the same time fashionable Queen Arme derived from the style developed by British
circles adopted the Second Empire style, identifiable by architect Richard Norman Shaw (1831-1912) and his fol-
the mansard roofs, derived from the 17th-century lowers. However, the half-timbered and patterned
designs of Fran<;:ois Mansart, a Court architect of Louis masonry buildings of the English Queen Anne move-
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 275
(j) A middle class late Victorian interior: the 0 An early Victorian interior, within an Empire
Villa Montezuma, San Die~o, California, 1887. house. The carpet is a reproduction (by
Notable are the lavish use of wood panelling and Scalamandre) ofa tapestry-woven design dating
the rich ceiling. ]BE from c.1850. SCA
ment are only one feature of the American version. The Shingle style, dating from the 1880s to about
American architects added a rich vocabulary of decora- 1900, contrasts sharply with the rich detailing of the
tive woodwork, enriching the established styles with Oueen Anne and relates to the Romanesque in its use
more complex designs. Roofs, for example, grew even of continuous, relatively unadorned surfaces. Wooden
steeper than on Gothic and Stick buildings, and more shingles, usually in plain rows, form a uniform skin for
complicated in shape. The comparatively simple plans the roof and walls. Ornamental details are simple and
and volumes of mid-century houses were compounded based on a modest range of Neo-classical elements
by additional projections, overhanging stories, gables taken from American Colonial and Federal houses, such
and towers. The exterior walls were decorated with as Doric columns and Venetian (Palladian) windows.
wooden shingles, fancy brickwork and terracotta insets. Asymmetry is favoured in the planning.
Some houses in the Stick and Queen Anne styles used The study of early American buildings from before
elements of the "Eastlake" manner, named after the the Greek Revival led to the construction of houses
English designer and critic Charles Locke Eastlake (1833- labelled "Colonial" by their builders. Initially these took
1906), whose taste in ornament was adopted by Amer- the form of Queen Anne houses with generous appli-
icans for exteriors. Elements in the Eastlake style include cations of Neo-classical details. Later, houses more accu-
robust porch posts, balusters and pendants, as well as rately copied from 18th-century models were built.
the extensive use of spindles for friezes and balustrades. As all parts of the nation used the same published
The Richardsonian Romanesque style, named after design sources and similar mass-produced building
its most notable exponent H.H. Richardson (1838-86), parts, regional distinctions became subtle. By the 1890s
began in the late 1880s and continued until the end of prefabricated Oueen Anne houses were transported by
the century. This idiom is based on the use of rough- rail across the United States. But the relative lack of
hewn stone facing, composed in asymmetrical volumes vernacular distinctions by no means spells a dearth of
and marked by round-arched openings for porches, architectural interest. American Victorian houses are
doors and windows, along with simple details derived eclectic in their stylistic elements and rich in individual
from Romanesque, Syrian and Byzantine sources. interpretation.
276 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840-1 91 0
Doors
oors continued to be made as an exterior frame Double front doors first appeared on Gothic houses and
D holding thinner panels. This provided strong,
lightweight doors receptive to many styles of decora-
continued to be widely used on later styles, often match-
ed with a second pair, forming a vestibule. With the
tion. For example, Gothic Revival doors supported ele- advent of inexpensive glass, more doors were glazed.
ments of Gothic tracery, Italianate doors held applied Fanlights/transom lights over exterior and interior doors
Renaissance-style panels and Colonial Revival doors were also popular; clear glass in the 1850s, followed by
bore Neo-classical motifs. However, many houses had coloured glass and, later, leaded glass panels.
plain doors, the style of the building being conveyed Interior doors, in simple configurations of panels, usu-
either by the shape of the door opening or by the por- ally matched the other finished wood in the room.
tico or porch. Italianate doors were made Italian by their Sometimes simple doors were embellished with deco-
arched openings. Even a worker's cottage door could be rative carving or paint. Almost every grand house fea-
Gothicized with a simple bolection moulding or hood. tured a pair of sliding doors between double parlours,
Wherever feasible, double doors were preferred. or between parlour and dining room.
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 277
CD A plain hood design for the
front door ofa working man's
cottage, commended by A.]. ~
0
Downing in The Architecture 0
0
of Country Houses, 1850.
An ltalianate door canopy, in
profrle and face-on. From
Woodward's National
Architect, New York, 1869. WD
An elaborate example of
3 Southern Rococo Revival, this
doorway in New Orleans is
adorned with carved heads and
other ornament in wood. The
recessed panels at the sides are
shutters which could be closed for
f?_rotection against rain.
(!i) In the second halfofthe 19th
century emphasis could fall on
the door or the porchi this
Richardsonian Romanesque
porch, with its elaborate Syrian-
style arch, contains fairly narrow
double doors.
(5)A pair of Gothic entrance
doors, pubfished by A.].
Downing in Victorian Cottage
Residences, 1842.
@ This grander Gothic doorway
has a fanlight/transom light.
From Oakland, California.
A---
:!!! Alii I~ ~
6
~IIC i' ,.
,~ ~
';j ~
5~~
~
~B
~
~
G
~ ~
11 12
(j) An ltalianate double front into a classical design, 1873. @ Three glazed doors. The group found in ltalianate and
door, 1878: the round-arched @ This door would be suitable second example has an Queen Anne houses, sold by
fonn is typical. for an ltalianate or, with less elaborate etched design. The last C.B. Keogh and Co. This
(8) A more elaborate version of accuracy, a Gothic house, but it is a type used in Queen Anne illustration combines the front
the ltalianate style, 1873. actually appears on a Second and Shingle houses. UD door design (lefr) and glazed
A transom light integrated Empire design of 1878. @A Renaissance-inspired vestibule door (right).
278 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840 - 1910
Q)An ironwork porch with fairly naturalistic @A beautifully grained interior door paired
grapevine ornament gives added importance 3 with a Victorian version ofa classical
to a relatively simple doorway. With the doorcase. The elongated upper panels
advent ofinexpensive glass, more and more contribute to an impression of elegance.
doors were glazed. The screen door first made Corner blocks such as these would often
its appearance during the Victorian period. GE feature roundels or other ornamentation. HA
A doorway and porch from Hanley (})Another interior doorway, featuring a
House, Oregon, 1875. Some builders lugged architrave and multiple mouldings on
combined elements from earlier styles with the overdoor. For a decorative finish, fiat
current taste. Here, the type ofdoor lights first
used in the Federal period are combined with paint was the least expensive option, then
an ltalianate door and portico. The graining (as used on this door); hardwood
balustrade above gives importance to the doors were costly. BO
front door. PD
@ Front doors from mtd-century were often
0 Classical_porticoes were the principal made with mouldings or raised panels
decoration of townhouse facades. Here, reminiscent ofItalian Renaissance models.
outside doors lead to an identical pair instde, Better houses would have carved door
forming a vestibule between. The use ofa surrounds in Renaissance leaf or rope
house number emblazoned on the glass was designs. This example has more abstract
a popular Victorian practice. GE decoration. GE
4
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 279
1 2
= !:=
DD
8
(j) This type of simple panelled
interior door was made to order,
in solid pine or hardwood or
veneered in hardwoods. It is
typical of the last quarter of the
19th century. UD
0 Two interior doors in the
Stick style, from Woodward's
National Architect, 1869.
Q) This somewhat whimsical
arrangement of panels is
sometimes seen inside Shingle
and late Queen Anne houses.
UD
@ Glazed front doors, used on
Colonial Revival and late Queen
Anne houses. UD
CD A Gothic-style dining room
door, with restrained tracery.
0 A door showing Aesthetic
influence. It would also be apt
f()r a Queen Anne house.
0 Double panelled doors for
interior use were ofren imposing
but nonetheless simple in design.
A range of door fittings:
doorknobs, locks, key
escutcheons, handles, bell pulls
(including second row, near lefi,
Venetian and Gothic), hinges
(including a screen door hinge), a
door chain (1895), a barrel bolt
(1895) and a letterbox/mailslot.
A transom light, with an
adjustable opening.
280 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840-1910
Windows
ith the perfection of plate glass making, huge panes of coloured glass, particularly in the lights around
W expanses of undivided glazing w ere now afford-
able. The use and design of glazing bars became a purely
front doors. In the 1850s leaded glass w indows were
introduced, continuing until the first decades of the 20th
decorative decision, with few technical constraints. century. Elaborate leaded designs were popular on fire-
Thus, when the designers of Gothic Revival houses rein- place walls, in dining rooms, and on stair landings .
troduced diamond-paned windows, it w as a design Etched glass panels and glass decoration painted to sim-
unaffected by any limitations on the size of the glass. ulate leaded glass also enjoyed a vogue.
Millwork catalogues offered vast assortments of win- In the second half of the 19th century, louvered or
dow s. The simplest were plain, single-paned, double- Venetian exterior shutters became standard, although
hung types; the fanciest, with elaborately divided canvas awnings or bonnet blinds were sometimes used
polygons of glazing, were for Oueen Anne houses. instead. Many houses continued to have solid interior
There was a renewed interest in stained glass . From shutters. Wire mesh window screens for insect protec-
the 1840s 'some houses featured windows with solid tion were introduced in the 1880s.
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 281
~I
with hood moulding, 1852. SN
0 A mid-century Gothic sash.
Q) Queen Anne sash windows,
1880s. The circle within a
~
tare is typical.
ffi A sash window of 1878.
A sash window section in the
Queen Anne style. CK
@ Two windows of 1869, one
with a pediment, the other with
a flat cornice and keystone. WV
(j) Bay windows became
common afrer c. 1850, ofren
used to update older houses. cc
17
ld
Ans of music and poetry - apt
for a room where music was
p_layed. ]BE
(D Miscellaneous window
fittings, late 19th century,
including espagnolette bars (or
French doors (left), sash pull
plates, sash lifts, and a shutter
1-1
hinge (bottom right). Cast fittings
with reliefdecoration were used
from c.1860. Most designs were
combinations ofgeometric and
stylized decoration that are now
termed "Eastlake". II
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 283
Walls
CD Fully panelled walls, ofren of 1
Amen"can hardwood, were
popular among the well-to-do in
the late 19th century. This
example, with a linenfold dado
and star motifS above, dates
(!om the 1880s. SAL
A fn"eze beneath a papered
ceiling. The design is made up of
individual wallpaper stn"ps: note
how the flower spn"gs overlap the
stn"p below. HA
Q) Floral wallpapers were
popular: in some the botanical
representation was highly
naturalistic. CE
@Papers with a dense all-over
pattern were popular in the last
decades ofthe 19th century.
Typically, this example is
restn"cted to the field of the wall,
above a panelled dado with fine
carved mouldings. CW
CD A William Moms wallpaper,
in the "Chrysanthemum"
pattern, above a panelled dado
with echoing floral motifS. This
wallpaper Clesign was produced
from 1877. Moms aimed to
convey the vigour ofplant
growth without directly imitating
nature. HA
Almost every domestic room had a base moulding After 1850, wallpaper was an affordable alternative to
I\. (skirting board/baseboard), and many had cornices paint. Rococo Revival papers in the mid-century usually
(crown mouldings) of some type. After the 1860s featured large leaf designs and architectural panels of
wainscot and chair rails once more became regular scroll ornament, applied from skirting board/baseboard
features. In the 1870s, the dado frieze enjoyed a vogue. to ceiling. In the 1870s popular taste shifted to bands or
It was recommended that walls be painted darker than friezes of paper above painted walls or wainscot. Lifelike
the ceiling and that the trim work should be darker or organic designs were favoured .
lighter than the walls. Oil paints and distemper colours In the late Victorian period hardwoods were recom-
(calcimine) were both used. White or light-coloured mended for trim moulding and wainscotting. Critics felt
walls were popular, although some writers argued for that native American wood species were most suitable,
more adventurous choices. A. J. Downing felt that treated with a clear finish. However, pine grained or flat-
entrance halls should be painted in sober colours, or to painted remained the most common finish of wood for
resemble stone; parlours should be cheerful and bright. most late 19th-century house builders.
284 AMERICAN VICTORIAN 1840-1910
~
kinds oT wallpaper. CK summoning a servant. Italianate wainscot, 1873. cc
(Z)A.]. Downing recommended @A wall with a dado frieze A wainscot with allowance
this design for drawing room above the wainscot. r a frieze of tiles, 1880s. CK
walls. It uses three woods - 0) Later Queen Anne and Two skirtinr; board/
black walnut, oak and yellow Shingle houses could have walls baseboard profiles, 1869. WD
pine. The panels would be filled like this, with a simple skirting Two hallway arches, 1869.
8 9
DO[]
10
Ceilings
1
0 A grand Italianate staii'\Xlell period. This version would be stencilled stars to represent the under-used vehicle for
skylight, with classical plaster appropriate to a Gothic or night sky was a not uncommon decoration. This example,
moufdings, c.1847. BO Italianate house. CE conceit. NA combining stencilling with
Ceiling roses/medallions Q) A panelled ceiling of c.1870, 0 Authors on design in c.1870 painted and gilded plaster, is
were carried on from the Federal with wooden bosses. The use of ofren focused on ceilings as an especially exuberant. cw
ecorated ceilings w ere favoured in American The post- Civil War period brought rich cycles of
D Victorian houses . Taste-makers decreed that even
the simplest rooms required cornices (crow n mould-
painted and papered ceiling decorations, ranging from
cloud-borne cherubs to elaborate, interlocking geo-
ings); 14 inches (36cm) was held by some to be the ideal metric patterns and naturalistic borders. Less expensive
depth. Some critics advocated coloured or patterned papers, introduced after c.1850, w ere used to produce
ceilings, but plain white remained the habitual choice. w hole ceiling designs as well as borders and central
Plaster roses/medallions continued from the Neo- panels. Stencilling was also used to decorate ceilings.
classical period, adapted to suit the various revival tastes. In the last decade of the century, some critics called
Thus, Rococo Revival roses/medallions gave way to for simpler ceiling design, using all-over papers in
Renaissance models later in the century. Other types of reticent patterns, w ith plain borders en suite w ith the
recommended plasterwork included panel mouldings, designs on the walls below.
as well as, for the rich, various types of medievalized Ceilings could also be of tongue-and-groove boards,
coffers and panels. or of tin in secondary areas of the house.
286 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840 - 1910
?~. . ~,,.,,#'"
cz:j
Floors
he most common floors throughout the 19th designs that would set off w alls and furniture, and by
T century were plain, unfinished, bleached pine
boards . From the mid-century, darker stained and
the end of the century pile carpets could be had in solid
colours. Straw, coconut or cloth matting was used in
polished floors gained in popularity. As the century pro- most houses. Mats dressed up houses in summer, when
gressed, these softwood floors were often treated as rugs were taken up, and in more modest houses served
sub-floors for decorative coverings, such as parquet. all year round in place of carpets . They were used in
Most home owners chose the flooring that best suited bedrooms by all classes.
specific rooms . Thus, tiles were used for entrance halls Floorcloths continued in use, especially in halls and
because they were durable and decorative , while pile kitchens. A newer option was linoleum (introduced
carpets were kept for the best rooms of a house. c.1860)- a mixture of ground cork, ground wood and
Early in the period carpets in Rococo and stylized nat- linseed oil laid on burlap or canvas backing. The well-
uralistic designs w ere favoured. Oriental motifs were to-do installed it in service areas, while poorer people
later preferred. Critics, how ever, argued for subtler used linoleum to imitate carpets and hardwoods.
288 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840 - 1910
CD A ~replace hearth ofglazed with reliefdecoration were made inlatd earthenware, usually popular in all styles of houses.
tiles, set into the plain boards in American factories from the decorated with geometric There were two major encaustic
that were standard (or the 1870s. HA designs based on their tile companies based at
Victorian house. Glazed tiles Durable encaustic tiles, of Romanesque prototypes, were Zanesville, Ohio. cw
Q) and @ Two ~ne parquetry @ and 0 In 1839 Erastus B. developed similar technology for 1840s to the 1860s. Later,
fioors, in light and dark woods. Bigelow, based in Clinton, Brussels carpets. The centre of Oriental carpets enjoyed a
NA Massachusetts, patented American carpet production vogue, and "Persians" were
(}) A square ofpatterned power-driven looms for the shifted from Philadelphia to made by all the major
oilcloth, on which a stove would manufacture of ingrain carpets, New England. Organic designs American manufacturers of the
stand. and dunng the 1850s he were most fashionable from the 1880s.
Fireplaces
Many late Victorian fireplaces and intricate carpentry, is the contrasting plain marble slip. wrote: "The fireplace is really the
had built-in cupboards, but this exceptionally ornate. An Mary Gay Humphreys, the domestic alta" the tnte rallying
one, with its wealth ofgilding effective feature of the design is prolific writer on household taste, point of the household." SAL
eating was an important issue for 19th-century Rococo Revival models in marble and Renaissance
H Americans: surviving the winter in a wood house
in a climate more severe than Europe's was a major con-
Revival designs with incised decoration on marble or
wood. Later fireplaces followed Arts and Crafts models.
versational topic. Even after the fireplace was made Neo-classical types were reintroduced with Shingle-
technically obsolete by the widespread use of the stove style houses.
and by central heating, it retained a symbolic and dec- Fireplaces held pride of place in the living halls of later
orative importance. Stoves eliminated draughts, and Victorian houses, evoking the medieval spirit that archi-
thus made rooms seem stuffy, and therefore, to some tects tried so hard to foster. The seductive notion of the
critics, unhealthy. Moreover, an open fire was a sign of cosy hearth and the open fire was strengthened in some
wealth, as it was more expensive to fuel than a stove, rooms by the addition of overmantels and robust com-
and implied servants to tend it. So the fireplace was not binations of display shelves, seats, decorative panels
readily abandoned. and works of art, making a complex ensemble that
The most stylish fireplaces of the mid-century were served as a focal point for the room.
290 AMERICAN VICTORIAN 1840 - 1910
2
~ 'M~ ~~~ 00[
A
~
tt{ ~ =
~ "====
:c
I I
CD A Gothic-style fireplace, with typical three, dating from the same period, is from a houses could have plain stone surrounds of
quatrefoil corners. The angle at which the p_arlour in Batavia, New York. almost Neo-classical severity, like the
arch is sloped is also characteristic. Q) Stone fireplaces of marble or slate were example rJ/ustrated here, which is from a
0 Three Renaissance Revival examyles, the first choice for the well-to-do. Simpler parlour of the 1860s.
with typical decorative details. The ftrst is
illustrated in Cummings' Architectural 6 (( 7
Details, published in New York in 1873.
The second dates from 1869. The last of the
\ 0 Ill
>
=
@An elaborate slate fireplace, advenised by @ A Queen Anne fireplace in pine featunng
T.B. Stewan and Company ofNew York. q_pulvinated (convex) frieze.
CD This fireplace features a slip ofdecorative (?)A wooden chimneypiece from a late
tiles imponed from the British firm Minton's. Victorian house. The tiles, in relief, depict
hunting scenes. The grate has a cover for use
8 in the summer. HA
The pairing ofa fireplace with an example ofthe 1850s; the mirror is framed mirror, designed (or the hall ofan opulent
overman tel mirror was an 18th-century idea '?J. gilded wood. house in the Stick or Queen Anne style,
that became readily affordable after the (f) An Italianate-style fireplace with 1880s. To the lefr is a closet door, to the
1850s. The combination of fireplace and overmantel mirror. From Woodward's right, a solrd wood panel, matching the
mirror featured in every Victorian revival National Architect 1869. WD closet door in every detail except the handle
style except Shingle. This is a Gothic Revival @ An ambitious fireplace, with overmantel and keyhole escutcheon plate. CK
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 291
(!)Pattern books ofthe period illustrate richly produce an effect o[.grandeur. An unusual
bracketed overmantel fireplaces like this one. feature is the dogs heads in the spandrels of
The vast mirror spread the lighting. GW the arched recess. NA
@Plain fireplaces, ofalmost Grecian ([)Decorative tiles contrast with a wooden
simplicity, were produced throughout the surround in this fireplace of the 1870s. On
period in wood, slate and marble. This is a many such fireplaces the tiles would be
marble example, dating from c.1850. GE pictoria~ each one representing a different
Q)A grand ovennantel fireplace, integral scene, as here. Fender benches like this were
with wooden panelling ofthe room. Four uncommon in 19th-century American houses.
small rectangular panels along the frieze GW
illustrate polychrome scenes of chariots and @ An especially elaborate example ofa
other antiquarian motifs. Note the tiled Rococo Revival fireplace, suitable for an
hearth, in a checked pattern. NA ltalianate house. Simpler versions were more
@A Renaissance Revival fireplace with an common: many were imported from Europe,
overmantel mirror in a typical style. The although some were also made in the United
~anking double columns and entablature States. BO
5
292 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840- 1910
(j) A typical Queen Anne (20cm). The mantel shelf is ornaments, are a typical feature
fireplace of the 1870s or 80s. A soapstone. CK ofthe later Victorian period.
wooden overmantel with mirrors 0 This elaborate fireplace with @ Reflecti'!S the taste ofthe
and a space for a picture, arched masonry below and a Amencan c..<ueen Anne style,
surmounts the glazed brick tiered overmantel culminates in this grand fireplace combines a
surround. a cresting ofspindles. The glazed display cabinet, mirrors
0 Another Queen Anne shelves, for the display of and shelves, with an elegant
fireplace, 1881. The alcove has spindled gallery surmounting the
a recess depth of8 inches composition.
6 7
~
movement. An ornately ornamented
A simt;ler, Arts and Crafis- 11 eplace heater, with a classical
inspired ftreplace, 1881: a head design in the central
reinterpretation of earlier cartouche.
designs. @ Two designs for iron
A fireplace heater of the andirons, both dating from the
1880s. Its openwork domed top 1880s, showing Arts and Crafis
could be removed and replaced and Aesthetic influences.
with a tin plat,e, upon which @ A Colonial Revival-style
kettles could be boiled. andiron.
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 293
Kitchen stoves
1
y the mid-19th century the cooking range had been bread in the oven and cooked a turkey in the tin roaster,
B adopted into the American kitchen. Hearth cookery
was becoming a lost art. However, acceptance of the
as well as providing a flat surface for cooking in pans.
By the 1880s gas stoves were being widely used.
cooking stove was hesitant, as the temperatures were Together with oil stoves, they were recommended for
at first difficult to gauge. Early Victorian designs hot weather cookery, as they needed to be lit only
followed early 19th-century prototypes: simple raised during the cooking period . Fuel costs made extended
fire boxes with a flat cooking top next to a side oven. use of gas stoves expensive.
Mid-century improvements are documented in the 1869 More decorative attention was given to stoves as the
edition of Beecher and Stowe's American Woman's Home, century progressed. Models began to mirror furniture
which describes a range that kept 17 gallons (64litres) design, featuring motifs such as Queen Anne legs and
of water hot at all times, baked pies and puddings in a Rococo Revival cartouches. These decorations can be
warm closet, heated flat irons under the back cover, viewed as an attempt to make the new stove technol-
boiled a tea-kettle and a pot under its front cover, baked ogy familiar to the homemaker.
294 AMERICAN VICTORIAN 1840-1910
Staircases
uch was done, particularly late in the 19th cen- stair halls late in the period, stairs became the focus of
M tury, to exploit the architectural and decorative
value of stairs. Until the mid-century central stair halls
further experiments, and more elaborate series of flights
and landings were contrived. Often the principal
were typical. This changed with the freedom in landing between the entrance floor and the floor above
planning introduced with the Gothic and Italianate featured a stained-glass window. The richest windows
Revivals . Stairs were located asymmetrically near the were pictorial, while the more modest ones were
front door and usually near the principal parlour. Gothic geometric. Stair halls were regularly lit by skylights,
and Italianate stairs tend to be a single flight from floor either with plain glazing or stair glass, sometimes with
to floor. The balusters were complex, round turnings elaborate designs.
and the newels were turned, faceted and chamfered. Carpet was the preferred stair covering, but floor
In simpler dwellings the newel could be the most cloths and matting were also used. Brass was a popular
elaborate piece of woodwork in the house. material for the stair rods, but iron and even, occasion-
With the adoption of combination living spaces and ally, silver are also found .
- -- - - - - - -- - -- - - - - - - -- - -- - - - - -
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 295
~l 0[G~'It
knob and facetted shafr were
.2 ~ popular from the 1850s into the
~ I ~.. =-
F===~ @ 1870s. wr
The Queen Anne staircase
~ with stained glass in the
" _ ~ ~===4 landing window was a typical
D ~\===:~=====! formula. Newel posts
o__., ~ frequently featured a rosette
-'-"-- ----'--'-'--------'- motif
296 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840-1910
10
0
~
Victorian manufacturers A box-like newel, 1880s. mil/worker's art. Available in @ Later Victon(m stairs tend to
produced balusters based on Three designs of 1903. UD yellow pine or oak. UD have more square elements and
18th-century originals. These String decoration, 1903, @ Typical handrail profiles, late to be heavier in scale. This
ones are c.1900. UD showing the elaboration of the 19th century. example is from the 1880s. HA
Al\1ER1CA:. \ lCfORJ.A:. 297
Built-in furniture
A lthough freestanding furniture remained the more on landings. Also below stairs, or at the end of a range
r\ popular option, many Americans turned to built- of public rooms, were Turkish or "cozy corners": lux-
in furniture in the last decades of the 19th century. uriously cushioned exotic spaces that played to the
Revival-style houses provided plenty of opportunities. Victorian need for domestic sanctuary from the indus-
Closets became common in the 1870s, as people trialized world. Benches and inglenooks were built to
acquired more clothing than could be stored in chests flank fireplaces. Window seats were popular in Shingle
and armoires. The number of books published in the and Colonial Revival houses.
United States also multiplied, and accordingly libraries Most American kitchens housed only freestanding
with permanent shelves became common features in components, with the exception of some fixed sink
middle-class houses , while continuing to be built on enclosures. However, later in the century, built-in
an increasingly grand scale by the rich. cabinets and appliances began to appear in kitchens,
The introduction of the combined living and stair as well as in the pantries and sewing rooms of larger
hall created ideal spaces for settles, below stairs and houses.
298 AMERICAN VICTORIAN 1840- 1910
([) A library wall, with into the library could be
bookcases, based on a drawing disguised as a bookcase, with
published by A. }. Downing. For false book spines to complete
the sake ofsymmetry and the illusion.
harmony ofdesign, Downing This recessed bay with
suggested that one ofthe doors button-upholstered seat is
positioned between a pair of
bedroom closets.
Q) A design for a glazed
bookcase in a Gothic villa, with
linenfold panelling on the closet
3 doors beneath. A. }. Downing
wrote: "The spaces below
afford excellent closets for
pamphlets and manuscripts,
and the busts ofdistinguished
men, in different departments
ofletters, may be so placed
along the top as to desisnate to
what particular class of books
the space directly below is
allotted." Downing also
recommended hanging
bookshelves.
Services
An Imperial porcelain but they were expensive to porcelain-lined bath and seat Cl) Water closets could take on
bathtub with marble rim and transport and install. MOT bath, and all-porcelain water attractive forms such as this
legs, and inlaid around the rim 0 A bathroom for those who closet. MOT dolphin. The water tank above
with tiles. All-porcelain tubs preferred to dispense with @ Showers were introduced in the seat was the standard
were produced from the 1870s, cabinet work. It contains a the 1870s. MOT design. MOT
he first American bathrooms were installed in what facturers such as Kohler followed suit. Porcelain had
T had previously been storerooms or small bedrooms.
Bathtubs, wash basins and water closets were not nec-
long been used for chamber pots, and was easily
adapted for the fixed water closet, which at first was
essarily placed in the same room, or even close to each encased in a wooden box for concealment. From the
other. However, toward the tum of the century, archi- 1830s inventors experimented with gravity-fed water
tects began to designate specific spaces for bathrooms. systems which allowed for a sanitary flush. These
The first bathtubs affixed to the floor appeared at the devices were fully perfected in the 1890s, culminating
time of the Civil War and were individually fabricated in the self-washing bowl and siphon jet we use today.
from sheet metal-lead, copper or zinc- encased in a The wooden roof gutters of the first half of the century
wood frame. Painted iron baths stood several inches off were gradually replaced, first by cast iron and then by
the floor on feet cast in ball and claw shapes, or as scrolls sheet-metal versions. Later Victorian house builders,
with leaf patterns. The Matt Iron Works produced the following historic prototypes, sometimes used whim-
first porcelain enamelled baths in 1873, and other manu- sical spouts and gargoyles to carry off rainwater.
300 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840- 1910
(i) An expensive washstand, in walnut, ash, cherry or ebonized designed to fit into a corner, porcelain-lined, with bronzed,
the "Eastlake" style, 1888. The cherry cabinet. MOT 1888. MOT marbleized or painted exterior,
marble top is set into a black 0 An enamelled wash basin, Q) A folding wash basin, 1888. MOT
3 4
'
1
@A wood-burning stove, with @A detail ofa cast-iron down @An eaves gutter, in cross-
side collar, c.1898. FL pipddownspout, with an section.
@A boiler, available in copper ornamental bracket for fastening @ Gargoyle water spouts often
or galvanized iron. MOT to the wall. MOT appear on Romanesque houses.
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 301
Lighting
~
A kerosene or coal-oil/amp. 1890s.
A ~xed gas bracket, 1890s. An iron kerosene-burning @ An Italianate design for a
A Rococo gas bracket, Starr, chandelier, c.1890. It could be newel post lamp, from
Fellows and Company, New lowered from the ceiling for ~/ling Woodward's National
York, 1856. and maintenance. Architect, 1869.
etween c.1850 and the century's end, life evolved installation of the complex and costly piping needed for
B dramatically from the sparing use of a modestly lit
family room to a more general and constant form of illu-
gas. Also, kerosene fixtures could be moved for specific
tasks. Gas, however, continued to be popular, as it did
mination. This change was accomplished by combined not require manual refilling of fixtures, and burned
use of candles, oil lamps, kerosene (paraffin) and, ulti- cleaner than kerosene. The use of kerosene with piped
mately, electricity. gas and, eventually, electricity provided a fail-safe for
The most advanced lighting by 1850.was still gravity- convenient but sometimes umeliable lighting systems.
fed oil and fluid-burning lamps. Popular in Gothic and The Edison system of electric lighting included an
Italianate interiors, they were improved by means of inexpensive carbon-filament lamp which gave a
new burners and chimney designs. This type was super- pleasant light and could be turned on and off like a gas
seded by gas light; shades and scrubbers made the light jet. But as electricity became popular with the late Vic-
gentler and minimized the smell. torians, at the same time flattering candlelight gained
Kerosene, perfected in the 1850s, did not require renewed favour for evening entertainments.
302 AMERICAN VICTORIAN 1840-1910
Metalwork
(J) Decorative railings for were used throughout the the South. This example is from
1 balconies were made in an countty, although iron balconies New York, and dates from the
infinite variety ofdesigns. They are most usually associated with 1850s. The pendant ironwork
decoration at the upper levels
helps to unify the design.
0 Cast-iron columns support
a wire railing veranda. The wire
used is of %-inch (0.6cm)
thickness. The columns could be
dispensed with, and brackets
substituted, provided that the
veranda did not extend too far
from the exterior wa/1 ofthe
house. Verandas of this design
could also be used at ground
level, in which case the columns
would not be necessaty.
Q) An ironwork stoop, from an
1857 catalogue. This example
has a sober gravity, but more
flond Rococo Revival designs
were also popular at this period.
0 Cast-iron gri//es like this
were unusual on a// but the
fanciest Gothic-style Victorian
houses. Cast-iron gates were
@Metal urns and vases were more common.
used as garden ornaments, but (5) Metal heating vents such as
could also be employed as these became necessaty when
finials to gate piers. central heating was introduced in
0 to (jO) In the 1870s and 80s, the 1830s. These designs date
wrought- and cast-iron garden 3 from the 1870s.
railings grew in popularity.
@A Gothic-style finial,
suitable as roof decoration.
@ The matt{of the galloping
horse was a particularly
popular weather vane design
for the roofs of carriage houses
t t
and stables.
@ The complexity of Second
Empire and Queen Anne 7
Jili-
houses was enhanced, at the
roofline, by metal crestings and
finials. The finial pictured here
has a pennant at its tip, serving
as a weather vane.
@Ayrofi/e and face-on view
nm
ofa flower-shaped finial.
@An iron finial with pennant,
1880s.
@ Iron roof crestings, from the
1870s. Second Empire houses
ofren have such crestings
arranged in a square on top of I II I I II
a tower with a steep mansard
roof The first of these two 11
designs was produced by]. W
Fiske o{New York, the second
by the Phoenix Iron Works,
San Francisco.
-
304 AMERICANVICTORIAN 1840-1910
Woodwork
Woodwork was an essential A literal interpretation of the
medium for conveying the 2 English half-timbered tradition
essence of a particular style, as which was very important to the
demonstrated by all five American Victorian styles,
examples on this page. particularly the Stick style. The
(J) Octagonal houses were built last is characterized by patterns
in all the m1d-century styles. of vertical, horizontal and
Many have minimal ornamental diagonal boards which make a
detailing but the encircling highly decorative effect.
veranda could be ornate. This Structural elements such as
Oriental version was designed corner posts, brackets and
by the Philadelphia architect railings tend to be large on Stick-
Samuel Sloan. style houses and without rhe
elaborate ornamentation found
on, for example, Queen Anne
houses. NA
any American houses in the period relied exclu- The role of decorative woodwork can be seen in the
M sively on woodwork for their rich decoration.
Spectacular facades testify to an infinite number of dec-
development of porches and verandas (piazzas).
Because these were highly visible, appended features,
orative permutations. Most Gothic elements were their ornamentation was especially lavish. The posts
carpenter-made. In the Queen Anne and Stick styles, could be elaborately turned or chamfered, there was
millwork runs riot as a rich assortment of prefabricated space for repeated brackets, and the balustrade lent itself
items. Sometimes woodwork was patterned after Euro- to further turnings or even pierced decorations, such as
pean masonry prototypes. moon and stars motifs.
Such elaboration was possible because of the abun- The richness of woodwork was highlighted by
dance of wood in the United States and the develop- carefully conceived paint schemes. At least three colours
ment of specialized mills throughout the country. Firms were recommended for the exterior, and often many
offered scores of options, and there was infinite choice more (up to seven for Queen Anne). Shingle houses
within the confines of the prevailing styles. often used stained wood, with painted trim.
AMERICAN VICTORIAN 305
~===&;,1
I
c =--....._,_~-.~-
9
306
he Artsand Crafts movement sought, in the face of Shaw (1831-1912), built many houses and created,
T the grim industrialization of the 19th century, to
create new and more beautiful environments in which
almost single-handed, the influential British Queen Anne
style, characterized by tile-hung facades, Gverhanging
people might live and delight in fine craftsmanship eaves and horizontal bands of leaded windows. He later
wrought with intrinsically attractive building materials. called upon the work of Sir Christopher Wren and the
The English critic John Ruskin (1819-1900) directed detailing of 17th-century Flemish town houses to give
attention to the qualities of medieval architecture, hold- his houses a more classical feeling. Shaw designed sev-
ing up as models the members of craft guilds and the eral small villas in the late 1870s for a new "artistic"
builders of the great cathedrals. A whole generation of suburb of west London called Bedford Park. The basic
artists and designers was influenced by Ruskin. Among elements of red brick, white woodwork and features
them, William Morris (1834-96), who is most closely such as porches and oriel windows were rapidly adopted
associated with the Arts and Crafts movement, took to by commercial developers and used into the 1920s.
heart Ruskin's pleas for honesty of materials and crafts- The Oueen Anne style proved enormously influential
manship. The Red House, built for Morris in Bexley- in the United States, where it dominated architectural
heath, near London, in 1859, is the starting point of the debate and practice from the 1870s. Shaw's style was
new style. Its architect, Philip Webb (1831-1915), turned given two very distinctive American features: an exten-
from the High Victorian Gothic style to a simpler ver- sive use of wood, for shingle cladding, verandas and dec-
nacular architecture based on old English cottages and orative facade details, and novel, informal planning. The
farmhouses. Webb built few houses, yet he influenced a latter is seen in the work of Henry Hobson Richardson
whole group of younger architects working in the late (1838-86). Oueen Anne features appear in Tuxedo Park,
1890s. New York, built from 1885 and grander by far than
By contrast, Webb's contemporary, Richard Norman Bedford Park.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 307
In general terms, the influence of early English proto- The transition from the early to the later Arts and
types on the masses and detailing of American Arts and Crafts style may be seen in the w ork of the American
Crafts houses was tempered by the impact of the tradi- architect Wilson Eyre (1858-1944), who favoured ver-
tional domestic building of Japan. The integrated inte- nacular forms and open planning. He was much admired
rior spaces and the horizontality of Japanese houses by the younger generation of British practitioners, such
strongly influenced Frank Lloyd Wright (1869-1959). as C.F.A. Voysey (1857-1941) and M.H. Baillie Scott
The tone of the Arts and Crafts interior was set by (1865-1945). Voysey's long low houses have simple
William Morris. In 1861 he founded Morris and Com- forms, relieved by pleasing details such as his character-
pany w hich produced furniture, carpets, wallpapers and istic heart motif. British architects now worked for a new
textiles. Everything was made to the highest standards kind of client, the modest but prosperous businessman
and, w here possible, using traditional methods and or professional who wanted something between the
materials . For example, the original Morris wallpapers, vaunting country house and the simple suburban houses
w ith their floral and Gothicized designs, were printed of Bedford Park. Such patrons w ere encouraged in their
from w oodblocks, using natural dyes. (Confusingly, tastes by the English periodical, The Studio, first published
another, more commercialized firm called William in 1893 and influential on both sides of the Atlantic.
Morris and Company also traded from London, owned The most important figure of the later British Arts and
by a namesake of the great designer and manufacturing Crafts movement is Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944), w ho
Arts and Crafts metalw ork.) could juggle with a few simple elements to achieve a
From the 1870s, Arts and Crafts interiors were increas- strikingly original effect. His early houses rely upon half-
ingly influenced by the allied crusade in taste and deco- timbering, but later he turned to the classical vocabulary,
ration called the Aesthetic movement. Beauty and preferring the established traditions to the increasingly
craftsmanship were central tenets, as they w ere to Arts abstract experiments of his contemporaries. Late Arts
and Crafts principles, but an interest in exotic styles and and Crafts in the United States found a different path,
forms and the wealth of the patrons gave the Aesthetic one which referred back to first principles, but expressed
movement a more sophisticated quality. There were two them in a more modem idiom. Gustav Stickley, through
major phases to the movement. Interiors of the 1860s his publication Th e Craftsman (1901-16), promoted a
and 70s use rich soft colours and dense patterning which holistic view of living, whereby the house worked as a
complement the contemporary Pre-Raphaelite school of harmonious unit. Craftsmanship was used to reveal the
painting. Oriental china, much in vogue among discrim- qualities of natural materials. Charles and Henry Greene
inating collectors, was displayed in abundance. By the (1868-1957, 1870-1954), who worked as Greene and
1880s this style had come to seem cluttered and a greater Greene in California, produced the finest Craftsman
simplicity appears in the work of Shaw in England, and houses, employing beautiful woods and the best joinery
Sullivan and Stanford White (1853-1906) in the United in spacious houses. In their quest for the ideal living
States. White walls and ceilings give a sense of space to space, it is possible to trace a line from Richardson, to
rooms which, especially in the United States, look to the Greene and Greene and to the greatest American archi-
East for inspiration. tect of the 20th century, Frank Lloyd Wright.
308 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1925
Doors
The instde of the front door of Philip Webb, built for his close based on historical and decorative chevrons and stylized
the Red House, Bexleyheath, friend William Morris. The two vernacular precedents. This stained glass are highly
near London, 1859. The house men shared the ideals of frne, sturdy door is reminiscent of co11temporary, striking
was the frrst commission of uncluttered crafrsmanship, medieval form s, but the embellishments. RH
he search for purer architectural forms drew interior and outside door in the late 19th century in
T designers to historical sources for their doors. Early
Arts and Crafts doors, both external and internal, are
which three elongated panels are set beneath a glazed
panel. This was much imitated and became the standard
often of plain plank construction, inspired by English American Craftsman door of the early 20th century.
medieval forms. These were usually fitted with elabo- Grand Aesthetic Movement interior doorways of the
rate iron hinges and a latch rather than a knob or handle. 1880s had intricate carvings or painted door panels. The
Another inspiration was the Georgian six-panelled door, latter were very influential, and many standard Victo-
although the proportions tend to be subtly altered. rian four-panel doors were enhanced with painted or
As the entrance symbolized the welcome of the house, papered "Aesthetic" decoration: flowing floral and bird
porches were an important feature of Arts and Crafts designs were most popular.
houses, particularly in later designs which look to ver- Leaded and stained glass were fashionable in both Brit-
nacular precedents and often incorporate seats. C.F.A. ish and American doors . Some later designs show Art
Voysey, in Britain, developed an idiosyncratic form of Nouveau influence, frowned upon by many architects.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 309
0 The plain plank doo"' with
glazed panels above, derives 1 2
from a design by C.F.A. Voysey. ;2
0
It became a typical feature ofArts 0
0
and Crafts houses.
(2) A heavy calVed front door DOD
ihat draws upon elim;ents of
~anish design. London.
DOD
(D This doorway from the Henry
Osborne Havemeyer house,
New York, 1890-91, is
sumptuously glazed with Tiffany
~
glass. Such work is at the height
ofArts and Crafts taste, in which
Renaissance prototypes are as
prevalent as traditional
vernacular models.
4 5
@ Glazed doors in the @ and (j) The infiuence of"Old entrance. It was designed by the This porch, published in The
Queen Anne taste are typical English" models on Arts and architects Baillie Scott and Studio in 1903, is an imposing
ofsuburban houses Crafts architecture is seen in these Beresford for a house in Kent, feature on the facade ofa large
throughout Bn.tain. This two porches from large houses. The 1927. The second, half-timbered house. Built of brick, it
porch displays the fancy first incorporates a room above the example is from 1904. inco~orates a decorative stone
white woodwork that is relie and piers.
typical of the style, in both legant calVed panels on and
Britain and the United over doors are found in the most
States. luxunous designs. This overdoor
(J) This door by C.F.A. and door panel by Louis H.
Voysey, c.1908, has a deeply Sullivan feature spiked and
recessed porch with built-in curled foliate motifs, hallmarks of
seating. The large simple some of his best decorative work.
forms are typical ofthe Both details come from Chicago
architect's style. houses ofthe mid-1880s.
310 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860 - 1925
1 n======== =n
i2
0
0
Q
I I~
5
0 and Panelled and glazed fonns. The proponions ofthe second CD This design for a painted door gave additional light and a sense of
doors. The first example recalls the example, with the emphasis on by Lewis F. Day appeared in Art space to a house. This stylish group
designs o{Voysey. The second, width, identify it as a 19th-century Amateur, December 1880, an offour glazed panels (a double door
more elaborate design is from The ~ture. American penodical which with siae lights) is from the living
Longcroft Helensburgh, Scotland (})Surrounds could be richly carved, provided useful advice on the room ofa house in Riverside, Illinois.
0 and@ Two- ana six-panelled as in this doorway from Kensington enrichment ofhouses. A wide variety ofmass-produced
doors were Queen Anne Revival Coun, London, 1897. 0 Glazed doors, used intemally, items was available through
builders' suppliers catalogues.
Wrought-iron and cast-iron door
fumiture!hardware that resembled
beaten work was popular.
These mass-produced items
were sold under the name ofAn
Black Carden City Fumiture. They
ry.produced wrought-iron work. YM
I@) The Studio ran design
competitions. This knocleer was a
fllize-winner in the 1890s.
@A copper escutcheon plate by
Charles Emanuel with an
12 embossed scorpion.
~
@An elegant door knob and lock
by Charles and Henty Greene.
@C. F. A Voysey's Charaaer.istic
hean-shaped metalwork was
widely copied.
@A brass handle from a
Birmingham (England) foundry.
@Thomas Elsley's chased lock and
Emanuel's copper fingetplate!push
plate are among the best examples
ofcommercial door fittings.
312 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1925
Windows
0 A typical American
Crafrsman window, with a shelf 1
for flowers. Early 20th century. ....._
@ A narrow light by Charles /
;~
7
;w DO
-....-
= F=
= F=
.... 1-
D .... F=
-'-- D
Q) and Designs combining windows designed by Richard taste. New jersey, c.1900.
windows and !!?lazed doors were Norman Shaw for artists' houses @ Small windows are a feature
popular. The ftrst group is from a in Kensington, London. ofArts and Crafrs design. The
Crafrsman town house, c.1910. (1i5) Two carved lintels, typical of first, c.1905, was sited above a
The second, English design is by the work ofLouis H. Sullivan in row of built-in cupboardsi the
C.F.A. Voysey, c.1904. Chicago, 1880s. second, c.1899, allowed light into
A tall window in Bedford Leaded lights were used in an inglenook.
Park, west London, 1880s, commercial developments and @ Dormer windows were ofren
reminiscent ofthe great studio show the influence ofAesthetic used in groups. England, 1904.
11
10
314 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1925
(J) and Small dormer
windows and other traditional 2
vernacular forms were much
used on smaller houses. These
examples are from Hampstead
Garden Suburb, London,
c.191 0. The first one has a
small casement window set
beneath a tile-hung gable above
a deeply recessed porch. The
second, symmetrical design on a
semi-detached house, is
enhanced by the graphic use of
the pipes. RS
0 An elegant window divided
into four narrow lights at the
Gamble House, Pasadena,
California, 1908-9. CC
0 British Arts and Crafrs
architects ofren attempted to
unify the semi-detached house
by symmetrical window
groupings. Here, two windows
belong to one house and the
third to its neighbour. RS
(}) Coloured glass was an Morris' house refiect his taste for New York, 1880s, has an
7 important feature of many Arts motifs derived from nature. RH Oriental-style ventilation grille.
and Crafrs desifp1s. The 0 Fredenc E. Church's studio It can be opened by means of
painted panes from William in Olana, Hudson River Valley, pulleys. o
~-----=-o 0
-=
o -
ij)---"'--IJ) ~o -tP these (c.1920) on a commercial
basis. The gryphon on the
handle plate recalls medieval
chivalry; the fixed casement
restraint copies vernacular work.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 315
Walls
The rich reddish tones ofthe studio walls of Pictures were hung dose together in gilt frames,
Olana, built near the Hudson River, New York, and fomted pan~a complete architectural
in the 1870s and 80s, are typical ofthe broad comrosition, care ully calculated by designers to
tonal effects sought by "anistic" decorators and unity the room. he pointed form ofthe arch
house owners. Stencilling was ofien used to speaks ofIslamic in~uence and is a motif found
outline the division ofdcido, field and frieze. throughout this Moorish-style house. 0
A!though many Arts and Crafts interiors employ the acceptable wall covering, and William Morris designs
r\.. tripartite division of the wall into dado, field and were found in all classes of British houses and in better
frieze, both British and American architects used taller American houses. American firms such as Warren, Fuller
dado panelling than the classic proportions dictated. Full and Company of New York were active from the 1880s.
panelling was also used on occasion, in the hall or dining Early papers have floral and medievalized designs; Aes-
room, but polished indigenous woods were limited to thetic papers of the 1880s show Japanese influence.
grander houses. Painted panelling is usually a flat or Dado, field and frieze schemes were fashionable, but
ivory white; sage green and olive green (derived from wallpaper borders were a less expensive alternative.
18th-century practice) were popular Aesthetic colours. Stamped papers reproduced the effect of old Spanish
Stencilled friezes were also popular. Craftsman country leather, used in the influential Peacock Room designed
houses often have structural log, stone or brick walls. by Thomas Jeckyll and James Abbott McNeill Whistler
The fine wallpapers produced by Morris and Com- for F.R. Leyland in London. Tapestry hangings were
pany of London from the 1870s rendered paper an much used in late interiors.
316 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860 - 1925
1 2
~ ffiffiffitaffi
i
tBtBffiffitE
ffiffiffiffiffi
~ ~ ~
II II IIII
I 0
I I
!
IIli D DDLUUU _ _I DDD
0 Cottage-style houses for the 0 Another example from The
middle classes ofien received an 4 Craftsman, 1907, showing
Ans and Crafis treatment. This panial wainscotting. Note the
illustration, originally contraction ofthe dado and the
published in the Amencan consequent elongation of the
pen"odical The Craftsman in ~eld. The window forms a
1905, shows a simple design decorative panel.
for wainscotting. Q) This wall treatment was
published in The Studio in the
1890s. It was designed by
C.H.B. Quennel! and features
sinuous stencilled patterns within
q_panelled framework.
(i) A wide vanety of
wainscotting was produced
commercially. These three show
high panelling with a fn.eze
above. The ~rst and last
examples have plaster fn"ezes,
the second has a William Morris
wallpaper fn"eze. Note the
linenfold panelling. borrowed
from Tudor on"ginals. L
1 2
(J) A Bn'tish drawing-room, This rosebush line of field, Crafts and Aesthetic pagers, which he created to simulate
c.1901. The typical high dado frieze and border wallpapers including designs by William !s11ik (Islamic-type) ceramics.
panelling is sunnounted by a was produced by jeffrey and Morris. HHF The cypress and orange trees
shallow field hung with a silk Company, London, c.1909, who Q) These William de Morgan (top) are typical Islamic motifs.
tapestry; the frieze is stencilled. s printed some of the best Ans and tiles include the blue glazes London, 1890s. DB
Ceilings
eilings in Arts and Crafts houses owe much to tious designs of Charles and Henry Greene in Califor-
C vernacular designs and materials. In the early phase
of the movement, architects strove to remain as true as
nia tend to favour linear forms. They sometimes used
wood stains, to highlight the geometrical shapes. Only
possible to late medieval forms. They used great cham- their later work of the 1920s reveals a more decorative
fered beams, or designed plaster ceilings, complete with intent, with Spanish-style carved beams and embossed
ribs, moulded pendants and bosses. Some Aesthetic plasterwork. Barrel-vaulted ceilings were favoured in
movement ceilings show Oriental influence, with intri- the grandest houses on both sides of the Atlantic, some-
cate coffering, painted and gilded. Inevitably these were times with musicians' galleries.
costly finishes in terms of craftsmanship, and few could Painted stencilled decoration was desirable, but ceil-
afford such luxuries. The movement in its maturity ing papers were far more common. These became
valued simplicity and utility, epitomized by the uniform acceptable in the wake of William Morris wallpapers.
lath and plaster ceilings found in American Craftsman They were often embossed. In the early 20th century,
houses of the early 20th century. Even the more ambi- intricate, prefabricated plasterwork became popular.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 319
3
@ Barrel vaulting was desirable
and usually consists oflath-and-
plaste!Work. The example from
the Dana House, Illinois, by
Frank Lloyd Wright, c.1903,
shows incipient modernism. The
second, traditional ceiling is by
Philip Webb, 1859. RH
Exposed beams in Ens/ish movement artists from the 1860s Renaissance (E.H. Blashfreld,
ceilings almost always refer to draws upon a number of United States, c.1900).
vernacular forms. These designs sources. The frrst detail is in the CD By contrast, a geometric
by M.H. Baillie Scott are for a Anglo-japanese style (Vincent plaster ceiling panel by Louis H.
living hall and a comdor, early Stiepevich, New York, c.1875- Sullivan, late 19th century.
20th century. 85); the second is Islamic (P.B.
@ The rich tradition of ceiling White, New York, 1869); the
painting adapted by Aesthetic third looks back to the Italian
320 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1925
Floors
1
2 3
he only honest and acceptable forms of flooring for a better timber, although in the early 1860s there was a
T Arts and Crafts houses in both Britain and the
United States are wood and stone. The finest wooden
short-lived vogue for painted floors such as deep blue
or Indian red. These usually appeared only as borders
floors are cut from the full width of tree trunks and have to carpets. Stone flagging was particularly popular in
a solidity which is unmatched. However, well-chosen country houses, for entrance halls, or living halls.
planking was equally acceptable. Oak was the preferred Carpets were widely employed. In Britain, William
wood in Britain, and its natural beauty would be Morris and Christopher Dresser designed some very
enhanced by simple polishing. Craftsman designers beautiful carpets, intricate and regular in their patterns.
favoured indigenous American woods, such as oak and In the United States, authentic Turkish, Indian and
maple, as well as exotic hardwoods. Gustav Stickley Persian carpets, or simple matting, were favoured. How-
recommended that wooden floors should be at least as ever, most householders made do with machine-manu-
dark as the adjaceri.t wall panelling. Staining was factured carpets: imitation Oriental in Britain, French-
reserved for inferior pine flooring, to create the effect of style floral or simple geometric in the United States.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 321
Fireplaces
This chimneypiece, designed by Richard support the mantel shelfand frame the richly
Norman Shaw for Cragside, Northumbna, decorated recess, with its panels of ceramic
England, in 1870, is a tour de force ofArts tiles. The highly polished andirons were
and Crafrs work. The great carved corbels designed as part ofthe ensemble. CR
he Arts and Crafts search for the traditional values Tiling was very popular for fireplace slips. Some good
T of hearth and home gave special importance to the
fireplace. Inglenooks were the most significant manifes-
designers collaborated with manufacturers on series of
pictorial tiles. For example, Walter Crane tiles were
tation of this preoccupation on both sides of the made by Minton and Company of Stoke-on-Trent,
Atlantic; in grand architect-designed houses they could Staffordshire, England, and the American Encaustic
be massive. Simple chimneypieces of the 1880s have Tiling Company of Zanesville, Ohio. Kate Greenaway
shelving for the display of blue-and-white china. The illustrations were also popular. More restrained tiles,
grandest resemble massive Renaissance chimney often with relief decoration, were made by the likes of
breasts; the most exotic are full-blown Islamic or Chi- the Low Art Tile Works of Chelsea, Massachusetts. The
nese set pieces . Plain stone or brick chimney breasts English ceramist William de Morgan made exquisite and
typify Craftsman designs of the early 20th century; exclusive tiles, derived from Oriental patterns.
more elaborate designs introduced carved overmantel From the 1870s metal hob grates, dog grates and
plaques and deep metal hoods. andirons were made, incorporating Aesthetic motifs.
322 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860- 1925
3 4
13
11 14
ARTS AND CRAFTS 323
1 2
Q) The inglenook in the living room of the and semi-precious stones). The wooden
Gamble House, Pasadena, California, surround has been stained. LG
1908-9, is inspired by great 16th-century CD A very dramatic compositon, featured in a
inglenooks. But the honzontal emphasis, the special summer edition ofThe Studio in
tiling and the strong plain surfaces make the 1901. It was hand-wrought from "golden
composition strikingly modern. The coloured metal" and the overrnantel, which
mahogany lanterns contain Tiffany glass. GG curves around the chimney breast, is
@ A l:ietail ofa late 19th-century Aesthetic supported by forged iron uprights. The
movement fireplace. The style of the inlay is embossed plaque reads "Wit Fancies Beauty,
derived from Italian Renaissance cabinets of Beauty Raiseth Wit". The grate is ofpolished
pietra aura (inset slices of coloured marble wrought iron. 5
324 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1925
(j) and These examples are Q) This chimneypiece CD Overmantels were an @M.H. Baillie Scott's small
typical of vernacular stone incorporates a copper hood and important feature ofArts and grate and surround from the late
chimneypieces in making a a chimney breast covered with Crafrs and Aesthetic intedors. 19th century neatly incorporates
feature out of the whole chimney matt, glazed tiles. Robert W Edis' overmantel with the overmantel into the
breast. Both were designed by @A more sophisticated, tiled cupboards and a mirror is composition by means oftiered
Gustav Stickley. surround. English. topped with a classical motif shelving.
6 7
0 This chimneypiece of 1878 Morgan tiles as here. exponents ofArts and Crafr very wide chimne.ypiece has
has a shelved overmantel above This chimneypiece by George principles and the Pre- imposing simplifted pilasters
a tiled surround. China would jack dates from the 1890s and Raphaelite Brotherhood of and a marble overmantel with a
have been displayed in features a carved stone tablet of artistsi both favoured subjects central mirror.
p_rofusion on the shelves. St George and the Dragon. that recalled "Old England".
(8) Grander chimneypieces in Such subjects from myth and @A dramatic ensemble by
the Aesthetic taste could be legend illustrate the dose George H. Maher, made in
decorated with William DB association between the 1904 for a house in Illinois. The
8
ARTS AND CRAFTS 325
Tiled and reliefdecoration were The grate and firedogs presented Q) This elaborate ensemble of @An English austere wrought-
hallmarks ofchimneypieces. designers and metalworkers with 1882 comes from the ].L. Mott iron grate with a hood in the later
Q)A reliefranel for an an opfortunity to demonstrate Iron Works ofNew York. The Arts and Crafts taste, by 0.
overmante. English, 1890s. their 'traditional" skills. firedogs were designed en suite Ramsden and A. C. E. Carr.
A slip oftiles for the side ofa @ This grate by the Rathbone with the daisy-covered grate. They followed medieval methods
S!._ate. Minton and Co. Fireplace Manufacturing Co., ofconstruction and even included
(D A robust terracotta panel Michigan (1912}, incorporates medieval-style jug-warmers in
assembly by Louis H. Sullivan, delicate leafdecoration and a the design. The Studio, 1904.
1884. sunburst motif (Z) A dog grate by Gardiner,
Sons and Co., of Bristol,
England, 1929.
This dof, grate by Nelson
Dawson, forged in iron and
brass, represents the highest
quality of work produced on a
commercial scale. It was featured
in The Studio in 1903.
7 10
8
This design by M.H. Baillie C.F.A. Voysey. The simple
Scott has a simplified royal wrought-iron firedog is the work
emblem and prominent firedogs. of Gustav Stickley; it would
@A selection of firedogs. The have been used in a plain brick
first example is inspirid by or stone fireplace. By contrast,
17th-century fretwork firedogs. the last example has a delicacy
The second, designed by Harold and inventiveness associated
Smith, has a heart-shaped head with the early decades of the Arts
that shows the in~uence of and Crafts movement.
326 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1 925
Staircases
These turned balusters from thin uprights. Note the effective work ofWilliam Mom's' firm. quality. The first example is
The Longcroft, Helensburgh, grouping of(our uprights to each (6) This staircase, published in from the Raben R. Blacker house
Scotland, are complemented on step. A cup6oard has been built the Amen'can pen'odical The at Pasadena, California, 1907.
the half-landing by a fine newel into the cavity beneath. Craftsman in]anuarv 1906, It is connected to rhe solid roof
post with a clasped orb. The CD In sharp contrast is the incorporates a settle aird a built- beams by a stout upn'ght. The
designer has borrowed from elaborate surface decoration of in hall crpboard at the foot. second staircase was constructed
Baroque staircase forms. the staircase at Stanmore Hall, 0 and() The staircase designs two years earlier for the Henry
0 This elegant staircase couples Middlesex, by Moms and by Charles and Henry Greene M. Robinson house, also in
a large, carved newel post with Company - typical of the best have a distinctive japanese Pasadena.
328 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860 - 1925
CD Newel posts received much by Louis H. Sullivan, c.1883, The urn device appears in at example, c.1900, is almost
attention from architects. Here, and the mighty newel post least seven ofWright's houses. classical in feeling, when
a typical plain example is from the Edward C. Waller @ Enclosed staircases are compared with the two
flanked by a dramatic wrought- House, Illinois, designed by typical oflater Arts and Crafts rectilinear designs from The
iron newel (4 feetl120cm high) Frank Lloyd Wright in 1899. work. The first, arched Craftsman, 1906.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 329
Built-in furniture
The library at Leighton House, Kensington, dust-baffling fringe of green stamped leather.
London, retains the built-in bookcases made The cornice profiles of these dwarf bookcases
when the room was built, 1879-81 . The follow Renaissance precedents. The room
ebonized wood matches the richly incised served more as a study than a library, hence
doorcases in the room, and is relieved by a the limited shelving. LC
uilt-in furniture appealed to the Arts and Crafts w eighty pieces remained popular until the end of the
B ethos of craftsmanship. A settle beside the ingle-
nook, a window seat under a wide bay, or a bench and
century in both Britain and the United States. However,
the more sophisticated tastes of the Aesthetic move-
sideboard built against the wall of the dining room, all ment of the 1870s and 80s appreciated extensive, beau-
contributed to the sense of plain and traditional build- tifully finished blocks of shelving and cupboards, often
ing. Built-in furniture was also practical, minimizing the designed around a fireplace with many shelves and
clutter w hich late 19th-century designers saw as the alcoves in the overmantel.
besetting sin of mid-Victorian decoration. Later fixtures are simply finished. The comprehensive
William Morris set a precedent with the great settle built-in furnishings of early 20th-century Arts and Crafts
in his Red House in Bexleyheath, near London (1859). houses- cupboards w ith solid doors and fine hinges and
Such early pieces w ere painted, and many items made latches, glazed cupboards for books or china, peripheral
for Pre-Raphaelite artists were enriched w ith panels of seating in a living or dining room- are the precursors of
figurative w ork, often by the artists themselves . Such modem furniture systems.
330 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860 - 1925
~
texture glass. cc
:;;;:p
DO DO DO DO DTI CD rn
DO DO DO DID
DO DO DO DO
DO
DO
88 88 I I I rj ::::r=
1 l
..=.
~
I ~
- - :;;)
f--
=
~~ 1---
-
(J) Kitchens could be practical
without sacrificing the ideals of
the Arts t1.nd Crafts movement,
as seen in these well-
p_roportioned units. cc
Rustic, medievalized
cupboards from a bungalow
kitchen, c.1905.
0 A recessed sideboard,
published in The Craftsman in
1905, with dish cupboards and
plain matt tiling. Leaded
windows enhance the design.
A small built-in set of
bedroom shelves, incorporating
simple fretwork around the top.
From a child's bedroom, c.1890.
6 8
ARTS AND CRAFTS 331
Services
Lighting
1 2 4
he heyday of the Arts and Crafts movement in the chandelier) was used, or a series of wall brackets were
T 1880s coincided with the provision of the first satis-
factory domestic electric lighting. In Britain, electricity
fixed at frieze height. Copper and brass were favoured,
and many designs are closely related to Art Nouveau
was initially considered unaesthetic because of its glaring forms, with delicate wrought ironwork and elaborate
brilliance, unflattering to ladies. However, some rich twisted metal decoration. In the United States, Renais-
patrons liked the novelty, and Richard Norman Shaw, sance Revival gas chandeliers were fashionable in the
for one, worked with it from the first. 1860s and 70s and simpler Japanese styles were added in
The principal British supplier of electric lighting was the 1880s. Early electric light bulbs were small, spherical
Benson's, who were producing a wide range of lamps by and of clear glass, but by 1900 flowers and flames had
the mid-1890s. In the United States, I.P. Frink of New appeared; they were often used without shades.
York was one of the biggest manufacturers, supplying Vernacular-style branched lights and sconces were
electric (as well as oil and gas) lights throughout the made in wrought iron, and the demand for candle sconces
country by the 1880s. Either a central"electrolier'' (electric continued anachronistically into the 1920s and 30s.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 333
Metalwork
1 2
11 11
chandelier in 0 ld English vein fireback by Elihu \'edder
(Newman, London, mid-1880s). (United States, 1882).
0 A Spanish Revival landing A sinuous stove-grate panel.
by Charles Greene, c.1930. @)A rugged bootscraper.
l)
very detail of the Arts and Crafts house had to be of z
E the highest quality. In many architect-designed houses
every last latch was conceived by the designer. However,
was often elegantly geometric or florid, in the spirit of
17th-century masters like Jean Tijou.
The sunflower motif was very popular in Aesthetic
~
l)
:::;
as Arts and Crafts and Aesthetic taste became popular a tastes. It was prominently displayed in the iron pavilion
wide variety of commercially produced metalwork designed by Thomas Jeckyll and made by Barnard, Bishop
became available, including panels and grilles as well as and Bamards of Norwich, England, for the American
railings and gates. The United States took the lead from Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, 1876. Firms like
Britain. Wrought iron, brass and, for the best commis- the J.B. Cornell Foundry of New York used the emblem
sions, bronze were used. commercially.
Ironwork gates and railings can be quite simple, incor- Increasingly in the early 20th century metalwork took
porating a plain square upright, topped with a decorative on an abstract elegance, and in the United States archi-
finial, although Gothic-style interlaced and foliate designs tects like Charles and Henry Greene pushed the bound-
were extremely popular. Specially commissioned work aries of Arts and Crafts taste toward a modernist aesthetic.
334 ARTS AND CRAFTS 1860-1925
Woodwork
(DA balcony, set above a deep 1
"
bay window, c.1880. The turned r;l
balusters recall Baroque models.
I '
' : : ' '
= --'--L
Bargeboards, with fretwork @ The shingle cladding ofthe on American Victorian and structures with built-in seats,
or carved decoration, re~ect the Gamble House, Pasadena, Beaux Arts houses. The others have vanously shaped
early Arts and Crafts interest in California, 1908-9, recalls an overhanging eaves are hoods with carved wooden
British vernacular details. early development in American fundamental to many designs by brackets. The shell-head and the
Q) This porch from Ca!tfornia, architecture, where shingles of Charles and Henry Greene. cc double agee-shaped pediment on
1906, is a fine example ofthe wood sometimes rep/acid the tile CD to Porches and hoods from the right are true to authentic
refined designs oflate Arts and hangings ofEnglish cottages. Bedford Park, west London, Queen Anne forms, as used in
Crafts. The post caps have a More immediately, it is related to constructed in the 1880s. Some England in the early 18th
japanese quality. the widespread use of shingles houses have full projecting century.
he refined and skilful use of woodwork is at the important, fences and gates tending to be quite elon-
T heart of Arts and Crafts principles. The return to the
esteemed values of craftsmanship and beauty is seen
gated. Gates often incorporate pergolas or trellis.
The British Queen Anne style was widely adopted by
throughout Arts and Crafts and Aesthetic houses. It is Arts and Crafts architects. Bedford Park, London, the
also displayed in "traditional" wooden features: fences, first garden suburb (mostly designed by Richard
gates, porches, balconies and verandas. Norman Shaw in the late 1870s), has a wealth of Queen
The importance of the home, and the equally impor- Anne porches and hoods, also barge boards; the wood-
tant notion of hospitality, meant that property bound- work is painted white, characteristic of the style.
aries were carefully considered. Most fences have great Porches, more homely than imposing, were impor-
purity of line, with series of square-profile balusters. tant to American Craftsman architects. So too were ver-
T umed balusters are also found, inspired by 17th- andas, used to encourage people to spend time outside.
century forms, and in the Aesthetic taste more exotic, These could be supported by whole tree trunks in coun-
Oriental forms are adopted. Proportions were also try or mountain houses - truly rustic interpretations.
ARTS AND CRAFTS 335
0 A characteristic fonn ofArts
and Crafts fencing is a repeated 2
group ofthree short and two tall
members with a cross-piece.
ACG
@ to CD Four distinctive gates. periodical The Architect in gate. The third example; with its (Greene and Greene, 1909}; it
The ~rst is a very narrow garden 1915. The next is from Bristol pleasing frame, was awarded has a modem flavour.
gate with fretwork panels, by England. Here, the fretwork an "honourable mention 1' in The @ A typical fence, c.1902, with
Charles and Henry Greene. It reproduces Tudor strapwork. Studio, c.1900. The last is from plain uprights, subtle angles and
~
featured in the American Note the secondary status of the a house in Berkeley, California aring fretwork.
A wide entrance gate with
aracteristic post capping.
Double gates by Greene and
Greene. The flanking fencing
rg'eated the chevron pattern.
([) to @Internal landing rails.
The ~rst example is a late
flowering of Gothicized fonns
(English, c.1920}. The second is
by Frank Lloyd Wright, from a
house in River Forest, Illinois,
1899. The circular motif is
picked up in the newel post (see
page 328}. The last rail is a
good example of understated
12 15 Craftsman design, c.1906.
@A band of carving: a modem
interpretation ofinterlaced
Gothic work. this detail was
praised by Walter Crane in his
Ideals in Art, 1905.
@A ceiling screen from a
Chicago house by Louis H.
Sullivan, c.1885; an anginal use
ofspindles, much favoured in
American screen designs.
(!4; Aesthetics overcoming utility:
this settle with Celtic-style vents
hides a radiator. (New York,
1914.}
@ The wooden veranda of
Olana in the Hudson River
Valley, New York, dating from
the 1880s, is set against a wall
of undressed and unequal
stones. The contrast between the
exotic Orienta/ism and the
pragmatic settler-st}'le walling is
a feature unique to the American
Arts and Crafts movement. o
336
ART NOUVEAU
1888-1905
1 2
The hall of The Hill House, Helensburgh, brighter colour accents, and openwork screens
Scotland, by CR. Mackintosh exempli~es his to aivide the space. Woodwork could be in
characteristic use ofgrid patterns (for example, harmonizing dark tones, or black, or
in the carpet), sofr colours contrasting with sometimes painted ivory white. HL
patterns; by slightly cuiVing vertical lines suggesting, but hands the sweeping horizontals of roof lines, mouldings
'not imitating, plant forms; and by grids and formalized and extended interior spaces, balanced by stressed
rose shapes offset by occasional springing cuiVes. Such verticals in the brick or stone chimney, coloured window
rooms, in their clean, sparse beauty, have much in glass and internal pillars, become abstract patterns while
common with Japanese design. Mackintosh's influence still retaining domestic character and comfort.
was felt in the United States, where it was known Wright's low-slung houses of the Midwest, and similar
through publications like The Studio. houses by some talented contemporaries, constitute a
Frank Lloyd Wright, who denied the influence of any distinctive "Prairie Style", whose notable features include
master or movement, produced a series of domestic deeply projecting eaves, stucco-covered exterior walls,
buildings between the rnid-1890s and 1910 which were bands of casement windows, and a large, low chimney
startling in their innovative treatment of form and that forms the hub of the house. To extend Art Nouveau
interior space. In contrast to Mackintosh, his ideas were to embrace such ideas might seem to be stretching the
well received in his own country. The period of his career style's definition; but to do so is instructive, as it high-
when he was designing houses for the suburb of Oak lights some interesting parallels and contrasts, especially
Park, Illinois, 1901-1909, is one of his busiest. In Wright's with the work of Mackintosh.
338 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
Doors
1
6
(J) An external door at The Hill CD A pair ofbronze handles,
House, Scotland, by CR. 1902, for interior doors.
Mackintosh, 1902-03. The @ An interior frngerplatelpush
glazing pattern and the plate and door handle, available
positionillj5. of the windows are in various metals. NC
l)!pical of his style. HL CD The peacock tail in this
(3) to 0 Door {rttings were repousse copper frngetplatelpush
hammered in copper, brass or plate contains a decorative
silver. Firms on both sides ofthe enamel inset, 1901.
Atlantic produced more @ A cat-shaped frngetplatel
affordable pieces inspired by push plate and matching
such crafisman-made designs. keyhole (or a hall door. 1897.
0 Two door knockers, one with 0 An elaborate frngerplatel
a built-in house number (66). push plate, 1900.
n Britain and the United States it is not unusual to find capital, could link the upright elements of the frame to
Iorthodox
doors w ith Art Nouveau styling in an otherwise
building. Even more commonly, a standard
the architrave. Similarly, on an exterior door, the semi-
circular pediment could be extended outward in an
door, panelled in the traditional manner, can be dressed organic curve from the columns to form a hood.
w ith knobs, escutcheons, letterboxes/mailslots and Coloured glass is important in exterior doors. Often
hinges in the new style -for example, peacock feather there are two or three vertical lights decorated w ith for-
or heart-shaped leaf motifs. malized plant forms or vertically stressed abstract
Surrounds, w here they show organic, sweeping lines patterns in the manner of C. R. Mackintosh or Frank
at all, do so in a conservative manner. The traditional Lloyd Wright. The decoration of the glass is often echoed
classical references - pillars, pilasters, architraves, in the coloured ceramic tiles used to dress interior walls
pediments -are not supplanted, but their geometry is of porches: such tiles can create a repeated pattern, one
modified by the int~oduction of curves . In a typical large motif, or even a pictorial scene. Both glass and tiles
treatment, outwardly sweeping lines, in place of a were mass-produced in Art Nouveau styles.
ART NOUVEAU 339
1
;Q
0
0
0
4 5
(])A design of 18 99 for an (9il to the arched hood. CD A characten'stic device of imponance: this is necessary, as
internal door with a stylized Double glazed doors from Frank Lloyd Wright is to extend the entrance is on a stde elevation
para/ stained glass panel. Plant Frank Lloya Wright's Robie the porch in a long horizontal rather than a main facade. HL
motifs provide a visual/ink House, Chicago, 1909. The sweep emphasized by the design 0 On tht's side door from the
between the up;:er decorative upward, venical form of the of the brickwork. The door itself same house, the simple grid of
panel and the 'capitals of the
11
leading motifs contrast with the is given minimal emphasis, but door and adjacent window
doorcase. This organic design is strongly horizontal emphasis of serves as a venical anchor to
11 11
create a lighter mood. HL
P'_intessential An Nouveau. the house itself the composition. The main bedroom door at
(2) This doorway of 1904 is a @The entrance porch a( Frank (}) The main entrance at The The Hill House, with vertical
type found on larger houses and Lloyd Wright's Dana House, Hill House, Helensburgh, niches echoing the shapes of the
apanment blocks in Britain and Springfield, Illinois, 1903, has a Scotland, by Charles Rennie door panels. HL
the United States afier the tum roof ofstained r,lass and a Mackintosh, 1902-03. The
ofthe century. Brackets of narrow arch of glass crowning dressed stone architraves and
decorative metalwork provide a the arched door. lintel indicate the door.'(lay's
340 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
Windows
.....
.~ I
.~ l/ .~ / -~ I
.\' rf c\ 'f ,\. 'f
.\. I
,\. '/
.\. 'I ~\: z
r\.\. '/ r\.\. I
c\ 'I ~\. '/ ,\. '/
.\. 'I ~\. '/~ ,\. z
IJ\ '/1.1 ~ 'IV >J\: :/11
\ I \ I \ I
2
fA. I A. I- ;\If A/;\
\;<"A liA. I ;<~ ~
II All<
t<A II A lf;\ j<\ f\ 11~
"'I ;\lf ;\ If ~~KI;< r\ il
;\ II >-.J ;>-,;< ~II >-. If (\ ;
he asymmetrical, curving windows of Art Nouveau casements and even French doors, particularly those
T architecture in Continental Europe were seldom
used in domestic buildings in Britain or the United
leading into a conservatory. The most elaborate exam-
ples depict stylized scenes, landscapes, or compositions
States. More typical is a treatment found in the work of of birds or plants. Others depict abstract designs based
both Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Frank Lloyd on plant or geometric forms. In the United States the
Wright where the w indow, usually a casement, is opalescent glass developed by John La Farge was widely
deprived of its traditional exterior surround and is either imitated, as were the window designs of Tiffany.
set flush w ith the wall surface or recessed to stress the Window fittings, like door hardware, favour elongat-
volume of the architecture. ed shapes. A tapering line terminating in a heart-shaped
Decorative glass was popular, and w as used to honesty leaf was particularly popular for hasps and
"update" windows which were traditional in form . hinges. Iron was a favourite material as it harmonized
Treatments vary from patterned panels set around the with the leading of the glass, but examples of iron
edges of sash windows to all-over coloured glazing in combined with brass are also widely found.
ART NOUVEAU 341
~
0
p
z
3:
(J) A leaded and stained glass century. Height 47 inches published in the general green, red, ochre, blue and
panel with rose and foliage (118cm). catalogue ofE.L. Roberts and mustard, with moulded details.
motifs by George Walton, afrer Q) One ofthree panels making Co., Chicago, 1903, are Length 49 inches {123cm).
a design by CR. Mackintosh. up an elaborate grape trellis distinctly Art Nouveau in style. @ A bedroom window of
Height 52 inches {130cm). window by Tiffany Studios, CD A stained glass fanlisftt Mackintosh's Hill House,
0 A leaded landscape window, New York. Th'e clear lattice window attributed to Tiffany Helensburgh, Scotland. The
showing birds rising from a sections are offset by a colourful Studios, New York, c.1885. The window and even the shutters
marshy pond with lotus naturalistic framework above. design was carried out in shades are curved to follow the curve of
blossoms and grasses, early 20th @A few of the windows of deep mauve, turquoise, olive the bay. HL
7 8
342 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
Walls
The hall of The Hill House, organic forms. The rhythm of the
Helensburgh, Scotland, ~ CR. panels along the wall is typical
Mackintosh has straps o dark- ofMackintosh. HL
stained pine, between w ich are
stencilled motifs based on
f the variety of wall treatments associated with Art a frieze of moulded plaster.
O Nouveau, one of the most important, simply be-
cause it was readily available, was wallpaper. It was
Colour-washed walls were used in more "artistic"
homes. Charles Rennie Mackintosh favoured pastels or
marketed by many firms such as the York Wallpaper white, set off by a stencilled pattern at the top of the wall
Company and M .H. Birge and Sons in the United States, or accentuating a feature such as a fireplace or window.
and Liberty and the Silver Studio in Britain. The muted Frank Lloyd Wright, Mackintosh and other important
colours and flat patterns of rhythmic, curving forms are designers employed wood panelling, and there are many
a complete contrast with the naturalistic, brightly examples illustrated in The Studio and, in the United
coloured designs of the mid-19th century. A notable States, The Crafrsman: in all cases the traditional forms
British designer was Arthur Heygate Mackmurdo, who have given way to a strongly vertical emphasis with
favoured undulant sea plant motifs. Wallpaper firms also minimal horizontal division. Decorative tiling was em-
produced friezes to be used in conjunction with a paper ployed, but, excepting large and stylish interiors, it
or to trim a plain wall. Occasionally, paper was used with tended to be confined to the bathroom.
- - - --
-
ART NOUVEAU 343
Ceilings
2 3
n accord with the Art Nouveau emphasis on inte- fairly traditional, still following the formula of central
Iinggrated design, ceilings in the interiors of the pioneer-
designers are often treated in the same way as the
rose/medallion plus mouldings, and this is true even of
houses constructed with a considerable amount of Art
walls. Charles Rennie Mackintosh, for example, con- Nouveau detailing. One approach in such houses was
tinues his controlled pastel planes without a break from to modernize the interior by means of ceiling papers
wall to ceiling, while Frank Lloyd Wright sometimes moulded with swirling Art Nouveau patterns: these
uses the same materials for both, or carries over a motif could be painted to co-ordinate with the walls. An alter-
from the vertical to the horizontal. native treatment was simply to colour-wash both ceiling
In both Britain and the United States the influence of and frieze entirely.
the Arts and Crafts movement was such that a simple, White ceilings during this period were denounced as
beamed ceiling often appears in rooms which are Art cold by writers on household taste. If decoration was
Nouveau in almost every other detail. to be absent, at least a tint would be used- for example,
However, in most houses of the period, ceilings were cream or grey-blue.
-
-- - - - .
ART NOUVEAU 345
Floors
he polished wood floor- either parquet or carefully floral style carried over from the Arts and Crafts
T laid boards -was an important element of the Art
Nouveau interior, as it formed a perfect background to
movement. Oriental rugs were also a standard accom-
paniment to the Art Nouveau manner.
the carpets and rugs which were such prominent Charles Rennie Mackintosh's carpet designs were few
features of a room. It was also, of course, a rich, warm (although he took to textile design in the latter phase of
surface in itself. his career). They were mostly simple, undemonstrative,
Embroidered textiles were a more important medium in pale colours, often with square motifs echoing other
for the sinuous, French-influenced version of Art aspects of the room. In some Art Nouveau interiors
Nouveau design than carpets were. However, Gavin carpets are totally plain.
Morton of Scotland created some patterns which inter- Tiles were used most often in hallways or, more espe-
preted the abstract floral (especially rosebud) repeats of cially, conservatories, where an element of colourful
the Glasgow School for machine-made or hand-woven exuberance would be permissible even to those of rela-
carpets. More common, however, was a naturalistic tively conservative tastes.
346 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
Fireplaces
he fireplace was a feature in which the Art Nouveau Wooden surrounds are used in many interiors, painted
T style could be announced emphatically, even in
mass-produced housing. In the work of the leading
or simply stained, and incorporating elongated forms
and stylized plant shapes. Marble or fake marble was
designers it often becomes extended, with shelving and generally used in a more exuberant way with strong
cupboards incorporated into the surround. curves: there are some very elaborate examples featur-
C.R. Mackintosh's fireplaces tend to repeat the forms ing sculpted caryatids with flowing hair. But undoubt-
of his built-in furniture, and coloured glass mosaics edly the most organic forms occur on cast-iron
around the grate often set off the colours used elsewhere surrounds, which were intended to be black-leaded.
in the room. Frank Lloyd Wright's designs are abstract Common to wood and cast-iron fireplaces were the
compositions often extending across the whole wall in ceramic tiles produced in a huge range of designs- by
a series of horizontal bands. In the typical Prairie Style Pilkington, Doulton and others in Britain and by The
interior the fireplace is treated as a massive form at the American Encaustic Tiling Company and other manu-
symbolic heart of the house. facturers in the United States.
ART NOUVEAU 347
1
0 A drawing room fireplace by a pastoral landscape, with a shows a love ofgorgeous characteristic of his work.
E.A. Templar, of the Glasgow sunrise and trees. Note the matenals and colour. Q)A 1903 design, with bird
School, showing a distinct built-in clock, whose surround @ Made in beaten lead, this motifs and the usual ~owers.
Mackintosh influence. p_icks up the landscape theme. piece is by Charles Rennie @ This simple design, shown
A less disciplined design of 0 This ~at-fronted Tiffany Mackintosh. The extreme with wall frieze and side
1902. The canopy is treated as fireplace, encrusted with mosaic, simplicity of the grate is panels, dates from c.1895.
c
7 by Frank Lloyd Wrighr, Oak Chicago, 1909. Austere
Park, Illinois, 1899. The brickwork is combined with
D 8
ovennantel bears a motto. stone blocks and a lintel.
:.r.
~ F=:=
p h=
p ~
p ~
h i'-
348 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
3 4
Staircases
1
hereas Continental European staircases in the Art Staircase windows contributed to the overall effect,
W Nouveau style tended to be elaborate curvilinear
forms whose iron balustrades echoed the forms of w ater
as they w ere often distinctively patterned, and often tall
so that they emphasized the vertical movement that a
plants or root systems, the more rectilinear style char- staircase implies.
acteristic of Britain and the United States called for a less Sometimes, in the Arts and Crafts manner, plain
ostentatious treatment. Wood remained the favourite square-section balusters w ere placed so close together
material. that they formed a kind of screen, the low er part of
In most houses novelties are found only in the detail- which could be filled in to form a rectangle of solid
ing. Piercing of balusters with simple shapes w as wooden panelling. The plain newel post could be
adopted by many manufacturers. Stair carpets, w hich extended right to the ceiling. If there w as space on the
seldom reflected the Art Nouveau style, were often used landing this could be used to display a striking piece of
w ith decorative metal rods tapering at each end to a furniture, such as a tall-backed chair, perhaps harmo-
heart-shaped finial. nizing w ith a striking lighting pendant.
350 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
Built-in furniture
(j) In the library-study at The adjacent cupboard/closet in River Forest, Illinois, 1910. 0 A bedroom wall, The Hill
Hill House, by C R. Mackintosh, enlivens rectangular fonn s. HL The low bench seat is typical of House. The chair plays a key
stylized organic decoration above A fireplace settle by William the Prairie Style and An pan in the effect. Pink glass insets
the bookshelves and on the E. Drummond, built for a house Nouveau. ornament the wardrobes. HL
A lthough built-in furniture had existed before the Simple boxy shapes with decorative relief provided by
\.. 1890s, the Art Nouveau style produced new, imagi- glass or metal inlays are a hallmark of the Mackintosh
native interpretations. A reassessment of the elements style. His combination of white painted wood with pur-
that make up an interior led to greater flexibility in design. ple glass and stencilled roses is well known, but his built-
A cupboard/ closet, for example, could be part of the in furniture could equally be ebonized, or stained dark
overall composition of a room, instead of a separate and waxed. Handles are usually recessed. Inglenook seat-
entity; it could also be an extension of the bookcase. A ing is found, but without any cosy vernacular overtones.
fireplace could serve as a display unit, with shelving. Frank Lloyd Wright exploited the sculptural possibili-
Charles Rennie Mackintosh's cupboards, decorated ties of built-in furniture. Even in smaller houses, where
with mouldings and paintwork which echo the vertical the purpose was often mainly to save space, the concept
emphasis of the wall motifs and freestanding furniture, of unified decoration was followed, with built-in
form niches containing built-in seating. His fireplaces furniture linked to fireplaces or windows by the use of
spread up and across to incorporate display shelves. repeated decoration.
ART NOUVEAU 351
Services
1 2
omestic technology w as advancing fairly sw iftly in repeated on the water closet bow l and the w ash basin.
D the 1890s, and the Art
Nouveau style was used for
some fixtures which were themselves new in concept.
The makers of iron cisterns, no less than the manu-
facturers of porcelain fixtures , decorated their wares
Showers were being incorporated into bathrooms, with Art Nouveau ornament; they also provided deco-
sometimes as part of the bath, sometimes as a separate rative brackets to match. However, the decorative
unit: often the water theme is aptly expressed in aquatic aspects of the relatively new gas water heater were
plant motifs and in the overall shape of the plumbing usually confined to the supporting ironwork.
and the shower head. Baths themselves, while retaining The late 19th century saw an increasing sophistica-
their traditional shape, were designed with legs which tion in the design of kitchen ranges, and some of these
echo the curving forms of the new style. Although had Art Nouveau styling. Although C.R. Mackintosh
wood was still used to panel more opulent bathrooms, applied as much energy to kitchen design as to his other
decorative tiles were becoming important, used behind rooms, kitchens w ere still the province of servants, and
the bath and shower. The motifs on such tiles could be on the whole received little attention to decorative detail.
352 ART NOUVEAU 1888-1905
Lighting
(!) This electric ceiling lantern by @ Tiffany's leaded glass
CR. Mackintosh, for the hall of lights are notable for the
The Hill House, Scotland, shows intensity and indescence of the
.!;lpanese inspiration. HL g/flss. CNY
0 An iron gas bracket by A. H. (Z) A candle wall sconce in
Mackmurdo, 1884. It relies on a silver, copper and mother-of-
strong silhouette rather than pearl- all materials which
surface detailing English. respond to candlelight.
Q) A Mother and Child sconce in This light by Frank Lloyd
beaten brass by Margaret and Wright has a diffusing globe
Frances Macdonald, Glasgow. within a square oak bracket.
@ An electric light bracket in The circle within a square is a
wrought brass, 1904. fcwourite Wright motif
Q)A simple brass lantern with An electric pendant, 1899.
silk tassels, 1904. @A wall sconce, 1903.
Metalwork
designers of the period considered fences, gates and the conservatories, where plant forms were arguably more
like as part of the house as a whole, so that Frank Lloyd appropriate, and verandas.
Wright, for example, in his Oak Park houses, uses the Town house railings gave ample scope to a curving
same motifs on the gates as in the leading of the line in the Celtic style made popular by Liberty. In the
windows. 1890s there was a revival of "quaint" accessories such
Manufacturers' catalogues and design magazines as weather vanes, and these too reflect Art Nouveau
show items that are intended as stylish additions, influence. In more utilitarian aspects of design this
rather than as components of a unified design. One influence was less marked: for example, there are orna-
example is Art Nouveau fanlight/transom light grilles: mental down pipes/downspouts, but the decoration
these display sinuous plant-like forms with an almost tends to be confined to the rainwater heads.
354
EDWARDIAN
1901-1914
1
3
expensive than detached houses, as they
shared a wall. This example is in the cottage
style, popular in new garden cities and
(j) The "double-fronted" terraced/row house, suburbs. The plan shows both ground and
with central front door and staircase, upper ~oars. There is only an mtts1de water
increased in popularity dunng the Edwardian closet and no bathroom: the bathtub may be a
period. A generous bathroom with separate tif.-up type in the kitchen. sur
water closet is provided in this three- (2) Mansion block apartments became
bedroomed example. Roughcast, or popular during the 1890s. The drawing
pebbledash, rendering was a means of rooms and dining rooms in this Queen Anne-
finishing the facade when cheap bricks were style London block are light and airy, with
used- as on the upper story here. MID balconies and bay windows on the front: the FIG. u7.- F t.ATS AT EAlt.'$ CouT SQUAl L
0 Semi-detached houses were generally less services and servants are at the rear. PE R. A. BrJas, Atdilrrl.
new century, and a new reign: for the historian of ient, secure and economical way to live. Many better-
A architecture, the timing is all too temptingly con-
venient. However, Victorian values and traditions did
off families had second homes in the country, and spent
more time on travels abroad. It was far more convenient
not come to a halt with the Queen's death in 1901, but to close up an apartment temporarily than a house. The
continued into the Edwardian era, with subtle variations, porter was always available to take deliveries and
until the watershed of World War I. messages. Many of the better blocks included self-
Just as Victoria's reign saw the evolution of the rail- contained apartments, served by communal lounges and
ways, Edward VII's was the age of the motor vehicle. At dining rooms, as in a grand hotel. "Bachelor flats " of this
first the motor car was a novelty for the very rich, but nature were much in demand.
gradually it made room for itself in the coach house, and In central London there was a building boom, coincid-
stables became superfluous. ing with the expiry of many of the leases granted in the
Until the late 19th century, Londoners and other Georgian period. Much of the Duke of Westminster's
English city-dwellers usually preferred to live in houses, estate in Mayfair was redeveloped, as were the Portman
howev:er tall and narrow, whereas in Paris and other and Portland estates in the Marylebone area.
Continental cities apartments had been commonplace By 1900 the battle of the styles was more or less over,
for years. The Edwardian period saw the introduction and there was a general acceptance of eclecticism. Lux-
of the "mansion block" (apartment building) in London ury and comfort were higher priorities than the champi-
on a large scale. Perhaps the main incentive for this was onship of one style or another. The favoured mode for
the invention of the electric lift/elevator, or "ascending domestic architecture in towns tended to be a debased
carriage". Improvements to plumbing and drainage also Baroque- a cross between "Dutch" and "Queen Anne",
made a big difference: apartments could now have with red bricks and white stone dressings . There was
central heating and a 24-hour supply of hot water, and also a vogue for the French "Louis" styles (XN, XV and
could be hygienically linked to the sewerage system. XVI), especially for the interiors of apartments, where
Apartments were soon perceived as offering a conven- Parisian precedents were followed . This trend was
EQWARDIAN 355
encouraged by Ogden Codman and Edith Wharton, consist of a draw ing room in w hich to receive guests,
two influential w riters w ho expressed their Francophile and a dining room (often oak-panelled), w ith the possi-
views in the book The Decoration of Houses, published in ble addition of a billiards room and conservatory. The
England and the United States in 1898. library, study and smoking room would often be amal-
In the country, mock Tudor maintained its popularity, gamated into a single all-purpose male room. Upstairs a
w ith leaded w indow s and half-timbering. The ver- bathroom or two was standard.
nacular tradition provided a rich source of ideas. Other The large household furnishers, such as Hamptons,
pow erful currents permeated into the mainstream of Waring and Gillow, Maples, or Trollope and Sons, w ere
design. The influences of Art Nouveau, Japanese styles entrusted with the creation of entire interiors. Some of
and the Arts and Crafts movement could all be seen in these companies later developed into department stores,
watered-dow n, commercial forms . others into building contractors or estate agents.
In 1911 Ernest Willmott, in English House Design, main- For the less well-off there w ere municipal and private
tained that the best work in domestic architecture had projects for flats, tenement houses and model cottages
been done in the previous decade. He based his chief and villages. In 1898 Ebenezer Howard published a far-
principles of house design on a series of objectives: seeing utopian vision which later appeared as Garden
repose, proportion, scale, rhythm, colour, harmony and Cities of Tomorrow. This little book had an immense and
texture. The very best Edw ardian houses excel in all beneficial influence in promoting inexpensive housing
these aspects. Another widely read author on the archi- for the poor. Another key figure was J. St Loe Strachey,
tecture and taste of the period was Walter Shaw Spar- the publisher of The Country Gentleman Magazine, w ho
row, who, in Our Homes and How to Make the Best o{Them argued that the problem of rural depopulation could only
(1909), suggested that architects should have three be solved by the 150 cottage; this was considered the
primary aims: maximum capital cost that an agricultural w orker could
"1. To treat with commonsense and a just freedom the pay back from his wage.
best traditions, both Gothic and Classic. In pursuance of Howard's and Strachey's ideas, a Gar-
"2. To break away from that intricate planning which den City Company was incorporated, and acquired a
from the 16th century to the 18th gradually separated site at Letchworth, Hertfordshire. The architects Parker
household comforts into so many rooms that they and Unwin laid it out, and there was a competition to
became expensive discomforts. build the best 150 cottage. Most of the nearly 100
"3. To arrive at moderation and economy without loss entries survive to this day, ranging from a circular con-
of essential comfort and privacy." crete design by Cubitts Reinforced Concrete to rural
The average, moderately sized Edwardian house was weatherboarded cottages by Oswald P. Milne. Letch-
planned in a manner that reflected the social preoccupa- worth became the model for Hampstead Garden Sub-
tions of the time. If the house was large enough to pro- urb, which soon followed. The Garden City ideal was
vide for servants, they were usually tucked away beyond imitated by canny speculators, and made a distinctive
the kitchen or up in the attic. The family rooms would contribution to the English suburban landscape.
356 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
Doors
A11 excel/em example ofa doorway to till late Victoria11 or Edwardia11 feature, The
Edwardia11 tow11 house. The style is based modern decoratio11 is appropriate, as duo
011 earlY. Ceo1W'a11 fonns, coupled with a to11e schemes were popular (although the
checkeif tt'le pavemellt which is vety much a comrast here may lle a lirrle too proiiOUIIced).
ess formal than its Victorian predecessor, the Queen Anne-style door, this panel will have p1ain or
L Edwardian front door can reflect the strong influence
of the Queen Anne Revival or Art Nouveau styles. In a
bevelled rectangular panes of glass, while the Art
Nouveau door has coloured leaded lights, oEten arranged
grand house it will have been constructed to the specifi to form an abstract design. Electric doorbells are .a regu
cations of the architect and will generally be made of teak lar feature, but knockers continue to be fitted.
or untreated oak, with a dresseo stone or terra cotta sur- Terraced/row houses are characterized by their
round. Front doors to more modest houses are made of wooden porches with turned spindles, brackets and fret
mass-produced softwood which would have been work, available from joinery manufacturers; dressed
painted. The range of paint colours extended beyond the stone porches are a feature of some larger houses.
green favoured by the Victorians, and the door panels Internal doors remain more traditional in style. They
and frames were often decorated in contrasting shades. may be in a polished hardwood such as teak or mahog
The front door to a suburban house frequently has a any with ornate metal fittings, or in less expensive soft
glazed top panel to allow light into the hallway. In a wood which would have been painted.
EDWARDIAN 357
1 2 3 4 5
(j) to CD Typical Edwardian 0 Extra light could be provided (8) The Edwardians painted A Tudor-styled dressed stone
suburban front doors from the by the addition of side windows their front doors in a vanety of porch with bracketed canopy.
London builders' merchant and fanlights/transom lights. YM colours, and it was fashionable @ and Prefabricated
Young and Marten. They all (7) Doorways are still often to paint the panels in a lighter wooden porches in a vanety of
have glazed panels to allow light dressed in a terracotta surround, shade. TP styles could be purchased direct
into the hall. The two doors with as in the Victorian period. HP from joineiJI manufacturers.
glazing bars show a strong
Queen Anne in~uence. YM
358 EDWARDIAN 1901-191 4
1 3
>-
. "-='"-""'" -~
(J) The entrance to a mansion transom light to increase side-lights, white woodwork and
4 block ofapartments in the illumination in the hall. The checked paving are characteristic
Queen Anne style. The glazed eleanc bell (a standard feature ofthe period.
door and the green paintwork ry this pen.od) may be original. @ Glazed panels for doortvays.
are typically Edwardian. (D This glazed porch has been The designs are simpler and
0 This part-glazed front door added within a Queen Anne more (ree-~owing than those of
has a s1de window and a style canopy. The Art Nouveau the Victorian period. GFB
5 7
~~~~~~~~~~- - - - -- - --
EDWARDIAN 359
1 2 3 4 5
~
0
0
Q
11
10
Two brass letterboxes/mail main door there would be two @ Cylinder locks to front doors
slots. The top one shows a bells, one for house guests and were introduced in the late 19th
marked Art Nouveau influence the other for servants and century. This cylinder is bronze.
and incorporates a door knocker; tradesmen. NC Keys were (tnished in copper or
the lower example has a handle. @Brass (tngerplateslpush brass. YMA
YM plates and knobs for inten"or @ Spring-action door checks
@ In town houses with only one doors, c.1900. NC were a popular feature. NC
360 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
Windows
ew methods of production enabled steel-framed small panes of glass divided by a number of thick glaz-
N windows to compete with those made from wood.
Standard steel profiles for casements were mass-pro-
ing bars, with a single sheet making up the lower half.
Bay windows continue to be a characteristic feature
duced. The frames could be inserted straight into pre- of terraced/row houses.
pared brick or stone openings, or into wood subframes. Stained glass was popular for staircase and landing
For the most expensive houses, windows made from windows particularly when these were overlooked by
gunmetal or bronze were favoured: it was not neces- neighbours . Art Nouveau influence is often seen in the
sary to paint them and therefore they were considered designs.
to be maintenance free. The exterior paintwork of sash or casement frames
Although metal frames encouraged to some extent was usually in a contrasting colour to the sill and sub-
a departure from the sliding sash window, speculative frame. Green and cream was a favourite combination,
builders continued to install wood-framed sashes. In but cream would also be used with other colours as
the Queen Anne style, the top sash will often have the range of available paints increased.
~---~ ~- --- - - -- -
EDWARDIAN 361
30
0
z
~
l.l!i:
"'
0!
1
=
'
6 7
""
~
.trr
I~
._U_
I
I
- ,....
I
~
P-_opular terracotta surround. HP handle on the lefi was particularly A hinged brass sash lifi. NC 12
CD Continental holidays P-_opular. NC A brass sash pull. NC
encouraged a taste for wooden @Chromium-plated window A sturdy brass espagnolette bol~
8
EDWARDIAN 363
Walls
30
0
z
~
CD This tdea for an entrance traditional divisions for The Tynecast!e Company painted in "any shade of
hall was published in 1909 panelling: dado, Oiling and developed its embossed oak'~ according to the
by Thomas Parsons and Sons frieze. The Adamesque "vellum" to reproduce manufacturers. The linenfold
to advertise their ready-mixed swags are stencilled. Note moulded panelling. It was panels at the base of the
"Endel~at" enamel paints. how the ~oar design blends in made in room-height sections section are a fashionable
The walls are painted in the with the overall design. TP and could be "grained" or Tudorbethan touch. TC
CD A plaster dado in fill panel. It is unusual @ The use ofpolished oak or hardwood for 0 The space under the stairs was often
to find this degree ofelaborate detail in raised features, such as dados and skirting
Edwardian plasterwork. EL framed and panelled in wood. A cupboard
boards/baseboards, became very popular. EL might be introduced fOr storage. EL
6
-~------
. ~ ----~-
EDVVARDL\N 365
Ceilings
v_v
(j) Typically eclectic elements from mouldings. The top one is derivatives ofpapier mache, were 0 This "paper-stucco"
the ceiling ofa London house. The embossid steel which was widely produced as an alternative rose/medal/ton is just over 2 feet
fluted central roselmed1llion with supplied in 8-foot (240cm) lengths to plasterwork. YM (60cm) in diameter. YM
radiating palmettes reflects late that could be cut to size and nailed Q) An Anaglypta ceiling (f) Plaster nbbing on the ceiling
18th-century "Adamesque" onto wooden battens. The others rose/med11/ton in a debased was a popular treatment. The ribs
dassicismi the outer ring is earlier are "paper-stucco" mouldings. Georgian style. It would have could also be made ofwood,
18th century in character. BR Such details, made from been pasted directly onto a flat Anaglypta or other moulded
0 Three cove and cornice composition, embossed paper and plaster ceiling. AC materials. EL
eilings tend to be lower and on the whole much paper). Compressed paper and canvas materials such as
C plainer than in the Victorian period. This was in
keeping with the vernacular revival. For example, cor-
Cordelora, Anaglypta and T ynecastle Tapes try reached
their heyday: Tudor strapwork and various Georgian
nices are no longer regarded as essential. styles including "Adams" were popular. Polished oak
The fashion forT udor architecture is seen in exposed bolection mouldings were often applied in large panels
oak beams with plaster infill, and in stuccoed ceilings in on a plain plaster ceiling. Ceiling papers in pale silvery-
low relief. Pre-cast fibrous plaster was popular; it was grey patterns on white were thought stylish; the pat-
modelled in sections and could achieve a very high stan- terns tended to have flowing designs with a regular
dard of finish. G.P. Bankart supplied many designs, repeat in each direction. Clean electric lighting ended
including some in the Adam style. the need for frequent redecoration.
Numerous inexpensive materials catered for the mass Stamped steel ceilings, introduced from the United
market. Applied decorative motifs were made in com- States, sometimes imitated historical plaster designs.
position (an amalgam usually based on wood pulp or Large sheets could be applied over an existing ceiling.
EDWARDIAN 367
(]) Embossed steel ceiline panels resistant and a ready-made alter- free from microbes and bacteria
11
Anaglypta could be supplied
were sold on the basis of safety native to plaster. They were also 11
These Yemart panels (c./910)
11
in large panels, which were
and convenience: they were frre- said to be nan-absorbent and
11
imitate Tudor designs. YM pastea onto plasterwork. The frrst
example imitates an Adam
ceiling while the second has a
n'ng of Tudor about it. AC
0 A typical lightweight ceiling
paper, c. 1914. Thin papers
printed in shiny pale grey ink had
an attractive sheen. The refiected
light gave animation to the ceiling.
CBA
@ A ceiling for a bedroom or
drawing room with an
Adamesque design in {rbrous
11
8
368 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
Floors
Special Books of sotua/ Samples post free
1
No. 4980- 3/1 0 per yard Parquetry. No, 1/ 1106- 3/9 per yArd. Staines' Inlaid Linoleum. No. 3292-2/7 per yard.
Parquetry. No. 1/ 11 24-4/6 per yard. No. 4940- 3/ 10 per yArd. StAineo' Inlaid Linoleum. No. 3205- 2/7 per yard.
1 2
o~~~:
D ...
No. ' ' ' '
No.,S>7
. ;2
0
0
0::
3 ...
~ ~
I
.,
~
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-- .,.
r.;;'V~VVV
4
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I
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,,
'" '"
-~~~~~
'
I
~ -
!I
'
~~
I:" I
' --
.- '
ii
Iii:
-
,,,
Baked clay tiles were the Most households still used loose
commonest form of paving. carpets but wall-to-wall carpets
Geometric patterns made up from were available. These Axminster
small black and white tiles were and Moquette samples (based on
popular for bathrooms and old French and Persian designs
conservatories. A terracotta respectively) are from Wanng
finish was popular for and Gil/ow, London. A black
r._assageways. CH background was particularly
0 Carpets were preferred for the popular. Borders to these carpets
SCALI t I INCII TO ONE FOOT.
pnncipal rooms oflarger houses. were bought separately. we
370 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
Fireplaces
This Edwardian fireplace has been placed in a tried cheeks, which would have helped to throw
"Tudor' panelled setting. Viaorian dark oak heat into the room. Dog grates such as the one
has given way to the subtle tones ofsttlined and shown here would o~en be found in the hall or
polished pine. The marble architrave frames dining room of grander houses. BB
he main preoccupation of the period, so far as fire- dog grates were still popular, allowing large logs to be
T places were concerned, was to achieve greater effi-
ciency with less fuel consumption. Slow combustion
accommodated. The inglenook was a popular and cosy
way of forming draught-free seats around the fireplace.
techniques were constantly being improved. The cheeks Chimneypieces take many forms. There is now a
of the fireplace would be made from fire-brick, and greater use of glazed tiles, and these tend to be more
splayed at the sides, w ith the back sloping forward, so elegant than in the Victorian period. They were popular
as to project more heat into the room. The splayed sides in simple plain colours with metallic glazes. Small shelves
also had the effect of reducing the size of the grate, so are often incorporated in the chimneypiece for ornaments
that less fuel was used . Often the grate was ventilated or for books. There was great freedom in those designs
directly from outdoors so that the fire did not draw a cold that derived from Art Nouveau models, and rigorous
draught from across the room. copyism in those based on the Queen Anne and Georgian
In rural, wood burning areas and when the Baronial or styles. Classical wood fireplaces were frequently pine
Tudor look was desired (for example in entrance halls) painted in gloss white or matt Georgian green.
~~- -
1
EDWARDIAN 371
The Edwardian fireplace would Sons Ltd ofBristol. CS The overmantel, with mirror, eccentric: it incorporates a small
ofren take on an Atfamesque A slightly retrogressive design, could be painted pine or polished glazed ornament cupboard and
appearance, which was popular in the "New Richmond'~ from walnut. YM two mirrors. Ornaments were
the drawing room. The surround Young and J\llarten. The tiled This design {1906) for a pine intended to be displayed in a row
and overmantel here are in white surround is set into a mantel of fireplace surround (shown here on the top shelfas well as the
painted pine, with an inset mirror. pine, supplied ready for painting. before painting) is highly mantel shelf NC
The brass canopy has an
Adamesque repousse motif PW 8 9
(j) Enamelled slate chimneypieces
were still available in the
Edwardian penod, and were
decked out to look like inlaid
marble. Vanous permutations of
colours were available. This model
was available from Gardiner and
7
372 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
4 @A white-painted cast-iron
bedroom fireplace. The attractive
tiled cheeks show an Arts and
Crafrs influence. EL
2 3
4
if
f
6 7
Kitchen stoves
1
(1) Gas cooking became in the tank above the hood was black ename~ easy to clean, 4
increasingly popular during the heated by the oven. N C though derived from the "black
Edwardian period. This is the 0 A more modest gas store, lead" tradition. The stove was
Imperial Gas Cooking Stove, "The Favourite '~ c.1910. This had provided with its own heavy
which was the last word in two boiling burners and a gril~ as solrd tin or copper pans. CEC
technology when shown in well as an oven, and was made by G) The optional switchboard for
Nicholls and Clarke's catalogue O'Brien Thomas and Co. OB the Beeton stove. The alternative
for 1906. It circulated hot water, Q) The "Beeton" stove was the was to buy the more expensive
and thus competed directly with General Electric Company's latest version of the stove (shown) with
the coal-fired range. The water model in 1910. The fmish was rotary switches on the side. CEC
raditional coal ranges had already achieved a high companies. Their form was compact, with the grill
T standard of efficiency in the Victorian period.
There were not many more improvements that could
under the hotplates and the oven at the bottom, very
much like the standard design today. Makers paid
be made to them, although ease of maintenance was careful attention to ease of cleaning, and also to making
one. In Edwardian times the stoves were increasingly the gas taps/faucets as safe as possible. The early gas
set in tiles and provided with tiled backs, and there stoves were immensely heavy as they were made of
was a gradual introduction of enamelled finishes: all iron and the ovens were lined with firebrick. A notable
these improvements helped to make cleaning easier. early manufacturer was the Carron Company.
However, most ranges still needed regular blacklead- The . two problems associated with early electric
ing, an unpleasant job that was relegated to the stoves were their expense and the time the hotplates
housemaid, where one was available. took to warm up . Although electric stoves achieved
Gas stoves were constantly being improved. They some popularity, the early models never seriously
could be hired on a quarterly basis from local gas competed with gas.
EDWARDIAN 375
Staircases
An Edwardian open-stn.ng
stair, with an unusual an/;/
imposing square-turned newel
post. The popular square-cut
balusters continue the form: they
would have needed sophisticated
machinery as they could not be
rotated on a lathe in the
traditional way. EL
erhaps the main departure from Victorian precedent staircase differed little from those of the late Victorian
P was the w ish for a proper stair hall in even compar-
atively modest houses . Mrs Peel in her book The Ne w
period. "Georgian" and "Adam" ornamentation might
be found in the grander balustrade, but many houses,
Home, published in 1903, recommends making an arch- influenced by Arts and Crafts styles, favoured a simple
way between the hall passage and the front living room staircase with thin undecorated balusters placed close
of a small terraced/ row house. The space thus gained together.
was seen as appropriate for entertaining, and could dou- In middle-class houses it was now commonplace for
ble up as a dining room. A screen could be placed across housewives to do their own dusting, and this had some
the comer to obscure the front door. In larger houses an subtle design implications. Stair rods, which had hith-
effort was made to accommodate the stairs in a gener- erto been almost always brass and needed polishing once
ous entrance hall, usually with a grand chimneypiece, a week, were now made in oak and were virtually main-
or cosy inglenook. tenance-free. The deep-cut mouldings of the Victorian
In the average house the actual joinery details of the staircase were softened to make cleaning easier.
376 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
6 7
8~
~
,--
~ _A..IIIilliillll-...t'
Built-in furniture
(J) This fireplace doubles as an 1
"inglenook" and a "cozy
corner". The glazed wooden
cupboards are vety typical of
the period. The entire unit is a
good example of the
commercialization of the Arts
and Crafrs ideals. OH
Services
1 0 A patent t~ -up bath (1909) basin. The same set of from the basin dtd not pass out
in sheet steel or use where space taps/faucets served both, by into or through the bath. GFB
was limited. he bath pivoted on adjustinf!,_ a lever as on a modern CD A Daulton's cast-iron "sitz"
its waste pipe. 7W shower ftxture. The bath with white vitreous enamel
0 Another space-saving idea manufacturers (George Farmiloe {rnish, 1904. This type saved on
was to combine the bath with the and Sons) stressed that the water both space and water. DA
4 5
@ This cast-iron bath is from the vitreous enamel or white porcelain, Victorian period, the decoration is CD A shower unit, with coprer
Macfarlane's Castings catalogue, with a painted design on the more delicate and elegant; the wall spray pipes and waterproof
1907. The finish may be either outstde. Compared with the frieze enhances this effect. M CA curtains, 1904. DA
y the start of the 20th century, bathrooms, or at least radiator in the hall, was also included on the circuit. The
B baths, were provided in virtually all new houses. In
working-class dwellings the bath was often located in
old-fashioned and unreliable geysers fell out of favour,
although they lingered on in builder's catalogues.
the kitchen or scullery near the boiler - sometimes Much thought was given to hygiene. It was no lon-
concealed beneath the floor, and revealed by lifting a ger believed healthy to encase baths in wood panelling.
trap door; in other cases it was stored and secured on Ceramic baths were highly regarded, but were heavy
end inside a cupboard and pulled down when needed. and expensive. Cast-iron baths stood on legs (often with
Most middle-class houses had a proper bathroom, and claw feet) to make them easy to clean underneath.
a separate water closet, off the staircase landing. Bathroom curtains and soft furnishings were frowned
Hot water systems improved during the period. An upon as harbourers of dirt and microbes, so the
independent domestic boiler would supply enough hot windows were fitted with obscured glass. Usually, the
water for a storage cylinder for the bath and for general fixtures themselves were more streamlined, with fewer
household use; sometimes a heated towel rail, or else a dust traps, than those of the previous period.
EDWARDIAN 379
c
r
Lighting
0 By 1911 the General Electric 1 large drawing room or a
Company catalogue ran into ballroom. The bowls may be cut
three large volumes, one of gLass or satin finish. GEC
which was almost entirely (2) The invention of the inverted
devoted to light fixtures. This gas burner made possible the
G. E. C. ceiling light or Clown lighting gas pendant. This
"electrolier" - the "Cowbridge" one is typical (Young and
-is in gilt-coloured polished Marten, 1910). YM
brass. It would be suitable for a
3
2
5
6
- - - - - - - -- -
EDWARDIAN 381
Metalwork
large castings to be conveyed all over the country. The railings, and balcony fronts for the new mansion blocks
foundries kept their old moulds in their extensive stor- of apartments- which often featured a honeysuckle or
age yards, so the range of patterns they could produce Greek key motif.
at short notice increased by the day, and their pattern Cast iron was by now almost universally used for
books reflect this diversity. rainwater down pipes/downspouts and hopper heads/
The tight formality of late Victorian cast iron gave leader heads, and for drain covers.
way to freer designs influenced by the French Louis )0.1 Much of the elaborately detailed cast iron of the
and XVI styles and by Art Nouveau. At the same time Edwardian period was removed in the 1940s to "help
many ironwork designs reflected the revival of interest the war effort" - although most of it was melted down
in the Georgian era. Work of the 18th and early 19th only after the war was over.
382 EDWARDIAN 1901-1914
CD and 0 Cast-iron porch doorway in a terrace. Both were the Ree,ency pen.od. This example This one is from c.191 0. MC
canopies, with glazed roofs, were made by Young and Marten of (1905) has a zinc roof cs CD and@ Two wrought-iron
much more wrdely used than London. YM @ Glazed porches kept out balcony designs. The bracketed
their scarcity today suggests. The Q) Wirework porches, popular draughts and could be attractive one would probably have acted
lower example is for a double for cottages, were a legacy from when filled with potted plants. as a porch to a doorway . cs
11
@A pair of wrought-iron
camase gates. The finials were
solrd forged. GS
@ From the same manufacturer;
a delicate wrought-iron garden
gqte. GS
() Bootscrapers were available
in a range ofdesigns. In addition scrapers had a long spike for ventilators. This design by
to those shown here there was a fi!ing into the ground. MCA Maxwell Ayrton nostalgically
type with six scraper bars @ Weather vanes were popular harks back to coaching days.
arranged in a row. Some on roofiops or surmounting Golfing scenes were popular.
EDWARDIAN 383
Woodwork
2
@A modest garden gate, in oak 0 This ornamental fretwork arch A typical porch canopy bracket A substantial gateway for the
or pine. !fin pine, it would be was designed to make a feature in with turned balusters in the late driveway to the motor house
painted to match the house. ww the hall or in a passageway. AOH Queen Anne Revival style. YM (garage) or stables. CM
rivacy was appreciated more than ever before in able both in the conservatory and in the town garden.
P the modest gardens of the Edwardian suburbs, and
fencing accordingly became an important commodity.
A notable manufacturer was the garden specialist J.P.
White of Bedford, whose products included screens
Pine was often used as a economical material: with for blank walls and niches, as well as trellis temples
pressure treatment and the use of constantly im- and obelisks.
proving preservatives, it could now be made to last The revival ofT udor styles in suburbia was mani-
longer without repainting. fested in the use of fake timbered gables - dark wood
An important use of woodwork was in the conser- beams with rendered panels in between. Wooden
vatory and the greenhouse. The firm of William balconies, porches, eaves brackets and bargeboards
Cooper Ltd, one of the largest joinery manufacturers often show great individuality.
in London, sold nearly 10,000 conservatories and An alternative gable treatment was the application of
greenhouses a year throughout the Edwardian period. wavy-edged boarding in oak or elm, which lent a rustic
Treillage, or decorative trelliswork, became fashion- look to summerhouses, garages and garden buildings.
384
he American Beaux Arts movement flourished of young, academically trained architects. Architects
T between 1876 and 1930, and encompassed a variety
of architectural styles w hich w ere derived from historic
replaced builders' handbooks as the chief arbiters of
style. Architecture as a profession had developed only
precedents. in the 19th century, and the most prestigious architec-
In the post-Civil War period the nation's economy tural school w as the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. The
grew rapidly until in the last quarter of the 19th century first American to graduate from the Ecole's rigorous five-
it came to rival that of Europe. Political and financial lead- year course was Richard Morris Hunt (1827-1895), who
ers, acutely conscious of the nation's new status, com- after leaving the school travelled in Europe and Egypt
missioned public architecture which reflected American and worked briefly in Paris; he returned to the United
pow er. At the same time, many private fortunes were States in 1855. Many other American graduates of the
being made, and hundreds of wealthy citizens were Ecole followed a similar pattern. Newly founded archi-
building lavish town houses and country estates in which tectural schools in the United States adopted Beaux Arts
specific motifs were borrowed from historic European practices and were often staffed by Beaux Arts alumni.
styles. The splendid new mansions were reminiscent of Parisian influence shaped American design through
French chateaux, Italian palazzi and Elizabethan manor these channels.
houses, and their owners may have perceived themselves Ecole teaching during the 19th century stressed the
as modem equivalents of Renaissance princes. importance of a clearly articulated floor plan. Fenes-
To serve the demand for lavish domestic architecture, tration and the disposition of wings were often sym-
there was now, for the first time, a convenient supply metrical, and responded to the plan. The Ecole pro-
AMERICANBEAUXARTS 385
0 Shingle-style houses such as 0 In this country house in
this one in Newpo11, Rhode Great Barrington,
Island, incorporated Queen Massachusetts, by McKim,
Anne and Colonial Revival Mead and White, 1884, the
motifs; all exterior surfaces were unlikely plan ofa French
covered with shingles in chateau has been worked inro
contrasting patterns. an intricate grid of rooms.
mated the use of advanced technology, and Beaux Arts balustrades, gargoyles and massive arched entrances.
architects perceived no conflict between the modern Interiors often had vaulted banquet halls lined with
functions of buildings and the exploitation of histori- tapestries and enormous hooded stone fireplaces.
cally derived detail. Architects incorporated complex Another version of the French Renaissance style was
electrical systems, elevators, mechanical communica- practised by the partnership of John M. Carrere (1858-
tion devices and sophisticated bathroom and kitchen 1911) and Thomas Hastings (1860-1929), whose work
equipment into their houses. And, just as they enriched drew largely on 17th- and 18th-century prototypes by
the exterior features with period detail, they also embel- architects such as Jacques-Ange Gabriel or Claude
lished the equipment inside: acanthus leaves curled Perrault. Houses in this style have low-pitched roofs
around the corners of brass switch plates, cast-iron dol- behind a balustrade, colossal pilasters, arched windows
phins were applied to the feet of stoves and bathtubs. and doors, and rusticated bases . Varying amounts of
Often, these details related to a single architectural carved limestone decoration- scrolls, console brackets,
theme, uniting interior and exterior treatments. fascias, garlands and cartouches - surround windows
Beaux Arts architects commonly incorporated the and doors. The firm also designed houses in a French
work of other artists- for example, exquisite stained or provincial style which featured high-hipped roofs punc-
coloured glass windows and screens by John La Farge tuated with small dormers, and brick elevations
(1835-1910) and Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933), or enlivened with limestone quoins.
sculpted fireplace surrounds, pediments or entrances by The firm of William A. Delano (187 4-1960) and
Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848-1907) and Karl Bitter Chester H. Aldrich (1871-1940) specialized in Georgian
(1867-1915). Cabinetmakers, too, such as Gustav and Revival or English Regency Revival styles. Elevations
Christian Herter (1830-1898, 1840-1883), worked in (of both town and country houses) featured broad red-
concert with architects, making magnificent suites of brick walls with crisp symmetrical arrangements of
furniture which related to the treatment of the interior. wooden sash windows with black or dark green shut-
Garden plans, similarly, reflected the symmetrical ters. Thin strips of white marble trim ornamented win-
rhythms of the house plan. In short, Beaux Arts design dow sills and door surrounds. Interiors incorporated
emphasized unity, in contrast to the competing pat- round and oval forms , saucer domes, niches and blind
terns, textures and styles of the Victorian aesthetic. arches, recalling the work of English architects such as
Architects tended to specialize in one or two particu- John Soane or Henry Holland.
lar styles. Richard Morris Hunt initiated the trend by Addison Mizner (1872-1933), working primarily in
designing a series of limestone mansions modelled upon Palm Beach and south Florida, created exotic Spanish
French Renaissance chateaux for the Vanderbilt family or Mediterranean Revival winter homes, which fea-
and other millionaires. He popularized the "Fran<;ois tured stuccoed walls, tile roofs, loggias, open courtyards,
Premier" style, characterized by steeply pitched slate and elegant ironwork.
roofs with elaborate crest railings, rows of dormer win- Variants of English Gothic Revival houses were com-
dows enriched with crockets and finials, square tow- mon throughout the period, particularly after 1900.
ers, turrets, tall chimney stacks, ornately carved Called the Tudor Style by Americans, the idiom really
386 AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 1870 - 1920
incorporated elements of English Tudor, Elizabethan began to graft Colonial details such as porticoes and
and Jacobean architecture. Examples ranged from enor- Palladian windows onto their Shingle-style houses, but
mous stone mansions modelled on Jacobean manor the first full-blown examples of the Colonial Revival date
houses to half-timbered cottages. Most were asymmet- from the 1880s. Gradually, architects grew bolder and
rical in plan, many-gabled, with mullioned windows and historically more accurate in their use of Colonial and
tall chimneys. Inside, heavily carved oak panelling, Federal features. Later regional developments include
ornate oak stair balusters, iron sconces and chandeliers Spanish Colonial and Southern Colonial. Colonial houses
contributed to the Late Gothic mood. The Tudor style are still constructed in great numbers today.
was popular in scaled-down form in suburban districts. Although Beaux Arts architects worked in a range of
Of all these historically derivative styles, the most per- revival styles, they did not replicate historic houses. Instead,
vasive was the American Colonial Revival, which in part they used historic detail to embellish houses that incorpo-
owed its strength to the 1876 Centennial of the Ameri- rated new domestic technology, ample service space and
can Revolution. As early as 187 4 the architects Charles modem floor plans. While these houses borrowed from
F. McKim (1847-1909) and Stanford White (1853-1906) history, they were designed for contemporary living.
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 387
Doors ~
0
0
Q
he doorway of a Beaux Arts house announces, with urban houses there were also doors to the garage.
T a flourish, the selected period style: oak-plank doors
with leaded glass panes and hoodmoulds (stucco or
Handsome catalogues of the era illustrate "Fran~ois
Premier" door knobs and latches, Italian Renaissance
stone) forT udor; raised panels, fanlights/transom lights, knob plates or bolts, or plain round, brass knobs, suit-
side lights and carved classical details for Colonial; able for Colonial or Georgian treatments.
carved limestone swags, garlands, cartouches and rusti- Inside a grand Beaux Arts house, wide, open arch-
cated masonry for French Classical. Bronze door frames ways link halls and main living spaces. Wooden doors
holding huge panels of plate glass were common, with in historical styles (often mahogany) separate bedrooms
a variety of surrounds. Such grand entrance doors super- and more private living areas. Many doors lead to spe-
seded the deep porches of the Victorian era. cialized storage rooms, such as linen, hall and telephone
Service or secondary doors are numerous -to the back closets. In lavish French-inspired interiors the door pan-
terrace/row, the garden path, the kitchen, the coal chute els could be painted with floral decorations, trophies or
and cellar, the servants' quarters. In later, smaller, sub- romantic landscapes.
388 AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 1870-1920
0 A Romanesque Revival door
with rusticated masonry
surround, c.1889. The arched
head is formed by voussoirs. The
door is embellished by elaborate
iron hinges and grillwork
containing a cartouche.
[1 r] Three front doors from the
E.L. Roberts and Co. catalogue,
D
The doors themselves
I
incorporate metal grilles.
tDU
@ A Colonial Revival door of
six panels, set into a portico
derived from Palladian designs.
0 This Colonial Revival
doorway is typical ofsuburban
houses. A swan's-neck
pediment frames a ~uted urn,
~
D 0[] D ~
Ill Ill
and fluted columns flank the ' _lLL.~.
'-- '---
3 4
1 2 5~ :if
'
[][] ~ ~
u u ~J
g[Qj
DD .,
,
t
1i):
~)
=== '==
~ ~
DD
(J) A Renaissance Revival door 0
w[E
Glazed doors such as this
'
6T --u
~l7
(rom the dining room ofa Fifih were a feature a{ the French
--u
u
Avenue house in New York, Classical style. The semi-circular
early 20th century, with fanlight and carved garlands are
moulded panels and a !)!pica/.
projecting cornice. The (2) These double doors with
[OJ [QJ
York, c.1889. the lefi of these doors is a
Q) A door ofthe Georgian diagonal wall housing a
Revival, 1903. chimneypiece.)
11
Cut-glass panels could be
used to emphasize the period
theme. These two designs are
based on lacework motifs. RO @An oxidized-silver key in @Door knob and plate designs
@ A door plate, c.1890, semi-Byzantine style, 1889. ofthe 1890s, mixing French
showing Att Nouveau @A Renaissance oxtdized- and Italian Renaissance and
influence. silver escutcheon, 1889, cast l}yzantine themes.
This Renaissance-style with mask and foliate motifs. (tZ)A door handle, showing Att
hinge was made in brass, by @A brass Colonial Revival Nouveau influence.
12 Hopkins and Dickinson, door knocker, c.1920. @ The transom lifi was
1889. It has engraved @Four door knobs, not in any intended to improve ventilation.
surfaces and attenuated hinge specifrc historic style. The bottom American Manufacturing
frnials. two are pressed glass. Company, 1880s.
AMERICANBEAUXARTS 391
Windows ::2
0
0
Q
1
3!0
Q
z
~
' X Jindows and window surrounds conform closely to Spanish Revival windows often have ornamental iron
VVperiod themes. The Colonial Revival style features grilles and sometimes florid Baroque decoration embel-
six-over-six paned sashes often with taller triple sash lishes windows over the front door. Tudor Revival win-
windows on the main floor; sometimes their wooden dows are characterized by small panes and stone mullions.
surrounds contain carved garlands or a Greek key pattern. Not all Beaux Arts window treatments followed period
The French Classical style windows have arched or semi- prototypes. For example, many large houses had conser-
circular heads and are frequently framed with carved vatories, and architects usually laced the iron supporting
stone garlands, bands of guilloche or rusticated masonry. structure with invented decoration or period motifs.
The Fran~ois Premier style, popularized by Richard Morris Beautifully tooled brass or gilded bolts and latches,
Hunt, is notable for heavily carved hoodmoulds on prin- forged by firms such as Caldwell and Company or P. E.
cipal windows and busily crocketed dormer windows. Guerin, ornamented French and Italian style windows.
Italian Renaissance style windows are grandly restrained, Cruder iron hardware was applied to Tudor and Spanish
with either aedicule surrounds or pedimented heads. style window frames.
392 AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 1870-1920
~
Firms such as P.E. Gueri11 of A Rococo bar sash lifi. A Louis XN shutter latch.
5
New York specialized in
superbly wrought hardware in
brass, bronze and other metals.
@ A Louis XIV sash lifi.
A flush sash lifi, 1914.
A cut-glass shutter knob.
A flush sash lifi.
A sliding window bolt.
i A sliding su ace bolt.
An espagnottte bolt, for
French doors, 1905.
A skylight lifi, '1889.
J
14 I '15
AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 393
~
0
Q
z
~
. le Beaux Arts f
0 . Two
d wsSimp
usa ble in a variety o
wm o , I texts.
architectuha ~~dow in the
0 A sas wviva/ mode. .
Georgtan Re with semt-
French
circular dohrs.
fanltg t m the restrained
French taste. 1Revival
r7.\ This Coloma ed side
'V
doorway d fi atures tracen
Palladian
ligfrts, an a indow above.
(Venetian) w . lly produced
1?\ A commerchta der shown
\U
sas h wm dowd deaincise'd corn er
with carved ahead block. RO
blocks an a ----~~~"'E:Q~
9
r nate casement
A gran;Ith~~e panes of Roberts and Cod and
Chtcago.
cut-glass
window. "[, e nt technology.. Small leadeE L Roberts and
~ ass re~ect rece . dow showmg
A S taircase wm '
11 ence
wmdows
C On the
o.
from
nght. ts a tall thm
I ide ltght.
an Orienta I m,.u fle~ded Federal-~ 111e sl houses and
Two sectwns o e windows,
. d-glass statrcas
stame @ Both t~tyle houses
vanous Frenc dormer wmdows.
1880s. ed- lass window by &atured turret hand frame.
A stam g 1882 A gable bl:-glazed sash,
john La Farge,dow s~cuons, E. L
@ Leadedwm @ The dou
destgned for severe weather.
394 AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 1870-1920
Walls
~
(J) A treatment ofa large above is covered with red oak; the second has white pine
curtained opening between two damask, a popular period stiles and rails and yellow pine
rooms, with Islamic influence in treatment. ES panels. RO
the complex woodwork. (j) and @ Panelled wainscotting (I) Wooden mouldings, factory-
This wainscot features a ofplain design was available made in pressed pine, poplar or
beautifully inlaid panel from a number of commercial cypress, and purchased by the
-~
beneath the chair rail. The wall suppliers. The first example is foot. RO
~~J
~t
igh-style French Classical drawing room, dining rail, cornice and chimney breast or the edges of stiles
H room and library walls usually had carved wooden
panels (boiseries), sometimes with shallow-relief
and rails. Colonial Revival interiors relied on a combi -
nation of panelled surfaces and smooth plaster. Many
ornament (trophies, festoons). The ground might be plaster walls were interrupted only by a chair rail, which
painted white, green or blue, while the mouldings and could be symmetrical or "pedestal" (flat on top with a
carved ornament were picked out in gold. series of narrower mouldings beneath). Colonial Revival
Stained oak panels typify the Tudor and Jacobean panelling resembled Georgian prototypes, or was con-
Revival styles. These could be carved in linenfold structed of plain, beaded boards.
designs, or employed intricate patterns of intersecting Panelled dados (with painted plaster or wallpaper
squares, rectangles and lozenge shapes. Strapwork carv- above) were especially popular in halls and dining
ing enriched comers or chimney breasts. rooms. Thin marble slabs covered walls in the grandest
Georgian Revival panelling was much plainer, with French or Italianate mansions. Marble or limestone walls
carving or moulded decoration reserved for the chair might be used as a foil for brilliant tapestries.
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 395
@ A robust combination of
French Rococo and Neo-classical
carving and plastenvork,
featunng paired columns
flanking a pier glass and
medallions ofplaster with bow-
knots at the top. By Ogden
Cadman, 1904.
.,
I
-~~~~
\Q
\ ~
Q) Glazed tiles were used to cover the walls 5
of bathrooms and kitchens in the Beaux Arts
era. This example, from the bathroom of The
Ef.ms, Newport, Rhode Island, features a row
of tiles with a raised pattern ofdelicate
festoons containing garlands of flowers,
ribbons and bows. The design has obvious
p_eriod connotations. ES
0 Wooden or plaster mouldings that divided
walls into sections are typical ofBeaux Arts
interiors. Sometimes these mouldings were
further enriched with carved or moulded
ornament. This French- or Italian-style
treatment features roundels at the re-entrant
corners of the inner moulding and scrolls and
acanthus leaves flanking a cartouche at the
top of the outer moulding: these details are
gilded to match the frieze above. FH
(2) A fairly plain wall treatment. The raised,
panelled skirting board/baseboard serves as
a pedestal for pilasters on the corners and
door surrounds. The flat srdes of the pilasters
are ornamented with raised mouldings. Ul
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 397
Ceilings
1
(J) A beamed ceiling with This magnificent wooden 0 The juncture of wall and @) An extreme!J elaborate
carved lea f motifs on the beam- ceiling with its Gothic pattern of ceiling can be ornamented with variant ofa coffered ceiling, with
ends. Note the use ofsmall-scale moufdings and its intricately lavish plasterwork- here Renaissance-style carving on the
carving to punctuate the timbers. carved bosses, is in an Old including reeded and egg-and- rafrers and gilded dragons in
UI English style. UJ dart mouldings. UI between. ES
ost ceilings in the Colonial or Georgian styles are ures . Raised wood or plaster mouldings, richly carved
M coated with smooth white plaster. In some
imitations of 17th-century rooms, exposed unpainted
or gilded, divide the surface into panels. Italian Renais-
sance Revival ceilings are of wood, featuring a grid of
beams frame strips of white plaster on laths of wood. deep coffers, with rosettes at the centre, and bright reds,
Other Colonial style ceilings have plaster decoration- blues and gold enlivening the carvings. Spanish Revival
usually beaded mouldings around the perimeter or leaf ceilings are similar, but usually not so heavily orna-
motifs encircling the base of a chandelier. Plaster cor- mented; they are often dark-stained.
nice mouldings, loosely classical, mark the intersection Houses in the English Tudor or Franc;ois Premier
of ceiling and wall. Most of the moulding was applied styles often have great halls with huge timbered ceil-
to the wall, but sometimes half-round plaster beads ings. Exposed beam ends may be carved, as may the
would also be applied to the adjacent ceiling. corbel stones supporting the beams. The beams do not
Classical ceilings are also plastered, but often feature necessarily support the roof, as steel or other modern
painted scenes with clouds, cherubs and mythical fig- materials could carry the load.
- ~- . ~-
.,.. ~-
.
398 AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 1870-1920
(]) A coffered ceiling in the
Renaissance style, from a New
York dining room of 188? by
Alfred Zucker and Company.
The ceiling ofa drawing
room in a house in Boston,
Massachusetts, 1880
(architects: Sturgis and
Bn"gham). The interlacing
circular and square patterns are
reminiscent of the intn"cate
ceilings ofthe Aesthetic
movement.
0 A domed ceiling from a
hallway decorated in the
Persian style, 1880s. The n"chly
patterned surface features
carved, painted and moulded
plaster detail.
@ A stucco-like composition
ceiling in the Empire style,
c.1890, from the Stereo-Relief
Decorative Company, New
York. It was claimed that the
patented process produced
exceptionally dense relief
p_atterns, and was fireproof
(Z) Profiles of cornice mouldings,
made by E.{ Roberts, Chicago,
1903. RO
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 399
Floors
V>
()
z
d
""'
u
he most common flooring material is wood, espe- two to three inches (5-7.5 em) wide. This thin oak strip
T cially oak parquet, which in drawing rooms, dining
rooms and libraries of elegant French or Italian Renais-
flooring, with inlaid borders at the margins, is also found
in Tudor Revival houses. It became the standard floor
sance houses often has a herringbone or basketweave finish for later, smaller houses in the Beaux Arts manner.
pattern in the centre with a complex border in various Marble foyer or hallway floors in alternating black and
hardwoods such as cherry or mahogany. Border motifs white squares or lozenges are common in a range of
often derive from period sources. Minor rooms also revival styles -Renaissance, Georgian or Colonial. The
have parquet, usually without elaborate borders. grandest houses have entrance floors of exotic, highly
Colonial Revival houses tend to have straight board coloured marbles. Terrazzo was occasionally used for
floors, rather than parquet. Instead of the wide or halls, foyers or conservatories. Unglazed terracotta,
randomly sized planks of pine or local hardwoods that practical for summer residences or houses in warmer
would usually be found in an authentic Colonial house, climates, often covers floors in a Spanish Revival or
most Colonial Revival floors are of uniform oak boards, Spanish Colonial Revival setting.
400 AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 1870-1 920
0 Long slim oak boards form a chevron Q) A detail from a Sears, Roebuck and hence it was suitable for a kitchen or
parquetry pattern, with three running boards Company (Chicago) advertisement for hallway; it was also easy to dean and could
making a subtle border. ES "Royal Acme High-Grade Hardwood take an attractive oil finish. When the aim
This parquetry ~oor features a checked Flooring", 1910. Tongued-and-grooved was a beautiful appearance, plain oak was
pattern, with a curved border easing the maple boards interlocked at the ends as well used instead. Quarter-sawn red oak offered
transition between the door threshold and the as down rhe sides, as this illustration shows. a useful compromise between practical cmd
main ~oor space of the room. UI Maple was a hard-wearing surface and aesthetic needs.
@A ceramic mosaic tile ~oor, delivered in pre- dining rooms too. It was also suitable for rJle, reversible) carpet ofthe same date.
laid sheets two feet (60cm) square. It was gq_rden rooms and conservatories. American carpet manufacturers in the
suitable for bathrooms, kitchens and service (.)A detail from an American Bmssels Beaux Arts period all made Oriental-style
areas. From Sears, Roebuck and Co., Chicago. (looped-pile) luxury carpet of 1870. From the rugs, but genuine Eastern rugs were also very
CD A black and white tiled ~oor was most Lowell Manufacturing Company. popular. This is an Islamic prayer rug used at
commonly used in hallways, but sometimes in 0 A detail from an Amenean ingrain (non- the Biltmore House, North Carolina. BIL
6
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 401
Fireplaces
y the end of the 19th century, most houses of any marble surrounds with classical carving. Spanish Revival
B size had central heating systems. Thus, fireplaces in
the Beaux Arts period were freed from function. They
fireplaces often adopt similar forms, with rows of stone
or wood carvings on the chimney breast. Fireplaces of
could be used on winter evenings but their main pur- the French Classical Revival styles are smaller - fre-
pose was ornamental and symbolic. The magnificent quently comprising a wooden frame of delicate Rococo
fireplaces in entrance halls announced the style of the leaf carving, or a shallow marble mantel shelf with Louis
house to anyone who came in through the front door. XVI columnar supports.
The enormous halls or galleries of mansions in the The Georgian Revival manner is marked by elements
Fran<;ois Premier style featured fireplaces tall enough to of a single classical Order in wood or marble, with
walk into, with huge limestone hoods tapering back reeded or plain columns . Overmantel panels tend to
toward the wall as they climbed to the ceiling. Italian have shoulders (croisettes) or a broken pediment at the
Renaissance Revival types are also very tall, but do not top. The Federal style uses similar devices, but incorpo-
have such large hoods and are framed by stone or rates Adamesque detail.
402 AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 1870-1920
7
rr= - ---
~, I
I
([)Abstract Moorish and Oriental elements has Tudor connotations, but the columns and overmantel are academically correct and
are mixed in this fireplace of 1882-3. the tiled surround do not relate to the same relate directly to French Renaissance models.
0 The exotic columns and centra/lyre period theme. The frame of filii-height It dates from 1910.
ornament are redolent of the Empire style. columns was popular from c.1880 to c.1920. This low fireplace resting on acanthus
Q)A Renaissance Revival fireplace carved in (]) Although elliptical or circular mirrors were leaf consoles, with a tall mirror above, is
stone, with classical busts in the (rieze. ilie focal point of decoration in many French copied precisely from 18th-century French
@A panelled wooden surround frames this and English 18th-century overmantel models.
fireplace of c.1890, with overman tel mirror. designs, this treatment of 1880 had no Certain motifs here, such as the carved
The Renaissance-style brackets and garlands historic precedent. The mantel shelf, with strapwork on either s1de ofthe mirror, are
are arranged in a distinctively 19th-century thick reeding underneath, is also highly drawn from historic sources, but the amount
manner. inventive. o( carving and the distinctive combination of
(J) Here, the panelling above the mamel shelf 0 All the details of this fireplace and details re~ect late 19th-century taste.
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 403
Q) Attenuated columns, the mantel shelf ofa marble columns topped with composition interiors. This is a Regency
quatrefoil patterns and ~oral frreplace in the French Classical C3fitals. cw marble frreplace, c.-181 0. UI
and foliate motifs adorn this S!J!Ie. Ul ~ Beaux Arts architects ofien 0 A fireplace detail, showing
Tudor Revival frreplace. FH (2) Plain brickwork contrasts incorporated antique marble slip, carved acanthus leaf
@ Console brackets support with frnely carved wooden architectural artefacts into and dentil mouldings. cw
5
404 AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 1870-1920
7 8 9
CD An Italian Renaissance-style Gaudens and john La Farge. fireplace, with Oriental overtones, dumping attachment, used to
fireplace of c.1890 flanked by @ The hood on this from the Henl}' Villard House, separate the ashes and dead
stone Corinthian columns, with chimneypiece was made in New York, 1880s. cinders from live coals. RO
a carved frieze. antique brass. The panels in the 0 Grates ofren came with a A gas grate for a fireplace
0 Another design in a loosely overmantel symbolize night and decorative "summer piece", with a wooden surroun4 shown
Italian Renaissance style, with morning. New York, 1880s. which was put in place when in the closed position. For use,
mirrored overmante~ 1883. CD A drawing room the fire was not in use. For the upper part of the screen was
0 This massive fireplace with chimneypiece in opulent French lightness, these could be in steel remove4 but the decorative grille
marble and mosaic decoration Sjyle, with mirrored overmantel. rather than cast iron. RO remained fixed.
was designed {or the Cornelius () Onyx with a surround of A grate without the summer @ Three andirons: wrought
Vanderbilt II house in New painted wooden panelling: a piece in place. The handle iron; brass and iron; and another
York by Augustus Saint- grand Renaissance-style connects to a shaking and wrought-iron example.
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 405
Kitchen stoves
1
Staircases
0 A superbly catved
Renaissance Revival stair. The
silhouette ofthe reeded balusters
and the festoons on the huge
newel are distinctive.
6 7
0 A versatile design ofthe early especially recommended for suitable for a modestly sized in its magnificent catving. CW
20th century, available setvice areas. house. Bold spiral-twist Lacy wrought-iron
commercially. RO @ This Colonial Revival balusters support a ramped balustrades were typically used
CD A cast- and wrought-iron balustrade is from a house in handrail. FH for grand houses in French
stair, 1880s. This rdatively Forest Hills, Queens, New 0 This Renaissance Revival classical styles. This example is
unornamented form, with bolted York, c.1915. The fairly newel post (1903) is relatively from The Elms, Newpon Rhode
cast-iron supports, was simple, bold treatment would be small: the glory ofthe staircase is Island, 1895. ES
408 AMERICAN BEAUXARTS 1870 - 1920
6
(i) Typical catved decoration on the stair-
ends ofa Colonial Revival staircase. FH
0 A stair and screen, Newport, Rhode
Island (McKim, Mead and White, 1880-
82), with Oriental and Colonial mou{s.
Q)A spindle and lattice screen, by Henry H.
Richardson, 1881.
@ The elaborately spindled staircase of the].
Piermont Morgan House, New York. In the
arch's spandrels, small pieces of stained15lass
were set between gilt wires in squares of oak.
CD Renaissance Revival grandeur, Boston,
Massachussetts (Peabody and Stearns,
1877-9).
@ This section ofa spindle screen relates to
classical rather than Oriental precedents.
(!)A Moorish design, early 20th century. RO
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 409
Built-in furniture
uring this period there was a heightened interest in ogee arches, quatrefoil and trefoil motifs. French-style
D service and storage. Kitchen and pantry areas
featured walls of cabinets in two tiers: glazed above,
cabinets and doors featured painted w ooden panels w ith
gilt hardw are. Many Oriental schemes included
solid underneath. Pantries accommodated warming ebonized cabinetry. Sometimes a system of low cabinets
shelves and countertops. Bedrooms, too, were equipped around all or most of the dining room also carried the
w ith huge walls of panelled closets. Telephone rooms architectural them e. Ebonized cabinets often served as
tucked underneath the stairs were furnished with a chair, shelves for O riental porcelain.
a built-in shelf and possibly a door with a glazed panel, Deep window seats w ere standard in Colonial and
for privacy. All of these cabinets and closets were Georgian Revival houses. They w ere most often in a bay
enriched with mouldings, panels, glazing bars and hard- window or across the bottom of a large hall or stairwell
ware in the relevant historical style. window ; the hinged seat would open for storage. Tudor
For a Tudor or Gothic Revival interior, the appropriate and Gothic Revival interiors had inglenooks- a feature
choice was wide oak panelling and carved oak trim with also of Mission Style houses of the same period.
410 AM.PRICAN BEAUX ARTS 1870 - 1920
v
i
~
i
'
m~
.
' !liDO
II l.!J II t.!J
I & c::::J~
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6
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AMERICANBEAUXARTS 411
Services
(!) This water closet unites up- tank chain is beautifully gold leaf and painted decoration. @ A radiator grille from the
to-date technology v:;ith (tnely ornamented. ES The porcelain sink is supported Andrew Carnegie Mansion,
crafied, historically derived 0 The bathroom of the Esakoff on delicate cabn'ole legs. FH New York, 1901, by Babb,
ornament. It is disguised as a House, Forest Hills, New Yorfe; Q) A heavy porcelain bathtub Cook and Willard. Carnegie
Louis XVI stde chair with a is treated as t{ it were an with rich ornamentation. From insisted on the most modern and
caned skirt, seat and back. ornamental pavilion. The The Elms, Newport, Rhode sophisticated heating
Even the handle of the water domed ceiling is covered with Island. ES equipment. cw
n the mid-1 870s w ell-equipped bathrooms w ere tive glaze. Later in the period the housing became less
I The
exceptional. By 1917 they were commonplace.
standard bathtub had feet and was made of
elaborate. The bowl w as freestanding, the water tank
was placed directly behind it, and the porcelain surfaces
porcelain-coated iron, often featuring a painted exterior. were left plain. White was the usual finish.
Horizontal bands of colour, Greek key or other classical Wash basins were enclosed with wooden cabinets
motifs encircled the top. By 1920, this type was being or set into metal stands, or featured four porcelain legs
eclipsed by the built-in porcelain enamelled bathtub, or a single porcelain pedestal. The metal frames could
extending to the floor. be ornamented w ith nickel- or brass-plated ornaments
Porcelain w ater closets developed similarly. Initially, at the comers and feet. Often a porcelain pedestal took
all the individual elements w ere decorated: the metal the form of a fluted column on a plinth. Taps/ faucets ,
handle of the raised tank cabin could be elegantly cast, stopper tops, hot and cold w ater levers were modelled
the wooden seat could be painted with flowers or trees, on historic hardware in the French or Italian taste, or in
even the porcelain bowl sometimes featured a decora- some other revivalist style.
412 AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 1870 - 1920
(J) The "Renaissance" siphon jet Manufactudng Co., New York). @ A Sanitas wash basin, with
water closet, 1897 (J.L. Matt @ On the Sanitas wash basin ~oral decoration, 1887.
Iron Works, New York). (1880s), a lever was used to (Z) A double wash basin, 1880s.
0 A late 19th-century water open or dose the outlet - an Washtubs could be galvanized
closet with acanthus leaf innovation of the time. iron with a porcelain lining, or
decoration (Sanitas, Boston). CD A trap for a Sanitas wash brown glazed earthenware. The
Q) The "Manhattan" porcelain basin, described in 1887 as "the use ofBeaux Arts detailing on
lined roll-rim bath, with eagle's- only self-scoudng simple water- such a utilitarian object says
feet supports (Henry Shane seal trap ever invented". much about the times.
@ A "side-feed" boiler, by Gillis and Geoghegan, New ~t around a pillar or column. AR bed. In the house, note the
Gorton and Lidgerwood Co., York. @) Sewage disposal in country washtubs in the basement, the
N ew York, 1898. This would @ A radiator of 1904, made by and suburban regions remained kitchen sink and range on the
be housed in a utility room, and the Amedcan Radiator less sophisticated than town entrance floor and the sanitary
q}?_erated by a servant. company. It could be dismantled systems. This cross-section frxtures above.
(!!) A radiator, c.1890, made by into halves, and was designed to shows a septic tank with frlter
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 41 3
Lighting
1 ([) An electric chandelier in
modern French style. ES
11 11
A three-branched sconce in
Rococo taste, 1891.
Q) A Renaissance Revival
chandelier, 1888.
0 A Persian lantern, 1882.
0) An exterior lantern set in a
Colonial Revival fanlight.
6
@ A gas-burning torchere on a
newel post, 1875.
Q) Agas chandelier, c.1880,
conservative for its date.
A plain gas-burning sconce
of brass and glass, 1880s.
A wrougfzt- iron lantern on
scrolled bracket, c.1900.
@ An elaborate open-worked
wrought-iron lantern ~nial.
A wrought-iron gate
overthrow, Georgian style, with
a more current hanging lantern.
<..?
as-burning fixtures were the most common radiating iron rods joined at the middle with a finial; z
G lighting source at the beginning of the Beaux Arts
period, but by 1900 electric fixtures were equally
simple iron sockets w ere placed around the rim.
Addison Mizner, w ho designed Mediterranean style
~
<..?
::::;
prevalent. Chandeliers and sconces were especially villas in Palm Beach, Florida, produced wrought-iron
popular. There was a burgeoning interest in authentic and wood furnishings in the Spanish style, including
period lighting fixtures, rewired for electricity. lighting fixtures.
Contemporary "French"-style chandeliers were made Colonial Revival houses usually contained an array
of gilded metal with tiers of crystal prisms . Some of branched glass chandeliers, either authentic or repro-
featured twisted branches with candle sockets in the duction. Reproduction "Queen Anne" chandeliers,
Rococo taste, others a bronze oil-burning font with featuring a brass globe and ornate branches with
gilded mounts in the Empire style . Spanish Revival strapwork, were also popular. In the first half of the
chandeliers, torcheres, sconces and lamps were typically period, huge bronze or gilded metal chandeliers in the
of wrought iron. Wheel-like chandeliers comprised thin Italian Renaissance style were much in vogue.
414 AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 1870-1920
Metalwork
(J) A detail of spear and scroll New York, 1912} are typical of 1 0 An iron grille for a transom
motifs from a garden wall iron grander houses in French light, with a street number in the
railing. cw Classical or Italian styles. cartouche (McKim, Mead and
0 Arched wrought-iron and Q) Cast-bronze doors, with White, 1898).
glass doors such as this typical ltalianate details, (J) A typical balcony or porch
(designed by Ogden Cadman, c.1 900. railing with scroll and leaf
P-_attern, 1890.
@Two wrought-iron railings,
with central oval medallions
and Neo-classical details.
a,\ Suitable for balconies ofthe
P1 ~~~zc ~ ~ I
l!it' ~ Regency or Federal Revival, or
to surmount a portico.
0 An Italianate iron fanlight
and door grille, from a New
York house, 1917. The door
grille was used over a service
entrance, with the fanlight set
~
above {to echo the larger, main
~
door on the pn'ncipal racade).
L ~ I
any Beaux Arts houses in French Classical or Italian on the rooftops. Conservatories, very popular at this
M styles had walled gardens, and even small urban
residences had w alled yards: the walls would be
period, comprised glass panels set into an iron frame
encrusted with foliate and flow er motifs, or w ith Neo-
topped with wrought iron railings, and would often in- classical detail, with a decorative roof crest.
corporate iron gates or sections of iron grillw ork. French Spanish-style houses feature only modest exterior
Classical-style houses often had elaborate iron fanlights/ ironw ork, such as thin window grilles, but inside there
transom lights surmounting their front doors, with was a wealth of ironwork on display -light fixtures ,
cartouche, scroll and guilloche motifs; in towns and room dividers, wall plaques, and the like.
cities the street number was frequently cast in the Other interior ironwork was occasioned by new tech-
cartouche. On French-style houses the principal floor nology: for example, elevators might have ornamented
casements often opened onto a wrought iron railing or iron gates on each landing, or solid elevator doors
balcony. Fran<;:ois Premier residences, popularized by combining bronze and iron decoration. Radiator covers
Richard Morris Hunt, featured delicate iron crest rails were also treated decoratively.
AMERICAN BEAUX ARTS 4 15
Woodwork
7 8
he exuberant style of woodwork that embellished combined on the exterior in different shapes, creating
T Victorian eaves, porches, dormer windows, gables
and door surrounds was not as popular in Beaux Arts
contrasting textures.
A hallmark of the Tudor Revival is half-timbering.
houses. Heavily carved bargeboards (verge boards) went Square timbers, with thick comer braces, support porch
out of style, but wooden decoration did enliven porches, or canopy roofs . Exposed beam-ends terminate in
verandas, cornices and windows. carved finials , and the brackets beneath these beams
Shingle-style houses are particularly inventive in their may have carved foliate or animal motifs.
exterior woodwork. Heavy cornices, often composed In Colonial Revival houses the small porches or porti-
of a flush-boarded "frieze" and flanking rows of ogee or coes have columns, capitals and cornices derived from
half-round mouldings, are typical. Porches generally fea- classical sources. Italianate Beaux Arts houses often have
ture plain columns with smooth shafts, and many incor- deep overhanging eaves, held by long wooden brack-
porate sections of trellis, loosely modelled on Far Eastern ets . Attached pergolas are a common feature of the
and Islamic prototypes. The shingles themselves can be Colonial Revival and Italianate styles.
41 6
rendered luxurious by rich textures and new materials. tive builders around the large cities are in this style, but
Interestingly, the forward-thinking architects and so too are larger, more exclusive houses . The architec-
designers were those experienced in designing for the ture is characterized by deliberate "period" detailing,
film industry. Perhaps the American sensitivity to tex- including timbering, gables, porches, stained glass and
tural and tonal contrasts in interiors, and to dramatic so on. A small suburban house would have almost no
massing of form in exteriors, is related to the discipline period referencing inside - except for that installed by
of designing for a black and white medium. the owner. However, a more opulent house of the type
During the 1930s this style became, with variations, a generally referred to as "Stockbroker's Tudor" would
language used and understood across the United States, undoubtedly have panelling, beams and a grand stair-
although the revivalist taste remained strong. Despite case with richly carved newels. This term is also an apt
the Depression, Modernist Art Deco interiors remained description of many American houses of the 20s.
exuberant. The most extreme examples of this style are The Modernist influence becomes apparent in domes-
to be found on the West Coast and in Florida (especially tic architecture only at the end of the 1920s. Britain had
Miami Beach). Modern materials - chrome, plastics, a number of good architect-designers working in the
new types of glass - were used in conjunction with con- Modernist manner. Descriptions of modern interiors
cealed lighting to create rooms of extraordinary inven- were featured in Duncan Miller's influential book, More
tiveness. These ideas were copied freely by commercial Colour Schemes for the Modern Home of 1938, which
companies who were finally persuaded that the new depicts a variety of 1930s trends, from disciplined Mod-
style was here to stay. ernism, through a de luxe version (which has affinities
Toward the end of the 1930s, many fashionable inte- to American interiors of the period), to witty plays on
riors were being dressed in a Neo-Baroque style with period styles in the manner of Sy rie Maugham and
curving forms and plentiful use of drapery. At its best, Oliver Hill. Some of these ideas caught the public imag-
this style is witty, and not slavishly revivalist. ination- for example, the use of w hite or near-white to
Unlike the United States, Britain did exhibit at the dress walls and floors had become a fashionable cliche
1925 Exposition, but the British pavilion was badly by the end of the 30s. Mirrored walls, successfully used
received: the objects on show were thought to be drab, by Oliver Hill, came into vogue and remained there for
old-fashioned re-workings of Arts and Crafts styles. In several decades. The abstract patterned carpets and rugs
many ways, the situation in Britain was similar to that first produced by E. McKnight Kauffer and Marion Dorn
in the United States: manufacturers were unwilling to spawned a thousand imitations. The murals painted
produce objects in a new style which they failed to by Rex Whistler and Allan Walton inspired scenic
understand. wallpapers.
The impact of new ideas from Continental Europe By the late 1930s even suburban houses were begin-
was first seen in public architecture: domestic building ning to have some modern features, such as metal
lagged behind. Houses of all types and at all levels of windows (sometimes with rounded corners in the
expense were being built in a revivalist manner best "suntrap" style). Manufacturers' catalogues reflect, some-
described as "Tudorbethan" (from "Tudor" and "Eliza- times with amusing results, a demand for modern fix-
bethan"). Many of the suburbs developed by specula- tures alongside the continued popularity of revivalism.
418 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Doors
here is no standard Art Deco door, but some deco- looking type w as the panelled wooden door w ith stained
T rative elements recur, particularly in the late 20s and
the 1930s. The combination of metal and glass is
glass. Some wooden doors had small windows in "arty"
shapes, such as diamonds or hearts. Heavy panelling in
important - often within a stepped surround, which may dark wood with carving and decorative metalwork
include a window or sculpted panel. The door itself typify the American West Coast Spanish Revival style.
might be heavy glass, reinforced w ith iron or bronze In the 1930s porches become a feature of many houses.
worked into stylized natural forms or abstract patterns. In Modernist-influenced houses they may be formed by a
In British suburban houses, instead of metal, wood cantilevered upper story. Elsewhere they vary from simple
might be used, radiating in a sunburst pattern. The gabled constructions to elaborate affairs with columns,
influence of Modernism encouraged flush doors w ith sometimes incorporating seats. The more traditional doors
no moulding, and with minimal door fittings. Metallic w ere still dressed with fingerplates/push plates, lock
finishes are sometimes used inside the house, or metal escutcheons and handles, which by the 30s were available
sheet cladding on exterior doors. In Britain, a backward- in Bakelite as well as various metal finishes .
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 419
(]) The sunray motif was used on doors ofall CD Here, in a Modern house in Northampton, 5
kinds. This example, in wood and glass, is England, 1927, the door forms a composition
from Miami Beach, 1939. with the cantilevered porch and staircase
0 to @ These doors are all solidly made, in window above.
Swedish redwood and oak, and show the @A design of 1929i the door was executed
lingering influence ofthe Arts and Crafis in chased metal.
movement. The last example would frt 0 This 30s porch in Miami Beach is typical
beneath a porch. in its slender pole and zizgag iron balustrade.
2~
@ Another Miami Beach design (1939), using Key features here are a convex pediment,
glass tiles. These tiles were marketed under wavy border (reflected in the door itse/0 and
trade-names such as Vitrolyte and Carrara. conical lighting frxture. (Miami Beach, 1939.)
9 10
I o @
~ cc :=======
=
BH !==-==
420 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
(j) A simple glazed door in a
recessed porch, 1930s. The
simple bn"ck pattern edging the
hood adds a touch of
modernity, whereas the stone-
dressed windows carry
nostalgic evocations of the past.
SA
Elaborate Baroque
plasterwork contrasts with the
plain white wall ofa Spanish
Colonial Revival house. The
door is oak, with a typical
interlaced design. CN
@ An An Deco doorway in
Miamt; Flonda. The 6 8
asymmetrically patterned door
in a strong design is set
centrally in a relief panel of
great complexity, evoking
tropical luxuriance. PO
@ A stylized, simplified
version oflinenfold panelling
in a Tudorbethan house ofthe
1930s. SA
(Z) In these luxurious double imitate the historic design. The An interior door ofthe nickel-silver bosses which
doors from the same house, arched panels and elaborate Spanish Colonial Revival, Los mimic saddle and spur
the linenfold panelling is more surround reinforce the theme of Angeles. The two leather panels decorations. Note the decorative
elaborate and rendered to baronial grandeur. SA are held in place by patterns of door handle. CN
-------- -- - -
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 421
::2
0
0
1 2 3 0
R 0
II ~
(}) and 0 Examples of mass- pediment and simplified moulding 0) A pair ofdoors covered in strips p_ainted or inlaid).
produced interior doors fitted to is typical ofthe playful treatment of oflizard skin, dating from c.1930. 0 A glazed door design of 1929.
smaller houses in the 20s and historical styles in 30s interiors. @ A pair of fiush doors ofthe 20s The glazing bars might be wood
30s. They were made in @Custom-made for a showing the infiuence ofFrench or even chrome.
Columbian pine. medievalized interior; this door has An Deco metalwork (although the A Spanish Revival door
0 This interior door; with stylized heavy ironwork hinges. design could equally well be showing typical imerlaced
wooden moulding.
14 "' 15 A wooden door ofthe early
1920s, Palm Beach, California.
@)An archaic-style knocker
made by P. and F. Corbin of
New Britain, Connecticut (1929).
@ A 1920slockplate and knob
(Yale, United States).
II ~;:!~~="' @ to @) A range of lock sets. The
first example was made in
Bakelite with a marbled finish.
@ This "Tulip" set of handle and
key escutcheon was also available
in a "Pear" design.
@) An An Deco letterbox!mailslot
from Indianapolis.
A letterbox/mailslot with
knocker; by Rowe Bros. English.
@ This set of knob, letterbox/
mails/at and door belVbellpush in
17~
A a 30s An Deco style was
available in brass, stainless steel
or chromium plate.
422 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Windows
he French technique of using panes of glass of metric borders to stylized plant and animal motifs.
T different sizes to create a rectilinear composition,
and the idea of building a wall out of glass bricks, were
Traditional features include dormers, leaded lights
and, in Oueen Anne style houses, wood-framed sash
both adopted in Britain and the United States. Metal windows with simple stone surrounds. In English
framing was much favoured in the 1930s, and the glass suburbia coloured glass might feature sunray, galleon or
at the corners of windows could be rounded in the bird motifs. An alternative was clear glass divided into
"suntrap" style. Small circular "portholes" occur, espe- rectangular panels with a central small casement.
cially in Modernist-inspired buildings: they are metal- By the 1930s it was possible to find, in the same
framed and open on a central pivot. It is not unusual to catalogue of window fixtures, simple geometric types,
find traditional window types updated with metal elaborate items inspired by French Art Deco metalwork,
framing, squared bays, glass louvers and the like. Glass and historical pieces suitable for small-paned and lead-
with decorative frosting was popular on both sides of lighted windows. The Arts and Crafts influence is still
the Atlantic, with patterns ranging from simple geo- evident well into the 1930s.
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 423
1
3:
0
Ill I II IIIII I Q
z
~I ~ ~
?i
I I
I 1f I I~ I
0 A standard wood casement
frame ofthe 30S1 available from
Austins (England) in two different
heights and four widths. At extra
II . I Ill I lli I cost it was sold with an oak sill.
1
Beach Flonda.
1
by Austins. Coloured glass was
CD Another An Deco type is the often frtted in the small;:anes at
use of~at windows arranged in 1 1
the top. Teaded lights are also
7 8 series around a curved bay. common in windows ofthis type.
DO
1 2 3
0 A simple hallway casement updated form ofa 17th-century deliberate irregularities in the an entrance porch is typical of
window, set into a round- window type that is also found leading. The Mexican tiles of the 1930s. AA
headed niche. The leaded in British houses of the late the window seat are typically (})A stained-glass window of
glazing carries traditional 19th-century Queen Anne exuberant in pattern and colour. high quality, with a fine
overtones, but the overall effect Revival style. SM The window has a central hinge heraldic window catch.
is modern. The house dates Q) A simple window in a fgr opening and closing. CN Armorial slass is a common
(!om the 1930s. SM Spanish Colonial Revival house @ The wrap-around styling of feature of grander houses in the
0 From the same house, an in Los Angeles. Note the these windows in a bay above Tudorbethan style. SA
4 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~-11.-.--
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 425
6
-1 1'.
ll
~~
!'II L
l
I! 1.
v I
~ ~
DODD F
v
II
~
DODD ~
DODD 9
DODD
~~~~
DODD
DODD
to Shutters may give scope @ to @ French doors were 5JJ!le casement with leaded glass.handles from vanous makers.
for Modernist decorative detailing important. The frrst is a (g) A sash fastener of the @ to @ Casement stays could
or are slatted to create bands of standardized unit. The second, "Brighton" pattern, made by Louis be plain or have Art Deco or
shade. These are 30s examples. custom-made for a New York G. Ford ofEastboume, England. other contemporary detailing on
Decorative etching is a typical residence, has Regency overtones. Available in chrome or brass. the splayed end- for example, a
Art Deco window feature. @ A latch detail rrom a Tudor- @ to @ Range of modem window stylized shell pattern.
12
Walls
(!) Trompe l'oeil murals give a 1 some of the effects available.
spacious feel to an entrance hall Virtually any grain could be
in a late 30s design. cs imitated by a good painter or
0 and Witty borrowings decorator, to simulate the more
from history were common. The expensive woods. Grained
"bamboo" pilasters (1939} were p_apers were also produced. }5
used with a plain wall. The CD Strong geometric shapes give
fluted pilasters would contrast this contoured wall of 1924 the
with a strongly coloured wall. qp_pearance ofa folding screen.
@ Wood panels were sometimes !.) A detail ofa bracket. Stepped
dyed for a striking effect. This curves frame an alcove (New
1932 catalogue page shows York, 1936}.
5
- II Jm
I Ill
I
I
I
g
6
II m I I! I I
'
I 0 I Ill I Ill I
I 0 I Ill a II I
I ~
I II D iJ I
-~~KIH~IH 'I
I
'" 1/
1:1111
n the 1920s wallpaper in fashionable homes fell out be transformed into a trompe l'oeil landscape or an
Iwashed
of favour, giving way to plain or textured colour-
surfaces, or sometimes geometrical patterns,
abstract composition. Mirrored wall surfaces became
increasingly important as manufacturers began to
executed in panels of contrasting woods, lacquer or provide a vast range of coloured and patterned glass and
simply in painted mouldings. At the end of the decade the necessary adhesives.
there was a vogue for metallic wall finishes (a particular The suburban interior retained many of the features
11
favourite was silver). In the 1930s the all-white" interior that were being rejected elsewhere, notably skirting
enjoyed great popularity: actually, the walls were boards/ baseboards and picture rails . Wallpaper now
usually off-white, and were often slightly textured. often took the form of decorative borders and self-con-
Decorative panels of moulded plaster are found over tained panels (or even imitation murals) . Wood panel-
fireplaces or doors or as a central feature of a wall; or ling was stripped and waxed rather than painted and
the wall itself can be treated sculpturally. varnished: an alternative was moulded papers which
11
Mural painting enjoyed a revival: a whole wall could could be grained" in imitation of exotic woods.
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 427
(J) Glass was used in various plaques in the 20s were brightly a framed plaque. CF sometimes abstract. Wallpaper
ways, from simple panels, ofien coloured; 30s decorators favoured CD Decorative tile borders were borders beneath the picture rail are
tinted, to mirror_slass strips which cream or white. sold to use with wall tiles or a_feature ofthe period. KW
give an effect of broken reflections, Q) A detail ofa tile pattern for a frreplace surrounds. These are 0 Wallpaper cutouts are a feature
as in this 30s example. CS half-tiled bathroom, with checked handpainted. CF ofthe 30s. This page from a
Plaster or stucco wall panels border and moulded lip. @ Wallpapers might be deeply pattern book shows a decorative
could be purely abstract, or depict @ Pictorial tiles might appear as traditional, as in this floral cutout for a comer: it would be
stylized natural forms. Decorative features in a plain tiled wall, or in example of 1932, or whimsical, or fixed over the main paper. /('X'
6 7
428 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Ceilings
1
Q)A Spanish Colonial Revival in one form or anothe" are a gold and black, Port Lympne, plain, sometimes coated in gloss
timber-beamed ceiling from a commonplace ofthe pen.od. Here Kent, England, dating from the paint. The pendant light fixture
1920s southern California house they are finely carpentered, with early 1920s. frequently provided the only
by George Washington Smith green-painted chamfered corners 0 In modern houses that did not ornamentation. Ceiling roses/
{1876-1930}, who was based in along the main timbers. reflect the timber tradition, ceilings medallions are found only on
Santa Barbara. Timber beams, A painted drawing room in of the 1920s and 30s were ofren conscious histon'c revivals.
2 3
n fashionable interiors from the 1920s onward, a longer fashionable by the 1930s. Mouldings and coving
I popular treatment was to cove the wall into the
ceiling: the coving was treated as part of the ceiling and
were painted in white or a very pale tint, often to match
the walls. Prefabricated mouldings of a more elaborate
was often painted the same colour, its lower edge type suited rooms in a whimsically traditional style.
defined by a decorative border. Coloured ceilings were In the T udorbethan suburban house there was at least
a feature of the 20s: they were sometimes painted to a vestigial reference to traditional timbering, in the
match the walls, sometimes in a powerful contrast. mouldings that divided the ceiling area into rectangles.
Mouldings, when used, are simple outlines, which are Moulded papers could create a plasterwork effect. In
often picked out in a different colour. the more expensive type ofT udorbethan house, wood
Coving remained popular in the 1930s, but now was beaming was employed as pure embellishment, with-
used with simple geometric mouldings on the ceiling out any structural purpose. Beams were also a feature
itself, to produce a sculpted effect consistent with the of the Spanish Colonial Revival; another approach was
wall treatment. Strong colour on the ceiling was no to cover the ceiling with painted or carved wood panels.
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 429
1
----- ----- ---
-
- . - -~:?l?f't.::-_ - ' ...
430 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Floors
n fashion-conscious houses, rugs and square carpets fashion item. Inlaid linoleums could be made to order;
Ito with stylized floral or geometric patterns were used
coordinate with walls and furniture . Wall-to-wall
alternatively, lino tiles were available in various
finishes, including fake marble, and all these of course
carpets tend to appear only in the most exclusive could be laid in different patterns. The simple check
interiors. A standard treatment is parquet flooring, was popular, as was an overall colour with a
constructed in different patterns ranging from simple contrasting border or a "frame" for the carpet. Printed
herringbone to some complex geometric arrangements. lino, a favourite in suburban homes, was produced in a
On the whole, lighter woods were preferred in the 30s. vast range of patterns and some textures. Mostly, it
In less smart houses, an alternative to parquet was was used with rugs or carpet squares.
boarding which could be stained and varnished. Ceramic tiles were not much used in Britain, but
The patterned floor becomes increasingly important were an important feature on the West Coast of
in the later 20s and the 30s. Linoleum by this time, on America: in particular, houses in the Spanish Colonial
both sides of the Atlantic, had been elevated to a high- Revival style had floors of small terracotta tiles.
-
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 431
1 2 3 4
rn
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11 12
@ Some rubber flooring protection to the noses of the @A corner detail ofan Art
manufacturers produced mats, treads. These examples Deco woollen carpet. (The
runners and special strips of (Warne's, Essex, English, colours are grey-green and dark
flooring for staircases, including c.193 7) include some striking brown on a salmon and white
some pieces that gave Art Deco designs. WA background.) cr
432 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Fireplaces
ire places retained their importance in a period when places of this type include a decorative fire basket or fire
F they were no longer strictly necessary. It was normal
even for centrally heated houses to have them, and for
dogs, usually of iron.
A number of period styles continued in use, although
imposing surrounds to frame electric fires. Gas fires were these were usually simplified: it is not unusual to find an
less popular, because they were obtrusive in appearance. updated Adam-style fireplace in an interior that is not
By the 30s the fireplace is often reduced to a simple otherwise revivalist. Houses of the T udorbethan type
rectangular opening emphasized by nothing more than sometimes had inglenooks. The Arts and Crafts
a chromed edging, while the surround becomes almost influence still shows in beaten brass and pewter curbs,
a sculptural element. The hearth may be a simple slab poker and brush sets, and coal boxes.
of polished stone. Any fireplace furniture will often be Tiled surrounds are a commonplace of the English
chrome or steel, and elegantly simple in form. suburban style. They are usually of a beige or buff colour,
Stone and brick hearths and chimney breasts are often and pay a passing homage to the "modern" styles in
found, usually without ornamentation. Furniture for fire- being stepped or, less frequently, asymmetrical.
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 433
1 2
4 5 6
0 The style here is understated classical, operated by foot switches. Coal-effect fires
with a marbled infill. Electric fires were were introduced in 1921, by Belling. BE
available before the 20s, but did not have CD A beige-tiled fireplace with traditional
custom-made wall surrounds until the 30s. CJ 0 Stepyed asymmetry gives a modern look. hearth and grate, c.1935. LF
0 An electric fire in a more modern, The reflectors are bnght metal, the surround An opulent fireplace destgn in rose-tinted
streamlined surround, in beige marble with a matt-black, and the infill green marble. mirror glass with an acid-embossed matt{
black top (Berry's, London). BE @Berry's electric "Magicoal" fires were and fiuted decoration at the stdes.
7 10
(J) The styling ofthis frreplace, the 30s. The illuminated niche 2
with its asymmetrical stepping in the chimney breast is also
mottled tiles and wood framing characteristic. SM
appears with many variations in
1
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TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 435
....r-r
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lfT
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w
(J) A modern treatment, in brick, and by built-in striplights. was designed for a large steel with brass ornamentation.
ofthe medieval hooded fireplace, G) This design was shown in inglenook. The design on the @ A cockerel andiron ofthe 30s.
designed for a sloping ceiling. American House and Garden, overmantel is painted. @ These andirons in chromium
Fireplaces would occasionally 1929. Fireplace: brass and bronze. 0 A frameless circular plate and wrought iron came
incorporate a clock. This one is CD A Spanish-style adobe overmantel mirror dominates this with matching ftre basket and
shown with a portable electric fireplace for a New Mexico living simple fireplace with decorative fJOker, tongs and shovel set.
fi!e with decorative backplate. room, designed in 1935. It sits in metal guard bars. @In contrast to the previous
Q) The asymmetrical design of the corner ofa room. A 30s andiron of shiny steel example, this is a thoroughly
this early 1930s fireplace is @This fireplace (1929) -a in an unusual design. histon'cized design, with urn
emphasized by chrome edging fantasy on a historical theme - This andiron was made in finials and scroll feet.
9
436 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Kitchen stoves
2
as and electric stoves had been available in various this reason gas stoves remained more usual in Britain,
G forms since the 19th century, but it was only after
1918 that they began to ;sain widely in popularity and
and it was for gas that the first thermostatic oven
control was developed in 1923. The basic design of the
come down in price. stove changed little during the period, except for the
In the 1920s and early 30s stoves were finished in a addition of features such as splash-backs.
mottled enamel or tile, usually with a white door The United States was more advanced in the design
which fastened rather like a cupboard with a latch (this of kitchen equipment. American manufacturers were
was eventually superseded by a Bakelite handle). Such producing compact streamlined stoves early in the 30s.
stoves were utilitarian in appearance, raised from the These are characterized by a "skirt" that extends to the
floor on legs, with gas burners supported by their feed floor and by the incorporation of burners into the body
pipes above the body of the stove. Electricity was of the stove, to make the lines smoother. Instead of the
relatively expensive, electric ovens took longer to heat mottled enamels of earlier models, the new designs
up than gas, and the heat was less easy to control: for were finished in white with minimal trim.
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 437
Staircases
I
/'
mart houses in the late 1920s and through the 30s of the Spanish Colonial Revival style, but the treads are
S were often conceived as a flow of space rather than
a series of closed boxes: hence, the staircase is often vis-
closed and the stairs are usually screened with wood
panelling on the room-facing side.
ible from the principal rooms. Cantilevering allowed the A staircase leading to a gallery may be found in the
stairs to follow the line of a curved or flat wall with no more sizeable T udorbethan house. The grand staircase
support on the sides. The visual lightness of such stair- also occurs in miniaturized form in smaller suburban
cases was emphasized by open treads. houses, often with a small half-landing, the whole thing
In the 1930s chromed banisters were in vogue. Types constructed in mass-produced wooden components,
range from the simple tubular bar to more elaborate stained in a dark oak colour and varnished.
arrangements of tubular and ribbon forms. An alterna- The use of staircarpets necessitated metal rods to hold
tive to chrome was plywood, which could be shaped the carpet in place. These were available in several types,
to follow the line of a curved staircase. as simple metal rods with plain socket fixtures, or with
Wooden stairs rising from a main room are a feature a variety of decorative finials .
. ~
438 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
',
8 (f) and 0 Chromed metal or the rails might be coiled to make @ A detail ofa curved grand
tubular steel was an ideal material the newel post. revivalist staircase with a wooden
for stairs, and could be combined Q) A 1930 design, with broad handrail, designed by Sir Edwin
with a waxed oak handrail. These ribbons that interweave through Lutyens in 1932.
designs ofthe mid-30s show how the tubular uprights. CD This design {1929) has more
solrdity, the delicate ironwork
contrasting with a massive
stepped balustrade in marble.
A typically 30s treatment, of
pale laminated wood in a tubular
metal framework.
0 The ultimate in revivalism.
The metalwork is wrought iron
and bronze, with the rope and
tassel ornaments gilded in leaf
__ .. -
. ;~ . Six bars ofbleached
mahogany are held in place by
tubular chromium uprights.
(California, 1939.)
AstandardAmerican suburban
staircase, 1925.
@ Short pights ofsteps could be
enclosed with panelling with a
horizontal balustrade on top. This
example borrows from old English
styles, but actually comes from a
New York apartment.
- - =~ ~ ---~ -
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 439
Built-in furniture
'.
pace-saving built-in furniture was a feature of housing wardrobes: a typical arrangement is two wardrobes with
S in the inter-war years. This was prompted in part by
the smaller size of houses and apartments, but by the
central built-in vanity unit.
Laminated wood was also used to create units that
1920s built-in furniture had become chic, and appeared projected from the wall. Some fashionable interiors of
even in dwellings where space was not critical. Existing the 1930s feature constructions that incorporate enclosed
interiors were often remodelled by interior designers to seating on one side and a combined record player and
achieve the built-in look. Possibly the most popular built- radio on the other. Cocktail bars could also be built in as
in items were bookcases (sometimes with cupboards apparent extensions of the wall.
below) which were built into the recesses at either side In some modem-styled houses or apartments put up in
of the chimney breast. Laminated wood gave scope for the 1930s, built-in furniture was standard: the amal-
fitting walls from floor to ceiling with niches to contain gamation of eating space with cooking or living space
bookshelves, display shelves. or concealed cupboards. In heralded the appearance of the built-in breakfast niche
bedrooms such false walling was employed to disguise with benches and fixed table.
440 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
9 ~I;~?~_~J~v~f~,<~0,~"'~1 ~l~r"~~":~:~~-1
1936). The cupboards and
shelves are designed to be in
pine, painted cream to match the
walls, with scarlet handles and
I
~
drawer pulls.
A bookshelfand cupboard
unit of 1936, with interesting
uprights on the corners: these
may serve a purely decorative
purpose, or alternatively can act
as book-ends.
I
l lllllllllllll l lll ll ll l llll l l llllllllllllll l lllllllllllllllllllllllll~
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CD A traditional glazed display
cabinet for a dining alcove.
0 This butlt-in cabinet for a living
room incorporates a record player,
radio, drinks cabinet and other
storage space. It was fnished in
" J
8
lJ
~
Services
'.
aths in the 1920s were cast-iron and retained their the panels of which could be moulded or tiled. Bath
B legs. Washbasins were usually supported on a metal
frame or brackets, with a rail for towels. Water closets
fixtures were now available in clean, modern shapes,
in chromium, and mixer taps/faucets became more com-
were still being made with a separate cistern and a chain mon. Pedestal wash basins were available in a variety of
flush. luxurious bathrooms might be decorated with a shapes. Water closets were made with a lower cistern.
mural and equipped with a vanity unit and perhaps a Despite the appearance of new appliances, it was not
bath in a historical fantasy style. until the 30s that kitchens acquired a more modern look.
In the 1930s bathrooms became more compact. A The United States was rather more advanced than
common feature was a built-in bath set into a recess, Britain, and in the early 30s already had heating stoves
possibly next to a cupboard. Such a bath would often and water heaters in clean, modern designs, and stainless
have a shower attachment: separate shower cabinets steel sinks. In Britain the typical sink of the 30s was the
with glass panels were restricted to more expensive "Belfast" type - deep, white-glazed, flanked by a wooden
interiors. The tub on legs was giving way to a boxed unit, draining board, with an adjacent space for a boiler.
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 443
1 2
4 5 6
'.
~
- I 11
Chains could be brass, nickel-
p_lated or nickel-chrome. BS
A white-glazed toilet roll
chromium-plated. Sometimes
the central horizontal tubes were
linked by an inset radiator.
12 n=R=====~
{j
9
10~
~.
444 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
0 This wash basin has a black (DA kitchen sink of 1935. Shampoo units, nickel- or @and@ Two items showing
tn'm, and would perhaps be used @Taps/faucets could be chromium-plated, came with a how one maker could offer both
with black and white tiles. porcelain-enamelled, chromium- wall hook. The tube was rubber. conservative and modern styles -
0 A wash basin of 1936 plated, nickel-silver or yellow @ This comer boiler has sliding a gas-heated radiator and a
(Standard Sanital}' metal. The first ofthese pillar firedoors and ashpit doors. It wall-mounted gas panel heater.
Manufacturing Co., New York). types is the standard spoke-top; would be used in Britain for @Rainwater heads gave a
Some basins incorporated a the second is lever-operated. boiling laundl}'. chance for decoration. The
towel rai" joint-fiow tap/faucet 0 Hexagonal bath taps/faucets @A portable water sofiener, modern design is in cast iron
and bnlliant-cut and bevelled were one variation on the norm. attached to any tap/faucet by a (30s) and the traditional design is
mirror. 1933. BS Modern bathtub hardware by rubber tube. Sofi water was lead (1927). Art Deco forms
0 Bedroom wash basins were George Sakier, New York, believed to be better for food, the include stepped diagonals and
ofien h1dden within cupboards. RB 1932. complexion and health. stylized ears of wheat.
10 13
TWENTIES AND THIRTIES 445
Lighting
1 5
. I
""~ ..../
0 A 30s tubular ceiling light, in Q) A light ofthe "fancy open unit
bronze, silvered, chromium or type '~ satin-finished shade. NE
antique brass finishes. () A lead crystal bowl, heavily
0 A pendant by Lightolier; New hand-cut. NE
York, 1930s. 0 Incorporating shells, this 30s
Q) A wrought-iron pendant.NE e_endant was designed for a hall.
@ The shade here is pleated silk, A "shell" wall light with glass
with an opal glass bowl beneath. diffuser (height: 12 in./30cm). NE
12 13 '.
A ship finial tops this wall @ An An Deco ceiling light of Deco style uses three curved head with weighted tags.
light in wrought iron, United 193 7. The sandblasted glass electric lamps (Tucker and @Spotlights were surprisingly
States, 1926. diffusing rings have a clear Edgar; United States). modern-looking in appearance.
@For outdoors, an iron light border. @ Bed lights could be wall- @Ceiling plates for bowl-type
fixture (height: 23 in./58cm). @This ceiling light in the An mounted, or hung over the bed pendants were available in
brass, copper and silver
15 finishes. The chains were sold
S}Parately. MAA
(!)Switches were available in
I
Bakelite. Popular colours were
brown, white, and brown on
white. Note the subtle An Deco
detailing in the third of these
examples. MA
he central pendant ceiling light, sometimes usually in the form of an inverted bow l with chains to
T supplemented by wall sconces, was the most usual
form of fixed lighting in the period. Examples of the 20s
attach it to a metal ceiling rose/medallion. Modern
variations on the chandelier pattern also remained
are by definition luxurious, as electricity was expensive popular. Wall sconces, also in glass, were often fan- or
and not yet widely available, particularly in Britain. shell-shaped. Less expensive fixtures were made from
In the United States concealed lighting was in use by synthetic parchments and vellums; some were intended
the end of the 1920s. Tubular lamps were hidden for bed heads or dressing tables.
behind mouldings at the edge of the ceiling to give a The modem interior could be lit by ceiling fixtures of
diffused glow and to highlight architectural detailing. chrome or glass in appropriately modernist shapes,
Such lighting could also be found in the more luxurious including globes attached to chrome ceiling plates.
interiors in Britain by the mid-1930s. For revivalist interiors various historical styles were
Many catalogues of the early 1930s show a range of available, and special candle-shaped bulbs were made,
pendants and other lights in tinted or marbled glass, as well as a range of small parchment shades.
-
446 TWENTIES AND THIRTIES
Metalwork
i ~!cony,
Railings ora 30s mansion.
An iron M iami Beach.
Gates with a hint of Art Deco.
A radiator grille ofc.1930.
A bronzed poor gnlle made by
TuttleandBmley,New York, 1929.
0 A radiator grille in wrought iron, Metalwork entrance doors for a @ A dragon weather vane of @Roof ventilators made from
ry Edgar Brandt, 1920s. New York apartment block, c.1928. 1937: the height is 5 feetl1.50m. gqlvanized steel plate, painted.
A meta/screen door: fiamingoes @ A cast-iron ~nial. @.)Decorative cast-iron cresting.
are typical ofMiami Beach styles.
8
12
13
Woodwork
(]) A sunburst gate, typical of 1
20s and 30s English suburban
houses. This is an early example.
Garage doors, with a sliding
mechanism. Garages were built
into larger houses by the late
30s. MA
CD Cedar cladding gave a rustic
appearance to some 30s houses.
This design dates from 1934.
@ An all-wood weekend house,
with a detail of the window
design. FP
',
ood was used prominently as an exterior trim on posts, and solid fences with an openwork top. A range
W Tudorbethan-style houses. On the smaller sub-
urban dwellings, such trim was often confined to gables
of decorative fence posts was also available. Garages
were being made by the late 20s, in standardized
or to porch detailing. Larger and more expensive houses sections for on-site assembly. The same manufacturers
could be fully "timbered" : this treatment was purely also produced chalet-type bungalows intended for
ornamental, having nothing to do with the actual weekend use at the seaside. Usually very basic inside,
structure. Exterior wood trim was also a feature of Ver- they often had interesting detailing on the exterior, such
nacular Revival houses in Britain and the United States. as turned crockets on the gables, decorative porch rails
Gardens were a feature of suburban development, and the like.
and most houses came complete with a simple fence The radiators available in this period were not partic-
and a gate. Catalogues offered a variety of styles for ularly attractive. A typical solution was a lattice-fronted
those in search o an individual touch. The options box, which could be left as natural wood and polished,
included woven fences , fences scalloped between the or painted to match the colours of the room.
=
448
',
art visionary, part practical, part elitist and part social- gradually shed ornament and relied on space and pure
P ist, the Modem Movement was a self-conscious
style that refused to acknowledge that it was a style. It
architectural form. These were initially more influential
in Europe than in the United States, and their demon-
was created by architects and theorists who wished to stratio of a new expressive power of space and form
break with the past and express the spirit of the machine made a deep impression on architects such as Walter
age, but they could also invoke. the past in support of Gropius (1883-1969) and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
their revolution. In its aim to change society's attitude to (1886-1969) both of whom consolidated and defined a
design by telling the public what was good for them it doctrine of Modernism in the 1920s.
was not universally popular; most Modem Movement In the 1920s Modernism in architecture became the
houses in Britain and the United States before 1950 vehicle for many ideas about art and society, from the
tended to be architect-designed residences, and few mystical to the materialist. Movements such as the
developers were prepared to risk speculative building in Dutch De Stijl and Parisian Purism, led by Le Corbusier
an uncommercial style. After 1950 a more popular form (1887-1965), produced manifestos and a small number
of Modernism emerged, although architects have con- of buildings, nearly all houses, to demonstrate the
tinued to build experimental houses that are intended to revolutionary nature of their methods. Le Corbusier's
carry forward Modernism's belief in constant change. book Vers une Architecture (1924; translated into English
In the early 1900s leading German and Austrian in 1927), outlined his "Five Points for a New Archi-
designers reacted against the excessive and undis- tecture": pi!oti (houses on pillars), horizontal windows,
ciplined ornament of Art Nouveau and laid the free plan, free facades and flat roofs for roof gardens.
foundations for an architecture reliant on space, pro- These aesthetic definitions were demonstrated at the
portion and smooth surfaces. The Austrian architect Weissenhofsiedlung in Stuttgart, a "live" housing exhi-
Adolfloos (1870-1933) spent three years in the United bition organized by Mies van der Rohe for the
States from 1893 to 1896 and studied the buildings of Deutsche Werkbund in 1927. All the buildings there
Louis Sullivan (1856-1924) in Chicago which combined were white-walled (apart from some startling blue ones
clear structure with original non-historic ornament. by the Dutch architect Mart Starn) and had flat roofs .
Laos 's essay Ornament and Crime (1908) rejected orna- These became distinguishing marks of the style,
mentation as degenerate. Sullivan's disciple Frank lloyd whether they were used as part of a radical architectural
Wright (1867-1959) designed buildings after 1900 that programme or as a decorative novelty.
--- - - -
-
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 449
',
In England these ideas were view ed with some frames often replaced metal by the late 1930s although
suspicion although from 1927 onwards aspects of they alw ays had a thin profile. Monopitch roofs with
Continental modernism were gradually introduced. In overhanging eaves were copied from Scandinavia.
the first flush of enthusiasm for Modern architecture in These designs prefigured the more varied Modernism
the early 1930s certain English architects felt it a matter of the post-war period.
of pride to build houses with thin concrete walls to Only a small number of Modern houses was built in
make the barrier between inside and outside as thin as England in the 1930s, and few w ere of any great size .
possible. The interstitial spaces that played such an The new style w as promoted on the basis that it was
important role in the climatic adaptation of traditional healthy, hygienic and efficient, offering rational solu-
structures were all-but abolished as being a shameful tions to modern problems. It was also claimed to be
hidden secret. Pure concrete walls, however, w ere soon more honest than any replication of older styles or
found to be cold and harsh since they were given little addition of art de co style ornament. These claims were
insulation. Metal window s with large panes acted as probably exaggerated and the solutions created new
cold bridges and ran with condensation. problems of their ow n w h en new techniques and
By the end of the 1930s timber, brick and stone were materials were used, but the designs were inspired by
used for w hole or part of the construction even by arc hi- an aesthetic delight in space, colour and light that
tects previously devoted to concrete. In the process, it traditional styles could not offer_ Although elaborate
w as possible to achieve a closer assimilation to the craftsmanship w as no longer wanted, the high quality
regional styles of different parts of the country, since the ofjoinery w as carried over fro m traditional construction
white architecture was unpopular for its alien appear- and fine timbers were used. Clean-lined furniture , tex-
ance. Not all the "white" houses w ere actually w hite. tiles and tablew are w ere available to enhance the
Pink was a popular colour while sometimes the cubic Modern look and the cheap bent plywood designs ofthe
shapes of the composition were differentiated by Finnish architectAlvar Aalto w ere particularly popular_
colour_ The recent restoration of High Cross House, Although the free plan w as a Modernist aim, flat roof
Dartington, Devon, designed in 1932 by the Swiss- houses w ere not much more open than those in more
American architect William Lescaze for the headmaster traditional styles. Since most of these houses were
of a progressive boarding school, has reinstated a bright designed to have living-in servants, there was limited
blue colour to part of the exterior_ Timber w indow scope for revolutionary planning. Techniques of central
450 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920 - 1950
(i) The American architect 1 Q) Contemporaries recognized
William Lescaze built High the classic quality ofBentley
Cross House, Dartington, Wood, East Sussex, designed for
Devon in 1932 {or the himselfby Serge Chermayeffin
headmaster o(J':,ngland's 1938. The timber house is
leading progressive school. MOU poised in an open landscape
with a famous early stone
@ Glass brick walls gave sculpture by Henry Moore
dramatic effects at night, seen commanding the view from the
here at the Herbert Bruning end ofthe projecting terrace.
House, Wilmette, Illinois, 1936, Timber returned to favour at the
by George Fred Keck. CHSIB end ofthe 1930s and was used
for several houses built by
Chermayeffin the United States
afrer his emigration in 1940. APR
'.
heating were still poorly developed and the Modernist less of the living space. Bathrooms with skylights in the
insistence on clean uncluttered spaces caused heating flat roof leave good views from the bedrooms while the
pipes and electric wiring to be buried in the structure concrete frame allows for split-level rooms.
and almost impossible to replace, although houses In the United States, Modernism was consciously
became much easier to clean. A more practical aspect of promoted in the 1930s, as in England, since there was lit-
the same concern with neatness was the increased use tle continuity from the early works of Frank Lloyd
of built-in furniture which responded to the detailed Wright. Fallingwater, at Bear Run, Pennsylvania, which
and highly specific provision of spaces for particular Wright designed in 1935 for Edgar Kaufmann, helped to
activities. Some houses were equipped with the thor- revive a fashion for rough natural materials. Wright's
oughness of yachts with built-in cocktail cabinets, "Usonian" houses, built from 1937 onwards, were
sound systems, clocks, wardrobes and drawers under intended for cheap construction and employed a simpli-
built-in beds. fied style with interlocking volumes and projecting flat
Although no longer an essential, the fireplace tended roof planes. In the 1920s and 30s Rudolph Schindler and
to survive to give focus to the living room. A few houses Richard Neutra, both from Vienna, built remarkable
and flats had a double-height living room to create the houses in the Los Angeles area, benefiting from the
interesting spaces that were intended to replace the warm climate by reducing the mass of the building and
interest provided by ornament and decoration. While stressing the continuity of indoor and outdoor space.
flat roofs and balconies were intended for sun-bathing, The emphasis on airy lightness was continued in the
they were not, it seems, used very often. Some occu- famous series of Case Study houses after World War II.
pants of these houses took advantage of the large sliding Technical innovation was a selling point for
windows to develop a closer relationship with the gar- Modernism in the 1930s with examples like the light-
den as well as enjoying the sunlight, which was then weight metal Aluminaire House built for an exhibition
seen as unequivocally health-giving. in 1931; re-erected on Long Island, it is now in the
The majority of Modem houses were free-standing in process of being restored as a museum exhibit. This pro-
country or suburban settings. A few notable examples totype was never developed, and Buckminster Fuller's
of town houses were built, in which the organization of famous hexagonal Dymaxion House, designed in 1929
the Georgian terrace house was reconsidered and to be supported on cables from a mast, was never even
improved with the advantage of new construction and built. Most American Modernist houses of the 1930s
the flat roof. In Erni:i Goldfinger's terrace of houses in were in the European flat-roofed, streamlined style,
Willow Road, London, the concrete enclosure of the spi- only larger and more fully equipped. Among the
ral staircase becomes a structural element and takes up advanced features of the Earl Butler house (1935-7) at
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 451
',
Des Moines, Iowa, were a central ramp, air condition- inspiration came from Le Corbusier who abandoned his
ing, dishwasher and waste-disposal unit, an electric eye pure white style around 1930 and continued making
to operate the garage doors, high-capacity freezers and brilliant experiments until his death in 1965.
an internal telephone system, all of which (except per- The Modem Movement cannot be said to have had a
haps the latter) have become standard equipment. clear historical end. It always existed concurrently with
The book Tomorrow's House, produced by Architectural other ways of designing. Its claim not to be a style but
Forum magazine in 1945, appealed to practical common- to be based on eternal truths and at the same time to be
sense needs like storage and adaptable living spaces the style of the age was inherently contradictory.
while admitting that it would take a considerable effort Intentionally or not, it became a style because the mate-
to shift ordinary house builders and lending institutions rial and emotional conditions of succeeding decades left
away from the familiar revival styles of Colonial and their mark on architects and designers notwithstanding
Spanish. The American entry into World War II in 1941 their powerful taboos against decoration.
introduced a new climate of austerity and directed Its later history is considered in the next section. After
Federal resources into housing for war workers. a period of unpopularity, Modernist houses are now
Rational planning and economy were combined with a attracting interest, not so much as the forerunners of the
high standard of mechanical servicing in housing pro- future they once seemed, but as the rare relics of a
jects where the designers were at last more concerned specific moment in history. In England, Goldfinger's
with how the building performed than whether it 2 Willow Road, London, and Lescaze's High Cross
looked modem. The same considerations influenced House, Dartington, are open to the public and several
the design of prefabricated emergency housing in other houses of the period are being restored with the
Britain at the end of the war, resulting in dwellings that care normally given to older buildings. In the United
have remained popular while long outlasting their pre- States, Walter Gropius's house at Lincoln,
dicted short lifespan. When Modernism became more Massachusetts, several works by Frank Lloyd Wright
popular in the 1950s, it was partly because it found more and the Schindler-Chase houses in Hollywood,
ways of substituting for the lost architectural interest of California, are among a growing number of buildings
decorative detail. As at the outset of Modernist influ- whose interest has extended outside the narrow con-
ence in Britain and the United States, much of the stituency of architects to embrace a wider public.
452 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920-1950
Doors
1[
II
r
England. PO @A sprung lever handle and
lock. 10
From the 1930s, metal/ever 0 "D" handles were an elegant '
handles were considered to be and popular form.
more functional than knobs. A plain fu nctional metal
and 0 Designs that knob handle.
combined locks and handles A lever handle with tubular 11
were popular. p.
@A polished steel square
handle with lock designed by
Lord Snowdon in the 1960s.
~ A tapering 8at handle.
An unusual1930s plastic
handle.
he Modern Movement sought to eliminate super- and as garden doors: in apartments they were used to
T fluous detail and to achieve broad unified surfaces.
This desire coincided with the popularization of
integrate living spaces with balconies. Doors leading
to outdoor areas were often metal-framed with wire-
plywood, which revolutionized the door. The thin reinforced glass panes : in Britain this was known as
layers of wood, which were bonded together under "Georgian" wired glass (surely one of the most inap-
pressure, produced flush doors with no panels or propriate product descriptions in history).
mouldings; and the layers could be built up so that their By the late 30s, hardwood-framed front doors with
total weight was equal to that of a solid wood tradi- large glazed panels were popular. It became fashion-
tional door. Plywood was used for both external and able for doors to have "radiussed" curved corners; this
internal doors. Internal sliding doors were popular in type of door continued to be produced during the post-
the United States. In Britain in the 1920s a metal-faced war period. Door fittings were kept to the minimum
plywood was developed by the Venesta Company. and the letterbox/mailslot was often set into a panel
Glazed doors also became popular, as front doors flanking the door to preserve the unity of the surface.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 453
~ 11
454 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920 - 1950
Windows
resh air and maximum sunlight were Modernist pre- lintel controlled the amount of absorbed sunshine . In
F requisites. Architects designed large windows which
ideally formed a continuous element with an outside
England, Erni:i Goldfinger's "photobolic screen" intro-
duced more daylight into a room by having what was
wall. Living areas had windows, some on sliding run- in effect two windows on top of one another. The
ners, that rose from ground to ceiling level. Picture smaller top one was recessed so that a ledge was created
windows were introduced to "frame" views . Some over the lower window. The ledge was painted white
windows could fold away completely like a concertina, and reflected more light into the room. Mass-produced
others were able to be wound down into the sill. windows were manufactured in England by Crittall's.
Frames were generally made of steel but wood The panes were horizontal rectangles, opening as side-
became acceptable in the late 30s. In England this was hung or top-hung casements. A small degree of decora-
due to a Scandinavian influence. In the United States, tion was provided with "V" -shaped glazing bars. Curved
Walter Gropius was also using wood and experiment- corner windows became a symbol of the speculative
ing by recessing the window so that the overhanging builder's interpretation of Modernism.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 455
~~u2 3 ~ ~
~
A
30
Q
z
3:
am -
~
fl1
II
=
I
~ ~ -
5
M 11 rr===
= = i= :=
[==== = r:::: ;::::::::
~
"':::: ~=
7
Q) Louvered windows provtded
ample ventilation.
@This metal-framed window
is fitted with projecting hinges to
allow the casemellt to open back
against the wall. It also has
sub-lights below: these were
designed to protect furniture and
ornaments from wind and rain
when the caseme11t was opened.
The window was supplied with
a rolled steel sill.
CD These French doors were
designed to fold back and to nm
on tracks top and bottom.
@A boxed-ottt glazed balcony
with opening side windows,
designed to catch the sun.
Bnstol, England, c.1960.
0 A stair tower with wood-
framed circular windows
designed by Tayler and Green.
TG
An unintemtpted flow of
space is created b); these
windows which effectively
9 become a wall ofglass in this
vaulted Washington DC house,
c.1964.
A black tiled sill and
Crittall's casement fastener,
from Yaff/e House, 1932,
designed by Edward Maufe. YH
@) The porch which extends
from the Gropius House at
Lincoln, Massachusetts, has
floor-to-ceiling screens of
mosquito mesh. 1938. PO
456 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920 - 1950
Walls
ne of the identifying characteristics of the first phase rough brick and rubble stonework, a theme developed
0 of Modernism w as the elimination of pattern and
texture in walls: smooth plaster was de rigueur. The main
initially by Le Corbusier.
The effect of this change in style w as barely percepti-
m odification was the use of plywood linings in dining ble in England where, even in the 1950s, rubble work was
rooms and studies. Occasionally murals appeared, considered to be too folksy; regular materials like brick
painted in vignette style. Glass bricks were used by some and concrete blocks were preferred, although the bricks
architects to admit more light. Room dividers were might be roughly laid with deep mortar joints. Pine
popular in apartments with open-plan layouts. tongue-and-groove boarding replaced plywood panel-
In the United States, Frank Lloyd Wright continued to ling. There was a striking revival in wallpaper design.
use rough stone and brick textures, even in his most Different related patterns were mixed in one room,
"modem" house, Falling Water, Pennsylvania, 1935. The often with black linear designs on pastel backgrounds in
Modern Movement's appreciation of texture was living areas, and culinary designs in the kitchen.
changed by the innovative use of contrasting plaster with In the 1960s, hessian became popular.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 457
Ceilings
'.
2
(J) A wooden ceiling ofjapanese simplicity at with ''Pictavian" Scottish symbols, 1929. PO
the Schindler House in West Hollywood, Q) Berthold Lubetkin designed this penthouse
California, 1921-2. SR in Highgate, London, in 1938, developing the
0 An etched-slass ceiling dome by Raymond decorative qualities ofmodern architecture
McGrath at Fmella, Cambridge, England, through colours, textures and curved forms. APR
he ceiling is perhaps the most unpromising area of Victorian house in Cambridge . It has a three-sided
T the Modernist house. The very presence of a cornice
or ceiling rose/medallion could be enough to disqualify
"vault" of glass in the hall, leading to a groin vault in
plywood originally covered in silver leaf and an etched
the whole house from the category. Ceilings were glass dome in the dining room.
sometimes painted in white gloss paint to add reflec- Post-war Modernism introduced a more organic
tion; some incorporated electric ceiling heating, an inno- style of architecture, and ceilings were allowed to
vation aimed at removing all visible evidence of follow a less rigid line. In the United States, wooden
appliances, but which was found to be ineffective and boarded ceilings became popular, often as a continua-
uncomfortable. tion of the wall surface. Varnished pine was frequently
The doctrinaire discipline of Modernism discouraged used. Generally, there was a more sculptural approach,
any ceiling decoration. However, in 1929 at the very and Philip Johnson's Guest House at New Canaan,
beginning of the English Movement, Raymond Connecticut, with its twin shallow vaults supported
McGrath broke the rules at Finella, his conversion of a by slender columns, foreshadows Post-Modernism.
458 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920-1950
Floors
1
2 3 4
0A tile mosaic in the hall at Yaffle House, @ jointed blocks of travertine laid in such a modern rugs were popular. 1938. OH
Poole, Dorset, England, 1932, showinf(, the way that they emphasize the octagonal @A stainless steel insert is used to create a
house itself designed by Edward Maute for shape of the room. YH bold statement in this detail ofa 30s
tile manufacturer Cyril Carter. YH @ Fine quality hardwood floors with travertine block floor. YH
Fireplaces
;2
0
0
0::
n spite of the availability of alternative forms of with the fireplace . A recessed space for the storage of
Iwrote
heating, fireplaces remained popular. W.H. Auden
in (1937): "Preserve me above
Letter to Lord Byron
wood was often provided.
The United States was the real home of the Modernist
all from central heating/It may be D .H. Lawrence hocus- hearth, and a mythology was created through the work
pocus/But I prefer a room that's got a focus ". Even of Frank Lloyd Wright, Marcel Breuer and others.
Modernist architects agreed. However, the architectural Taking up the entire wall of a room, the fireplace
form of the fireplace was greatly simplified. A plain became a focal point, built of rugged stonework.
stone surround set flush with the wall was common in Where solid fuel was no longer used, electric fires
the 1930s, sometimes with a tile infill. Rougher surfaces were often installed in the wall. Stylish surrounds were
for the infill section, such as flint or stone, became made from coloured opaque glass or stainless steel.
popular in the later 30s. Sometimes panels of stone or In the 1950s a freestanding fire with its fluepipe
metal were set into the chimney breast in an asymmet- connected directly to the chimney became a possibility.
rical composition, and built-in bookcases were lined up This heat-saving device was popular in smaller houses.
~ -.
460 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920 -195 0
0 A two-unit gas fire with 1
bronze-lustred finish, set into
an onyx surround. Bratt
Co/bran and Company, 1934.
0 A late 30s fireplace. The
hearth is recessed well above
~oor level a11d small square
tiles form the surround.
Q)A late 1930s British
fireplace surrou11d, simply
moulded, designed to take a
standard fire. The detail shows
~ .
a typical grate with front rail,
raised for ve111ilatio11 from
below.
@ An off-centre fireplace, 3
designed as part ofa built-in Pennsylvania (1935), the stone by Richard Neutra is div1ded
bookcase and shelf, with chimney and hearth are built by this fireplace which features
efywood facing -1938. like an external wall. Crazy paving typical ofthe
11 11
,
8 9
0 Copper louvered vents are appliance behind. Designed by decorative feature. CS Dorset, 1932. YH
used as an architectural Russell Wright in the United Stainless steel is used to form Erno Goldfinger set this
expression of electricity, and States, it is an example of the the surround and hearth ofthe raised fireplace into a concave
successfully conceal the Modernist use of metal as a fireplace at Yaffle House, Poole, chimney breast, 1939. EC
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 461
Kitchen stoves
(J) The British "Minette" stove The lid to the boxed-in cook-top Amencan eleanc stove to be {ttted into a constricted
still has legs. It is (ttted with a "Kabineat" gas stove had an have virtually disappeared The SJ'..ace. 1935.
hinged hob/cook-top cover that automatic self-locking plate neat bar handles give it a (2) A pioneering Amencan electric
forms a splashback and shelf rack. Britain, 1935. streamlined appearance. island unit with cupboards in its
when open. 1935. Q) The legs of this twin-hob/ 0 A British gas stove designed curved ends. 1937.
he Modem Movement's concept of the kitchen as tops to form a continuous w ork surface. O ven insula-
T an integral open-plan part of the living area brought
about a rapid change in the appearance of kitchen stoves.
tion was improved by the addition of interior glass
doors; and safety, in the case of gas stoves, by the intro-
In the United States, which was in advance of Britain, duction of pilot lights. Automatic timers - often
gas stoves had become more streamlined by the end of displayed w ith the dials on the splashback - were
the 30s. They had lost their utilitarian look: the grey another feature common to both types of stove.
speckled enamel had been replaced by a white finish The most revolutionary development in stove design
with chromium trim, and manufacturers had dispensed was the "island" unit, a precursor of the customized
with the need to raise the oven on legs. Both gas and arrangements in many modem kitchens where hobs/
electric stoves became modular units in the newly fash- cook-tops and ovens are independent of each other and
ionable fitted kitchen, and they could be installed in may have different fuel sources. The island was formed
awkward comer spaces to create efficient work areas. in the middle of larger kitchens, with a brick base and a
The hob/cook-top was aligned with laminated counter- hood fitted with an air extractor fan.
462 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920-1950
Staircases
1
2 3
'.
taircase design playe d a major role in the Modern curve the stair and finish the balustrade off with a
S Movement's opening up of internal space . Even in
houses of conventional plan, the hallw ay w ould be
rounded new el.
Spiral stairs were used to save space, often in rein-
lightened by a large w indow. As a transitional phase of forced concrete. Walter Gropius put an external iron
design, a solid balustrade w as made of plywood, and spiral stair on his house at Lincoln, Massachusetts,
the same treatment w as also given to older staircases to while in England, Oliver Hill's external stair at Landfall,
"m odernize" them. More commonly, the Modernist Poole, 1938, adds a touch of architectural panache. The
balustrade w ould be of metal, with exaggerated sloped same house has a beautiful curving wooden ladder
and horizontal elements following the rise of the stair leading from the floor above the entrance level to
staircase and giving a streamlined look. Close followers the roof. Many Modernist houses had a nautical-style
of Le Corbusier w ould have reinforced concrete stairs, ladder for access to an upper sunbathing level.
w ith solid balustrades, rising from the main double- The wooden open-tread stair became standard in the
height room of the house. Art Deco influences would 1940s and 1950s, and often rose from the main room.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 463
1 3
CD A fine curving stair at 0 At The Homewood, Esher, A mysterious ascent to the CD This external iron spiral
Shrub's Wood, Chalfont Surrey, by Patrick Gwynne, roofofStAnn's Hill, Chertsey, staircase was desig1ted by
St Giles, Buckinghamshire, b;: 1938, the spiral stair emerges Surrey, a circular house by Walter Gropius for his house at
Mendelsohn and Chermayetf, onto a broad landing. PO RaymondMcGrath, 1936. PO Lincoln, Massachusetts, 1938.
1935. PO
'
Q) An elegant use ofconcrete is
4 displayed in this gently curved 5
unsupported staircase with
undercut risers. The staircase
has a tubular metal ha11drail.
@ An internal reinforced
concrete stair with a bedded-in
tubular handrail, 1934.
(J) The return of traditional .
materials: oak is used for this
late -30s stair and handrail,
but with typical Modernist
metal mesh balustrade panels.
A straight-flight stair with
closed string, New York, 1935. 6
The handrail is aluminium.
(j) Flowing lines are
characteristic ofthe Modernist
period. Here regular loops of
steel are arranged up the
staircase: the treads and a
chromium rail on the upper
floor provide the points of
contact. A brass handrail
accentuates the staircase's
form, 1938.
7
464 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920-1950
Built-in furniture
hile Modernism exercised an inhibiting influence nets and spaces for radios and record players were also
W on many aspects of domestic design, built-in fur-
niture was a positive contribution. The aim was to leave
featured in some houses. Doors were hinged or sliding.
Built-in beds, with shelves beneath as in a ship's cabin,
living space as uncluttered as possible, and to revive the were popular for small bedrooms. Fixed seating could
Neo-classical ideal of a completely coordinated room. be arranged around the hearth. Forms were simple and
The Movement coincided with a more flexible attitude would have been finished in white paint or veneer,
to the family as a social unit, and with it a desire to sim- unless made of solid hardwood. An extension of built-
plify life and to minimize household chores. in furniture was the development of ranges of furniture
Almost every item of furniture could be included in with modular coordination which could be assembled
this category. A Modernist house would have built-in together. The 1930s attachment to ship-like fitted inte-
bookshelves, seats and benches (all could be used as riors cooled during the post-war period but it left a
room dividers), cupboards in bedrooms, bathrooms and legacy, particularly in kitchens and bathrooms, which
kitchens, even toy-cupboards in nurseries; cocktail cabi- became a selling point.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 465
(:!)A 1930s built-in kitchen. The 0 The sofa at 2 South Parade, Chiswick, 3
advantage of built-in cupboards, with London, folds out to become a double bed,
devices such as the concertina door shown complete with lights and bedside tablesi by
here, convinced even those who rejected DugdaleandRuhemann, 1937.APR
Modernism as a total style. British. AG @A 1930s built-in glass shelfunit
0 Smaller apartments in particular could supported on slender chromium legs. British.
profit from the space-saving benefits of CD A seating corner: the armrests contain
built-in furniture. This example is a typical bookshelves and have mirror-glass tops.
30s dado-level unit made up ofcupboards Paul Frankl, New York, c.1935.
and bookshelves in ash and walnut with an
electric fire. CS
.
@At Bent~y Wood, East Sussex, by Serge (Z) A practical and elegant fitting from the
Chermayeft, 1938, built-in cupboards made hall at Shrub's Wood, 1935, giving storage
a tidy wall with recesses for objects. APR and a convenient ledge. PO
466 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920-1950
Services
4
1or;g=====v====~
00000 00000
8
00000 00000
he design of bathrooms and other services develo- vitrolite cladding and solidly built fixtures . Even by the
T ped through the 1920s and 30s without reflecting
the debates about acceptable style: a Modernist bath-
30s there was a preference for showers over baths, w here-
as in Britain these were an acquired taste. The bidet w as
room would scarcely differ from one found in an Art still a rather daring Continental European luxury.
Deco or Neo-Tudor house. But there was an emphasis A standard piece of equipment was the heated towel
on health and hygiene, and the bathroom assumed rail. Usually made from chrome, there was also a glass-
greater importance: Le Corbusier integrated the bath- tubed model with chrome supports. Taps/faucets were
room with the main living space in one of his houses. influenced by industrial design and the cross-shaped
Bathroom fixtures tended to be enclosed: baths were capstan top was phased out in favour of other styles.
boxed in, and the low-level water closet cistern was Various methods of central heating were employed:
often concealed behind panelling. In the United States under-floor electric heating, because it best achieved the
particularly, the bathroom was the last word in.com- airil of invisibility, became fashionable when it was
fort and luxury, with extensive use of tiling, coloured introduced in the 1950s.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 46 7
Lighting
centre lights were found in Modernist interiors. Few ally in the post-war period.
ceiling fittings were allowed to interrupt the "purity" of This was the time that the design of light fixtures
the room: when they were present they were usually became more varied, w ith a greater use of plastics and
hemispherical globes mounted against the ceiling or much influence from Scandinavia in the profiles of
occasionally adjustable pendant lights would be used lampshades. By the 1940s, fluorescent tube lighting
over dining room tables. Wall-mounted lights, either in became common in kitchens and bathrooms. This was
the form of upturned bowls or globes on stems, were a favoured in the United States because it produced much
popular alternative. A wall-mounted articulated light on less heat than ordinary bulbs . By the 1960s, spotligHt
a chrome stem with a curved cone shade became avail- tracks became more widely available, introducing a
able for reading or desk work. Architects would often great diversity of light sources within a single unit.
468 THE MODERN MOVEMENT 1920-1950
Metalwork
CD Tubular iron gates with mesh emphasized by the balustrade at
panels at a London house by Serge Chermayeffs house in
Emii Goldfinge" 1939. EC Warwickshire, England, 1934i a
@ Iron railings with cu!Ved tops steel/adder leads to the roof.
to the upnght si!Pports. 0 The aluminium balcony ofan
Q) Tubular roof temace apartment block designed by
balustrading from a house by Basil Spence (England, 1954).
Walter Gropius and Maxwell Metalletten"ng set in cement
fjy, 1936. renden"ng at the entrance to
(!) A tubular section handrail Landfall, Poole, Dorset, England.
and close-rail balustrade. 1938. OL
(f) Railing fixings. The top Tubular iron gates with mesh
example is placed well back infill to the lower panels.
from the balcony edge. The @ Polished metal balustrades
example below shows railings were fashionable as an inten"or
set in a low parapet wall. feature, as in this cuiVed
@ The circular balcony is example.
~ ~ 'i!i l II II
l
,:q
: ! II II
.:-:1 II II
or public and industrial buildings, Modernism was and spacing of the balusters was of fundamental impor-
F often seen as a style of metal and glass. On the
domestic level, more solid and conventional materials
tance. Sometimes they were round in section, sometimes
thin square-sectioned bars.
prevailed, but still allowed for interesting metal detail- Iron columns were used as structural supports: they
ing. Balconies and handrails tended to be made of were usually made as thin as possible to create the effect
tubular iron. Where panels were needed in balconies or of weightless architecture. They were normally round
gates, the standard way of filling them, borrowed from in section, but occasionally "!"-section columns were
Continental European examples, was with a woven substituted.
mesh of thick wire, framed in a panel with curved Although Modernist metalwork remained very simple,
corners; although this is rather utilitarian, it is an such detailing as there was could be very fine . During
essential part of the Modernist look. Tubular balconies the period of post-war shortages, prefabricated-steel
could be bent to form the curves that were the relieving houses were made in Britain; they offered many built-
features of Modernist houses. The visual weight in metal details, including light switches in door frames.
THE MODERN MOVEMENT 469
Woodwork
1
./
.-- (J) Frank Lloyd Wnght's dramatic
3 4 structural use of wood at Taliesin West,
Arizona, in the 1930s. The trusses support
the tent-like roof ofthe drawing studio. WI
~
~bb
. ~
The chunky, white-painted detailing of
these gates to a London house are typical of
the 1950s.
-
- 411::?-
470
BEYOND MODERN
1950 - 1996
A s the twentieth century nears its end, the He may have been thinking of the Farnsworth House
\.Modernism of its middle years begins to look more (1946-51), Plano, Illinois, by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe,
like the exception than the norm it supposed itself to be. floating off the ground in pure white painted steel and
While the technical advances of modernity brought glass but impossible to live in. It provoked a famous
advantages to all, the aesthetic of Modernism, intended quarrel between architect and client and inspired other
as a liberation, often seemed like a straitjacket. glass houses like the Glass House by Philip Johnson at
In the years after 1950, this was hardly apparent. New Canaan, Connecticut, but it was never intended as
Many of the original generation of European Mod- a solution to housing ordinary people. The Case Study
ernists were working in the United States and their houses in California pursued steel and glass construc-
work became widely publicized. The designs of Marcel tion through the 1950s in the hope of creating new
Breuer, a Hungarian who had worked in Germany, standard patterns. The most famous of these, the
Switzerland and England, were influenced by the natu- Charles and Ray Eames House (1949) at Santa Monica,
ralism of Frank Lloyd Wright and the relaxed American California, introduced colour and variety among the
lifestyle. In 1949 he exhibited a show house at the industrially-produced steel components of which it was
Museum of Modern Art in New York with timber-lined built and was another version of the Contemporary style.
walls, a stone feature fireplace and a single big sloping In the United States and Britain (where the term
roof, elements of which were replicated in millions of acquired a pejorative tone), Contemporary was both a
American ranch houses. Breuer worked to fit each of his contin-uation and revision of Modernism, introducing a
houses to the client's needs, recreating from different decorative playfulness and a spatial freedom that had
resources something of the ideal world of calm and been lacking between the wars. American houses are
unity found in the Arts and Crafts period. He wrote in full of optimism for a new way of life. Solid elements
Sun and Shadow: The Philosophy of an Architect (1956; appear weightless, as if the conquest of space had
p.34), "transparency needs also solidity ... because total defeated earthly gravity. After the war, living-in ser-
transparency leaves out such considerations as privacy, vants disappeared almost completely from middle-class
reflecting surfaces, transition from disorder to order, fur- life and the result was a considerable liberation in space,
nishings, a background for you, for your everyday life." allowing the kitchen to be placed closer to the heart of
BEYOND MODERN 471
~.
the house. Kitchens and bathrooms were smaller than staircase into the main living room as a ladder stair and
they would be today, since small size denoted efficien- virtually abolishing hallways and corridors. A free-
cy. Several uses were often combined in one large room, standing pavilion plan was generally favoured with
often with varied ceiling heights and sometimes with numerous ways out into the garden. The claim of inter-
a sunken seating area or 11 Conversation pit". Children war modernists to design houses based on the logic of
were given a larger place in the house than before, the plan rather than on a pre-conceived image of the
although sometimes cunningly segregated from their exterior was more fully realized in the 1950s and the
parents. As the English revue entertainers Flanders and exteriors can seem unimpressive compared with the
Swann sang in 1958: 11 Our boudoir on the open plan has pleasing quality of the internal spaces. Economy in
been a huge success. Now everywhere's so open that materials was combined with a problem in getting good
there's nowhere safe to dress." This.demonstrated how craftsmanship after the war. Unlike traditional styles in
liberation can have its drawbacks. As teenage culture which applied mouldings can cover difficult transitions
emerged at the end of the 1950s with transistor radios from one surface to another, Modernism is unforgiving
and record players, there was a reaction in favour of in its standards of finish . The recessed joint or 11 flashgap"
separate rooms. was a popular detail of the period. Brick was widely
British houses of the 1950s tended to be smaller and used and there was no return to the smooth concrete (or
more cheaply built than their American counterparts pseudoconcrete) forms of the 1930s. Inside, wood
but their ingenious use of space included bringing the veneers were a popular finish, combined with areas of
472 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
exposed brickwork. Interiors might contain a mixture house was a favourite type and was urged (without
of figured synthetic and natural materials. Peter much success) by theorists in the United States as an
Wormersley's house at Farnley Hey, Yorkshire, 1954, is antidote to the land-hungry suburban tracts where each
an example of the use of varied materials and open plan- house stood in its own patch of ground. In England its
ning that was publicized in its time and stands introversion suited the national temperament and the
comparison with Breuer's designs . In England it was a crowded conditions for building. The 1960s brought
highly productive period for small houses, many built fantasy visions of underground dwellings, tent struc-
by architects for themselves and incorporating a num- tures and a renewed interest in steel construction,
ber of original ideas and prototypes. increasingly in the lightweight version known as High-
In the 1960s houses became more inward-looking tech which sees itself as a continuation of Modernism
and the thin lines and sharp colours of the 1950s gave although the use of technology is often decorative.
way to more solid earth-bound textured surfaces of tim- Classical architecture conducted a rear-guard action
ber, brick and concrete with a distinctive palette of against the dominance of Modernism. Architects
browns, greens, oranges and purples. The courtyard whose careers began before World War I such as Philip
BEYOND MODERN 473
l imN
Robert Ventun andj ohn Rauch:
one of the starting points ofthe 3
revolt against Modernism. The
gabled entrance fron t suggests
fo rmal SJ.mmetry, but sets up a
game of hide and seek: behind
.
this facade, symmetry is
playfully overturned, as the two
plans and cross-section alongside
show. This small house is packed
with inventive ideas, yet is easier
to live in than many Modernist
"diagrams". PO
Trammel Schutze in Georgia and Sir Albert Richardson MacDonald. Nco-vernacular has won a broad consen-
in England were still active in the 1960s and continued to sus and forms the basis for experiments in applying
build classical, colonial and neo-Georgian houses, urban design codes in the Florida resort developments
showing that good craftsmen were in fact still available. by Andreas Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zybeck and the
Small numbers of younger traditionalists carried for- Duchy of Cornwall village development at Pound bury,
ward this smouldering torch, largely ignored by other Dorset, promoted by the Prince of Wales. In England,
architects. When Raymond Erith and his partner the products of speculative builders tend tow ards Tudor
Quinlan Terry built Kingswaldenbury, a large nco- or Georgian, although neither style is much apparent
Palladian country house in Hertfordshire, between internally. Local character is copied in "heritage" areas
1969 and 1972, they thought it would be the last of its and it is now virtually illegal to build a modem-looking
type. Time has proved otherwise, and the 1980s house in a conservation area. Architects conunitted to
brought a series of house commissions for architects in a Modernism find opportunities w here they can.
classical style. Some, like Terry, have an evangelical In 1962 the architect Robert Venturi built a house for
belief in their chosen style, others have adapted to the his mother in Chestnut Hill, a suburb of Philadelphia,
fashion of the moment. Classicism has a popular appeal that may have started a revolution. Modest though it
and Georgian features are found in many speculative seems, this house w ith its symbolic gable and applied
houses, although on this level they are seldom finely arch moulding was the beginning of a new emphasis on
crafted or integrated into the architecture. the meaning of architecture that Modernism had delib-
Other architects w ho rejected the mechanistic forms erately ignored in its search for technical perfection and
of Modernism turned instead to vernacular prototypes. aesthetic abstraction. While Mies van der Rohe said
The theme of constructional honesty and truth to mate- "Less is more", Venturi answered "Less is a bore". The
rials interweaves w ith Modernism. It provided an Post-Modern movement w hich stemmed from
escape route that did not imply an ideological about- Venturi's appeal for complexity and layers of meaning in
turn in the houses of Peter Aldington and David Lea in architecture became widely popular in the 1980s. Its
England or the San Francisco cottage revival of Donald superficiality and smartness seemed to suit the spirit of
474 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
the decade, but it also provided much needed entertain- was recovered and displayed in the restoration of his-
ment and relaxation from the formality prevailing in the toric houses, time appeared to stand still without the
architectural debate. In contrast to the depersonalized call for innovation in contemporary work.
purity of Modernism, it allowed for individuality from Such a condition of stasis could not last indefinitely.
the architect and the client. As in the 1920s in Europe, Even in the economic recession of the early 1990s new
private houses for wealthy clients became an important furniture and decorative art has begun to flourish and
architectural laboratory and the experiments ranged find a wider clientele. No stylistic label has yet emerged
from the houses of Peter Eisenmann in upstate New for the style which reverts to the wilder aspects of the
York, built to resemble complicated intellectual dia- 1950s, mixing classic Modem furniture and colourful
grams, to the luxurious and popular designs of Robert pots, automata or screen-printed fabrics composed of
Stern. Post-Modernism had its main opportunities as jumbled and collaged images. The old antagonism
domestic architecture in the United States, although between Modernism and all other styles seems to have
John Outram's house in Sussex, built for Austrian been overtaken by a new omamentalism, although this
clients, is a notable exception. In the mid 1990s, Post- is not so much expressed in the enrichment of the
Modernism has lost its novelty and appeal although it permanent and fixed parts of the house as in the accu-
undoubtedly acted as a liberating force. mulation of movable items. A puritanical country look
With Post-Modernism came an increasing interest in has helped the recession-bound 1990s to find its identity
interior decoration. Social aspiration was fed with through mass-produced versions of Shaker chairs and
books and magazines, and a person's identity became candlesticks. On a more serious level, theorists such as
defined by the decorative background of their life as Christopher Alexander have analyzed what qualities
never before. Forgotten painting techniques of mar- of traditional building - plan, space and ornament -
bling, graining and dragging were revived to give frantic combine to make it so much more satisfying than later
interest to every surface. Authenticity, to which this work. It remains to be seen whether designers will dis-
book itself is a testimony, became a filter through which cover how to give these elements the visual strength
creativity had to pass in a self-conscious awareness of and vitality they possessed in the pre-Modernist past, or
period style, although the treatment of kitchens and whether they will take the easier road of recycling
bathrooms required some inventive adaptation border- superficial variants of earlier styles like the sampling and
ing on fantasy or fake. While much genuine knowledge remixing of their contemporaries in the music business.
BEYOND MODERN 475
Doors i2
0
0
C1
ith the return to symbolic meaning in architec- unsightly device. Although the plywood flush door
W ture after the denials of Modernism, doors
resumed their ritual function. This could be expressed
remains supreme for internal use on grounds of
economy, it is no longer made to pre-war standards of
ironically (a small house entered through a miniature quality: attempts are often made to disguise this by the
temple); or, more sympathetically, the door could be use of additional mouldings. Door surrounds have been
ornamented to celebrate the act of arrival and the idea adapted from Georgian models, which sometimes
of ownership. Modernist glass doors revealing the inside influence the design of the room. The Georgian six-
of the house fell prey to fears about security: stronger, panelled door is a standard catalogue item. High-tech
more solid doors were now desirable. doors use colour and manufactured materials (metal,
Builders' supply merchants developed a range of plastic) but remain a minority taste.
hardwood doors which enjoyed great popularity. Often In door furniture many "period" forms have beeri
these would have an integral fanlight of vaguely revived . Other fittings have continued the Modernist
Georgian character in the door itself- a practical but machine aesthetic.
476 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
1 2 3 4 5
J
~
=-
(]) 0 and Three catalogue imitation planking and Tudor. @ This example offreely adapted CD A Georgian-style surround,
doors (exterior): Gothic Ogee, All three ofthese aoors date from classicism is the entrance porch to a which may be used in a Post-
a mahogany-faced door with the 1980s. British. limestone house in Austin, Texas, Modern context or alternatively
designed by Hal Box, 1980s. as pure kitsch.
8
~
IE catalop,ued products: Charles
Tl lr jenks s Garagia Rotunda,
Wellfleet, Cape Cod, 1977.
The entrance door is announced
.o(t= i=l=f= ry a double broken pediment.
(J9 A joke door surround to are-
modelled Los Angeles bungalow,
WA dating {rom the 1970s.
A Georgian-style doorcase
~ by Robert Adam, Hampshire,
England, 1986. The brackets
were cut from a template.
BEYOND MODERN 477
Interior doors:
(j) A catalogue door with ::2
''Stopped Chamfer" mouldings, 0
0
available in European redwood, 1 2 4 5 Cl
1980s. Britain.
A glazed interior door,
available in Brazilian
mahogany, in three sizes.
0 Imitation Wild West saloon
doors - a typical example ofa
0 ~I
lighthearted cultural aflusion.
They might be used to separate
a kitchen from a dining area.
Britain.
@A restaurant-style metal door
adapted to domestic use, with a
mirror instead ofa window.
0 A planked hardwood door,
with three glazed strips.
6 8 9
DD CD
DD 0
DD
0
DO
@A classical door with carved p_ure classical revivalism.
architrave by Francis johnson, 0 This door surround is
1960s.]ohnson is one of the influenced by the Neo-classical
best-known British exponents of forms of Sir john Soane.
Windows
1
Anne style.
@A canopy awning in striped canvas.
(J) An Arts and Crafts Revival shutter, in
. . ..
0 0
or Modernist architects the w indow was ideally a tenance-free, although w hen combined with brick it has
F transparent and invisible screen between inside and
outside. For Post-Modernists it could be reinterpreted
an unpleasant visual effect. Replacement double-glazed
w indows, w ith aluminium or, latterly, plastic-coated
as part of an architectural code, relating to the composi- metal (UPVC) frames, have been promoted. These have
tion of the facade as a w hole, jokily suggesting a period been given crude "Georgian" or "Tudor" styling, and
reference, or perhaps some subtle ambiguity. The result have wrecked the appearance of many otherwise
of these approaches w as to introduce a much greater pleasing cottages and small houses.
variety of w indow forms. Window catches and fittings in this period are usually
In the houses of classical revivalists, the Georgian sash standard modern or Georgian-style items, as the archi-
w indow naturally dominates, and has become a tectural ironmongery industry has not re-tooled to meet
standard production item available for restoration work. rapidly changing architectural fashions . The use of such
For new speculative building, varnished hardwood is details, even where incongruous, has usually been rela-
preferred to painted softwood as it is supposedly main- tively inoffensive.
BEYOND MODERN 479
@ Window hardware tends to CV A round-headed window the Post-Modern repertoire. This Set into the main facade ofa
be less inventive than door with unusual terracotta paterae, example in lead and granite is house by john Outram in
accessories, despite some by Robert Adam, {rom his own from Graham Ovenden's house, Sussex, England, this T-shaped
historical revivals. This is a house at Crooked Pightle, Barley Splatt, Cornwall, wood-framed window is{art of
selection ofcatches and Hampshire, Eng/ana, 1989. AD England. The shape represents a complex composition o
casement stays ofthe period. @ Mock windows are part of a crossbow. OV squares and rectangles. OU
480 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
Walls
1
1 3 4
~
~
. .... .. 6
5 ......
4
e
......
IJ
e
4
~
....................
" e
.....
e ~
...............
e t
e
.
~
............."
Cl 4
.......
....... ......
........
e
e
$
t
e
. . .... .
.. ...
f
(J) A folksy stencilled look in 1990, for use in historic Frank Lloyd Wright-style This was commonly used for
wallpapers from Greeff, United interiors, but with a stonework presents a strong ~replace walls.
States, early 1960s. WF contemporary twist. BH wall texture, with variations in @ Harlequin kitchen tiles,
Wallpaper in the style of CD Polka dot wallpapers can be thickness. c.1965.
decorative tiling, Greeft, United used to create a contrast of @ Standard concrete units @ Neo- Victorian wall tiles,
States, 1973. WF "positive" and "negative" in the could be assembled as an available from one
Q) The "Natural" floral same room. 1950s. asymmetrical screen to make a manufacturer in a choice of 100
wallpaper, which breaks down @ Black and white wallpaper sculptural room divtder. 1960s. colours, mid-1960s.
the usual repeat-pattern effect. in the Contemporary style, @ Regular enpneen~n bricks @ White kitchen tiles, a
Warner Fabrics, Britain, 1950s. create a neat facmg, o en wtth standard approach of the
1987. WF 0 A fabric wallcovering with wann red colouring. variation 1980s.
@ 'Wood Anemone": a floral motifs, in the Pop style, is dark blue-grey bricks with @ Regular mosaic bathroom
wallpaper design by graphic c.1970. recessed black mortar joints. tiling, c.1970.
artist Glynn Boyd Harte for Striped walfr.aper has never @ Stone veneer, 1980s. The
Dolphin Studio, London, been long out of fashion. thickness is 4 inches {10cm).
---
- - . -
482 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
3
[gg [g) [C) [Q][g]
,-,- ,- ,--
r-r- r- r--+-
(j) A range of wood-effect dating from the 1950s. r-r- r- r-t-
wallpapers, 1952-3. WN Q) This wall detail with hollow
r--+-
Plain moulded panelling
with a ceiling cornice - a
redwood decorative columns on
square-section plywood plinths,
r-- r-t-
r-r-
,---
. .- r--+-
,.----
DD
0
D
DO
BEYOND MODERN 483
Ceilings
.
@A ceiling by Charles]encks,
London, with shiny surfaces
and directional lighting. ]E
CD A house on the Marsh
Estate, East Coast, United
States, by Centrebrook, 1993.
Gothic architecture was once
believed to have originated from
groves oftrees. MCG
(]) A pyramid space with ribs in
a square garden room, A passageway ceiling with
Pennsylvania. skylights.
0 Exposed rooftrusses are a CV High-tech industrial ribbed
theme ofthe period. William steel, 1970s.
Turnbull; California.
A shallow barrel-vaulted
A groin-vaulted passageway ceiling, in Maryland, with cedar
in plaster by British architect slats on laminated curved
Francis johnson. beams. Don A. Hawkins.
he virtual elimination of the ceiling as an area of examples of intricate structure on a small scale.
T interest during the Modernist period was gradually
replaced by a new range of decorative possibilities.
The potential of painted decoration, either simple
cloudscapes or more elaborate painting, was rediscov-
Some of these relied on revealing or enhancing the ered after many years of neglect. The symbolism of
structure of the roof, whether metal or timber. The ceilings representing the sky or cosmos was a natural
return to pitched roofs allowed architects to explore the avenue of exploration for Post-Modernists.
visual drama of skeletal internal roof structures. Another Among neo-traditional architects, ceiling embellish-
option was to create new architectural forms within the ment was often confined to a classical cornice, although
envelope of an existing building, often incorporating more elaborate moulded ornament was frequently
lighting. The early 19th-century Neo-classcial interiors attempted. Careful restoration projects, and the division
of Sir John Soane, particularly the Breakfast Room of his of houses into high-class apartments, has kept the
home in Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, a famous "room suppliers of fibrous plaster cornices and ceiling roses/
within a room" (see page 183), were influential as medallions in business.
484 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
Floors
1
9 ..JVVVU\..
)0000(
)0000(
)0000(
)0000(
'r\f\r\ r
0 Wooden boards remained as many as 38 colours in the
ular, polyurethane-sealed late 80s.
fi
a er being sanded and stained.
2 A popular wooden ~oor
p_attern, based on the hexagon.
@ A detail ofa circular marble
pattern inlaid into an oval hall
~oor in a house by the British
0 End-grain blocks give a architea]ohn Outram. The
more rugged, textured look. stripes are numerically related to
@A variant on parquet. islamic patterning. Op Art tiles, c.1970. the calendar. ou
(j) Marble-like vinyl chips in a (Z) Ceramic tiles by Pilkington, Rubber stud flooring is A carpet by David Hicks,
bed of clear vinyl, mid-60s. England, mid-60s. The style is usually available as tiles. One England- a bridge between
@ Ceramic ~oor tiles with Art Nouveau Revival. English company was offering "period" and modern.
ertain tastes from the Modem Movement, such as economy often meant that the scale of the original
C hardwood block and strip flooring and quarry tiles,
remained popular among architects in the second half of
pattern was enlarged, so that fewer individual pieces
would need to be cut and laid. Patterns with a trompe
the 20th century. However, a great range of additional l'oeil quality tended to suffer in the transformation.
flooring materials was added, including mosaic, tiles Other decorative languages of the world were pillaged
with printed or relief patterns, cut and inlaid linoleum, for patterns in the 1950s and 60s, including those of the
and decorative wood. Marble remained in favour for Middle East and Africa. More recent designs from Art
luxurious, simple effects. Nouveau and the early Modern Movement were also
The patterns produced in these newly re-discovered used. For the high-tech look, rubber stud flooring or pat-
materials tended to be rectilinear and geometric. The ternless carpet were favoured. A wide range of carpet
classical taste encouraged evocations of Italy and Ancient patterns appeared, some with a historical flavour, others
Rome in marble, mosaic or linoleum, with various forms based on forms from graphic design. Painted floor deco-
of historically based repeating pattern. The need for ration was also revived as a period style.
BEYOND MODERN 485
III~ I
-~--=-
f}
)1
: II
_.._ . - -~-
_ Fireplaces
0 The form ofthis rounded Ventun; Scott Brown and Adam, moulded consoles with An imposing fireplace with
chimney breast is highlighted by Associates, Connecticut, 1984. VE lions' feet revive a forgotten engaged columns by john
blue trim at ceiling level. A In a Neo-Renaissance classical form. Crooked Pight!e, Outram, in the library ofa house
monumental treatment by hooded fireplace by Robert Hampshire. AD in Sussex, England, 1980s. ou
he decorative fireplace has returned to favour in the mosaic, rough slate and so on - treated as a fire surround
T Post-Modem period. It represents some primal
need for warmth and light, and for a hierarchical
or as an entire hearth wall.
This period has seen an increased demand for histori-
arrangement of the main living space around the hearth. cal fireplaces (stimulated, in Britain, by the development
The range of forms is very extensive, from straight- of convincing imitation coal fires, fuelled by gas). In no
forward classical reproduction to Mannerist invention other are.a has the architectural salvage trade been so
on classical themes. Fireplaces have been the occasion active: many of the fireplaces torn out in the previous
for many displays of Post-Modem wit and symbolic fifty years have been conscientiously replaced. When
treatment. Some of the Modern Movement's innova- the supply of originals faltered, reproductions began to
tions - freestanding island fireplaces, and fires with be made in white statuary marble which differed from
hoods and stovepipes - have continued in use. The the originals only in looking too new. An alternative
Contemporary Style of the 1950s also added its contri- approach is to have a wood surround painted in a faux
bution in the form of decorative materials, - stone, finish imitating the marble of the owner's choice.
- -
Kitchen stoves
(J) A gas stove of the early
2 1950s, incorporating eye-level
foldaway grill and warming
cupboard beneath the oven.
A Belling electric stove,
British, 1958: a simple
standard unit in white enamel.
BG
0 A dean-lined model by
McClary, United States, 1965.
American stoves outstripped
Bn"tish ones at this period.
~,,
~#
A lthough the kitchen has become one of the most archaic form of heavy iron stove. These have their
.!"\.expensive and important rooms in post-war years, devotees for cooking, and have also become established
stoves tend to be self-effacing. Usually they line up with as designer cult objects. Manufacturers have cleverly
the work surfaces of the built-in kitchen, the oven door introduced a range of bright colours in addition to the
looking much like a cupboard. Stoves set into island conventional cream. Designers of other forms of
work counters continue to be popular. modem stove would do well to follow this lead. Stoves
Efforts to vary the design of the stove, with separated of the 1950s and 60s also have their champions.
hobs and ovens mounted into the wall, follow the same Gas stoves have not advanced in design as rapidly as
rule of visual unobtrusiveness. Today there is little electric stoves, largely because they do not have the
choice available. Even when the kitchen is executed in same potential for compactness and electronic controls.
a fantasy period style, the stove tends to be dean-lined The combined use of gas and electricity in one unit
and minimalist. reflects the continuing quest for maximum efficiency
The main variation is the Aga, or some equivalent and convenience.
BEYOND MODERN 489
5 6
490 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
Staircases
3 (J) A Doric column with obelisk newel post,
1
0: Robert Adam, England. AD
0 A high-tech stair, William M cDonough,
New York, 1980s. WM
Q) An elegant Neo-Georgian staircase
(Francis j ohnson, Britain).
@ Balusters and newel posts, reaecting
past styles.
r -- -- - --- ~L
7
"-...
@ DDD
D fSj D D
D D [j bJ
DDDD
he opportunity that staircases present for architec- will run dramatically over the living room.
T tural statement or decorative display has produced
a w ide variety of results in recent decades.
High-tech staircases have exploited the language of
metal components, including pierced treads and risers
In Post-Modem houses the stairs will tend to be sub- and tensioned wire balustrades.
divided into short flights, turning at right angles at each Classical Revival staircases can be surprisingly plain,
half-lan ding in order to enhance our appreciation of the w ith little variation on 18th-century models. Occasion-
house's spatial qualities. Uncarpeted wooden treads are ally an imperial staircase, or a simpler cantilevered curve,
usual. The w oodworking traditions on both sides of the can create a majestic effect. Plain square-section wooden
Atlantic have been reactivated to provide a variety of balusters are commonly found. Wrought iron is
balusters and newel posts, often incorporating Victorian sometimes installed as a form of decorative tracery.
or Arts and Crafts reminiscences. Sometimes - espe- Mass-produced turned balusters are also part of the
cially in the United States, in California - an upper architectural repertoire, although they have seldom
walkway linking a staircase landing to the bedrooms been made to very good patterns.
BEYOND MODERN 491
.
6 (J) A staircase in Louis Kahn's CD An elaborate entry gives 7 .lllll'll!i:ill
Korman House, Pennsylvania, access to Sir Basil Spence's house
1971-3. ROC in Hampshire, 1962. APR
0 A concrete and stainless steel A classic/adder stair of1955
staircase by Carlos Zapata at Farnley Hey, Yorkshire. PO
Design Studio and Una Idea Oak staircase in a Suffolk
Architects, Florida,1994. EST cottage extension by Shawn
Q) High-tech staircase by john Kholucy, 1990. PO
Young, a pannerofRichard @ An open-tread cantilevered
Rogers, in his apanment in concrete staircase with a shaped
Hammersmith, London. ARC tubular handrail, London, 1954.
@ Classical design skills were Here, open mahogany treads
used atAshfold House, Sussex, create a feeling ofspaciousness; the
f:y_ john Simpson. Sf wooden handrail and panel are
(2) Staircase to heaven at supported by metal rods. 1960s.
Richard Meier's Douglas @ A simple sofrwood ladder 12
House, Lake Michigan. ROC stair: the lower rail is ofthe same \
0 The gliuerofhard surfaces at wood while the handrail is of
this Future Systems house. DAV hardwood to provtde a contrast.
Early 1960s. J
10 ~i.ts~ 11
492 BEYOND MODERN 1950-1996
Built-in furniture
(])A witty working space by 0 A passageway display case 0 The tradition ofconspicuous @ A free-floating cabinet held
Charles Jencks, making use of with natura/light, by john storage: closets and a plans by steel columns in a house by
tiered pigeonholes. Note the Outram, Sussex, England, 1985: chest in a design by Ventun; Patrick Gwynne at Henley-on-
freestanding slide cabinet. }E an old 1dea reinterpreted. OU Scott Brown and Associates. VE Thames, Oxfordshire, 195 9. PO
4 6
I
l1
:r,
) \ ;=<
I
~!"' 1-- -
1s
I I
--------------- --
BEYOND MODERN 495
Services
0 A cylindrical shower cabinet
and basin pedestal in steel,
creating a Futurist fantasy in a
New York residence designed
ry_ William McDonough. WM
0 A bath with carpeted
surround, 1975- part ofthe
attempt to disguise the
utilitarian nature of the
bathroom.
CD This custom-made jacuzzi,
1980s, has a tiled surround. It is
backed by frosted glass blocks.
@ A reproduction Victorian
bathtub. The popularity ofsuch
items in the 1970s, 80s and
beyond testifies to the
widespread interest in
Victoriana as an antidote to
modern uniformity.
CD Two sets of shower heads
with matchln taps/faucets. The
second set is rom a multiple
shower hea , for large families
(Bradley Corporation, United
J States).
@ The four mixer taps/faucets
here are variations on both
modern and traditional themes,
including minimalist modern
and the type with an
"industrial" long-lever handle.
The third example is for a bidet
(late 1980s).
4 ~
\
I
I
5 ~
10
Lighting
(J) Suitable for use over a rings, English, 1954. Nouveau designs, on both stdes @ The paper globe with wire
dining table, this wicker CD A metal hanging light, with of the Atlantic. rings: the least expensive type of
lampshade is controlled by a enamelled coloured finish. A Quarto bowl uplighter - a pendant, inspired by the
P-_ulley, 1953. @ Bulkhead lights are classic from the Italian company ]3ranese paper lantern.
0 Compressed fibreglass is the intended for outdoor use, but Flos, designed by Tobia Scarpa, @)A track-mounted square
material of this inexpensive some designers have employed 1973. spotlight, c.1970, especially
Sheer/ire cylinder shade, them indoors. @ A five-candle wall sconce, suitable for a kitchen.
Britain, 1965. 0 This heavy-duty steel wire fgr the dining room. @A spotlight on a vertical rod,
Q) Nostalgic evocations in a guard is intended to dress a This penaant, the Frisbi, by the Italian company Arteluce,
deliberately rusted iron bare bulb. (Daniel Woodhead, manufactured by Flos, has a 1980s. This would be suitable
chandelier, 198 7. United States.) diffusing disc which catches the for lighting works ofart. It is
G) A pierced multi-coloured Tiffany-style lights reflect light. Designed by Achille designed to take a quartz-
cardboard shade with wooden the continuing interest in Art Castiglioni, 1978. halogen bulb.
Woodwork
3
I
I
5 for seaside resort houses ofthe
1880s. VE
0 Bamboo poles, used to screen
a stair landing window, 1950s.
0 A detail of trelliswork, used
as a boundary fence.
CD Timber louvres are used to
great effect in Stephenson
6 Somerville Bell's extension to a
houseatAiderley Edge, Cheshire,
1995, uniting natural materials
with the openness ofHigh-Tech.
STE
A clapboard fence, double-
lfipped for interest, 1970.
0 Another wooden fence, of
~ometric design, 1970.
() Fence posts from the
American periodical Houses
for Hom em akers, 1945.
CV A gallery balustrade.
@ In a house in Greenwich,
(J) This porch by British G) An all- wood house by Connecticut: a staircase landing
architect Quinlan Terry has Venturi, Scott Brown and with prow-like proiection.
Regency overtones. Associates. It revives the
American Shingle style popular
9 10 ~==~~
It ~~ '
ood is easily worked, and lends itself to the creat- gateways all reappear as practical, elegant embellish-
W ion of decorative effects without great expense.
The degree to w hich traditional carpentry skills have
ments, even though their design might now carry
overtones of irony or w himsicality. Sawn and turned
survived in an age of mass production varies w idely details are easy to make to order, and can be used for
from region to region. Inside the house, high-quality or fencing, balusters and the like. Georgian designs for lat-
unusual w oods are often used as a luxury surface. ticework in the Chinoiserie taste are sometimes reinter-
The woodworking tradition of the United States, preted for porches and entrances.
denied through the Modernist period, began to flourish The revival of interest in the Arts and Crafts
again with Post-Modern variants on the shingle style. movement and related aesthetics has led to creative
The house made completely of w ood, w hich had been design in wood in a style that can run all through the
reinterpreted in the Modern Movement, returned to house. The details of C.R. Mackintosh, C.F.A. Voysey
something m ore like its original form, using skills that and Frank Lloyd Wright, for example, have proved com-
had never died out. Balconies, porches, fences and paratively easy to copy for a multitude of purposes.
500
BRITISH VERNACULAR
By the middle of the 17th
century, many houses were
built with two rooms per story,
with a central entrance and
staircase - an arrangement
th(lt originated in the timber
houses of southeast England at
the start of the 16th century,
and was later adapted for
stone. This 17th-century house
i11 the village of Sulgrave,
Northamptonshire, in the
English Midlands, has been
extended at the far end,
spoiling its symmetry but not its
appearance. It is built in fine
local oolitic limestone, gofden in
hue but streaked brown in
places by iron deposits. The
windows have hoodmoulds of
a type that originated in the
Middle Ages, but used in the
Midlands until well into the
18th century. De!f.Pite the fine
masonry, the root is thatched,
not tiled- a local practice
which died out later in the 17th
century. AQ
ritish vernacular architecture embraces a bewilder- materials would be used instead, and this often imposed
B ing array of different styles, apparent in thousands
of houses built between the later Middle Ages and the
certain design restrictions. Moreover, the local crafts-
man's knowledge of high design might extend only as
Industrial Revolution- roughly the period 1350-1800. far as a naive understanding of a limited number of
These styles reflect both cultural and physical differ- houses already considered old-fashioned in higher
ences across many distinct regions. circles. A hardy conservatism ruled, but this did not
The Norman Conquest of 1066laid the foundations cramp the imagination.
of peace and political stability which eventually made a Regional differences were determined not only by the
significant number of peasants and merchants wealthy availability of local materials, but also by the uneven
enough to afford the luxury of a permanent house. attainment of wealth among ordinary people. The long-
Ordinary houses had previously fallen to pieces after established concentration of wealth in the south and
only a generation or so. Now, people turned to an east of England led to the early development of vernac-
expanding group of craftsmen- masons, carpenters, ular houses there. However, in areas where the landlord
bricklayers, plasterers, tylers (who made or laid tiles), was acquisitive, peasants (or yeomen, as they came to
glaziers and so on - who learned their skills locally, be called) and merchants did not have a share of this
through example. Depending on local resources for their wealth; and conversely there were many ostensibly
building materials, they developed their own methods, poorer localities where yeomen could flourish and
and these became the basis for the rich variety of ver- hence build good, though modest, houses. A combina-
nacular styles, which differed not only in materials but tion of infertile land and overbearing landowners could
also in the way in which those materials were exploited inhibit vernacular architecture altogether. Social and
for decoration. political circumstances favoured the yeomen of Kent
Once they had evolved, particular styles tended to above all others. They were celebrated for their wealth
remain current for several generations at least, with the long before the end of the Middle Ages. Thousands of
consequence that vernacular houses are often difficult their medieval timber-framed houses still survive, and
to date. The habit of adding to dwellings by a series of many of them are large. In Devon, by contrast, great
accretions over the years makes the process of dating landlords tended to monopolize the wealth, and yeo-
harder still. men's houses were mostly modest. In some parts of the
Although vernacular idioms could reflect the fashion- Pennines in the north of England, where yeomen
able styles that were applied nationally to the houses profited from new domestic industries, especially
of the wealthy, the need to economize brought adapta- weaving, there is evidence of them starting to build
tions. The cost of fetching building materials from afar permanent houses in stone towards the end of the
was generally too high for ordinary dwellings, so local Middle Ages.
BRITISH VERNACULAR 501
Less than two hundred years separate scale typical of its ref',ion, with @ These are relatively poor stone
these six yeoman houses. They are characteristic tiers of mullioned windows, cottages, with earthen walls and
arranged here in a way that corresponds stepped in the upper floor. Again the thatched or pantiled roofs. Thimbleby,
qpproximately with their location. material is millstone grit. AQ Lincolnshire. AQ
(D A farmhouse, Heapey, Lancashire, built CD A small timber-framed house at CD A house at East Chinnock, Somerset,
in 1696 of hard Pen nine millstone grit. The Stoneleigh, Warwickshire, built c.1500 by 1637, showing to good effect the local
stone tiles of the roof are in the same a yeoman only just wealthy enough to oolitic stone, with matching stone tiles,
material. The form of this house, with one build at all. The house was later rewa/led which the affluent local yeomenry could
main room and two subsidiary rooms on with a brick in{t/1. The heavy curved affvrd. AQ
each floor, is typical of the west side of the timbers are known as crucks. The cruck Built at least a century earlier; ofgood
Pennines. AQ method is normal in central and northern oak, a farmhouse at Northiam, East
A farmhouse, at Sowerby, West England and most of Wales but is not Sussex, with decorative dose-studding
Yorkshire, built in 1662 on the more lavish found in eastern or southeast England. AQ and clay tiles on the roof AQ
... - - ..
502 BRITISH VERNACULAR
DP.Jr--
r.
lC
first three illustrations here:
irregularly, as rubble; in rough
courses; or in regular courses.
The last illustration shows
regular laying with larger, finely
cut blocks at the corners, forming
quoins (cornerstones). The
corners of a building were ofren
worked by more skilled
crafrsmen.
The complex patterns of local building materials are took the form of regularly repeated geometric shapes,
part of the inexhaustible fascination of vernacular but occasionally the pattern could be more ornate. Some
houses. In the south and east of England, in the west examples even extend to figurative compositions,
Midlands and the eastern half of Wales, and in the achievements of arms, or exotic patterns covering whole
lowland parts of Yorkshire and Lancashire, the earlier walls, which could be painted in bright colours to give
houses are of timber. Much effort went into decorating them greater prominence.
their frames, and this encouraged significant differenc:es Another form of decorative patterning on exterior
between the regions. By 1700 building in timber had walls stems from a combination of different building
been susperseded by building in brick, and localized materials. For example, there is a tradition of combining
styles of decoration were followed in the laying of flints (irregular lumps of silica) with bricks in south and
brickwork and the raising of imposing chimney stacks. east England. Cobbles or pebbles are also found in
The highland parts of England (notably the west and patterns with brickwork.
the north) and much of Wales and Scotland have The Industrial Revolution, which made it possible for
plentiful stone. Because this stone is hard on the chisel, building materials to be transported inexpensively,
carving had to be restricted to prominent places such as brought an end to vernacular styles, although in the
doorways. Only where there was plentiful stone of high North they hung on until well into the 19th century.
quality- for example, on the band of Jurassic limestone There was a vernacular revival in the mid-19th century,
crossing England diagonally from Dorset to Yorkshire - but this was little more than the donning of fancy dress.
could masons achieve greater feats of carving on ver- The inventive vigour that had characterized vernacular
nacular houses. Even then, cost restricted their efforts. building for centuries proved to be inimitable, which is
In eastern England a distinctive form of decoration is perhaps why the authentic country cottage or
pargeting- the use of incised or raised patterns on the farmhouse continues to exert such a hold on the popular
plaster covering of a timber-framed house. Usually, this imagination.
BRITISH VERNACULAR 503
jl
DO
0 C8J
DO
DOORS 4
(!) Stone houses in the
Yorkshire Dales from the later
17th and early 18th centuries
ofien have elaborate doorways,
with curves and scrolls, as well
as the date and the initials of the
owner.
.
From a farmhouse in the
Pennines, Yorkshire: the head of
this door has an inscription and
roundels.
0 Window shutters were century, they were usually into schemes ofpanelling. u Examples of 17th-century
customan'ly used from ancient painted in pale colours to reflect A rotating window: this wrought-iron window
times. They simply folded back light into the room. On larger method of opening gained hardware, including fasteners-
on vertical hinges. By the 18th houses they would be integrated ground in the 19th century. and stays.
BRITISH VERNACULAR 505
WALLS
1
The internal wall finish added
status to individual rooms and
expressed their relative
importance.
CEILINGS materials. This example, from southwest 0 Where the exposed joists were
0 The first ceilings (as distinct from open England, is 16th-century. u chamfered along their edges, the chamfers
roofS) had no decoration other than exposed 0 The joists could run in both directions, at could end in a decorative ~ourish or
joists, which were usually set close together right angles, and have their undersides chamfer-stop. This one has simple scroll
in an ostentatious overuse ofexpensive heavily moulded. Westfield, East Sussex. DM motrfs. u
4 6
@A similar treatment, with a chamfer-stop, CD The whole ofthe ceiling could be plastered @A detail of elaborate but robustly worked
would sometimes be executed in plaster, over and given raised or incised decorative ~oral decoration on a plastered ceiling from a
rather than in carved timber. This ceiling is patterns, like the plain sesmental corner house in Thornbury, Avon. The grape mottfs
from Thornbury, Avon, southwest England, pattern in this example, from Warbleton, are in relief, contrasting with incised ~owers
and probably dates from the 1680s. u East Sussex. DM and leaves. LL
1 2
FLOORS
3 0 and 0 The floors of vernacular houses 4
were the least likely part to be decorated.
Plain ~agstones or soundly lard boards
were the norm. l..L
0 At ground level, regularly laid
~agstones could be enhanced by patterns
made from stone of different colours or
mixed with smaller stones or bricks. u
@ Small stones or even pebbles laid close
together on edge to form intermingling
circles, arcs and squares made the most
interesting patterns, but they were hard to
keep clean. This particular pattern is from
Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales.
BRITISH VERNACULAR 507
4
FIREPLACES 0 Hearths, especially in the north ofEngland,
(]) The surround, hearth and ironwork- were set within inglmooks containing seating
andirons, hooks for cooking pots, a11d usually of wood but sometimes stone. LL
equipment for turning spits as well as spit- CD Sometimes a small oven was set over the
tracks for supporting them- could be hearth. From Oldbwy on Severn, Avon. U
decorative as well as useful. The side of the
hearth might contain an oven. Most ofthese
features can be seen in this fireplace at
Littleton, Avon. LL
5 .
@ This farmhouse fireplace, Bromley, near run from a timber beam and turn downwards A fireplace with initials, fieur-de -lys and
London, 15 99, not only has a moulded to run along the edges ofthe stone piers. u the date, from Iron Acton, Avon.
surround but also a large overmantel with @ The moulding on this Devon stone @ Plain classical cornices with exaggerated
crude pilasters fianking a phoenix roundel- fireplace runs all the way around. The niche P-roportions could equally serve.
'3-f,rand feature to find in a modest house. AQ J:jsh on the leff was for a candle or taper. AQ @By the 19th century, many farmhouses
(2) The surround here is spanned by a timber (Z) The use of fern-leaf patterns wellt back to were content with plain surrounds. This one
hearth beam. This alone is heavily moulded, medieval times; this example is from 1664. has vestigially classical brackets, contrasting
on its lower edge, but sometimes mouldings Fluted Ionic pilasters, with cartouche. with the elaborate factory-made range.
8
10 ,, 7
I
il'
Iiii IIIII
508 BRITISH VERNACULAR
STAIRCASES to a lo~. These vertical access the 18th century. As houses (1) This plain spiral staircase
When upper rooms had little arrangements survive in many became more spacious, stairs dates from c.1600. u
importance, as in the Mrddle old farmhouses, usually rose less steeply. Instead of being A staircase with spiral
Ages, stairs were simple, if not adjoining the chimney stack and cramped in corners, they were balusters, from Pucklechurch,
downright rough. Often there hidden behind a door. Sleeping given generous treatment, and Avon, c.1680. LL
was just a simple ladder leading upstairs was not universal until ornamented as symbols of status. Q) A panelled staircase with
square newel posts, turned
4 balusters and a moulded
handrail, East Sussex, mrd-18th
century. DM
~ Classical piers used as the
basis of balusters, 1686: a late
example of misunderstood
classical detailing ofthe
jacobean type. U
~A more ornate form ofa
similar design, c.16 75. LL
~ The same pattern could be
reduced to little more than wavy
planks. Icklesham, East Sussex.
DM
0 Turned balusters in an century. u The tops ofnewel posts can @ Balls or other rounded newel
elegant three-per-step A plain balustrade in a be decorated, as in this finials were more comfortable to
arrangement, from a farmhouse smaller house, early 18th example with crudely carved grasp, as well as being visually
at Westerleigh, Avon, early 18th century. LL scrolls. LL attractive.
~--
-- -
-
BRITISH VERNACULAR 509
~ s S2 l
~ I I
Q g
I
2
Jl )I II Jl Jl Jl
)(
l(
0 ;--"---""
0 0
0 0
0.
WOODWORK
0 The framing ofa timber-
framed house could easily be
decorated - either soberly, with
studs set close Wf,ether, or boldly,
with patterns of arcs set within
squares, some turned to make
diamond shapes, as in this
example from Gloucestershire,
c.1600. LL
0 The doorway ofa timber-
framed house could be treated
decoratively, as in this house at
Cerne Abbas, Dorset, with
quatrefoil carving and roses
incised deep into the doorhead.
The joist ends, supporting the
jettied (overhanginf!) upper floor,
also contribute to tlie decorative
effect.
0 Here, the bressumer, hiding
the joist ends of a jettied house,
is carved with a simplified
pattern of oak leaves. Earls
Caine, Essex.
AMERICAN VERNACULAR
The Durie House, Bergen
County, New j ersey. This early
18th-century house represents
the Dutch building tradition as
practised in the Hudson Valley,
Long Island and northern New
jersey. Its gambrel roof profile is
created by chm;ging tfze angle
ofthe wooden framing at a
point below the ridgei the roof is
then changed at yet another
angle to create a porch .
supported on plain wooden
posts. The flaring or "flying"
eave suggests Flemish influence,
which is o~en found mingled
with Dutch styles. Smalf
dormers light the upper-story
bedroom spaces. Brick
chimneys indicate the presence
oflarge end-wall fireplaces.
the exterior sheathing is wood
- narrow clapboards on the
walls and shingles on the roof
Steeply sloping roofs are
characteristic of vernacular
houses built to suit a northern
climate. HABS
he term "Vernacular" is a much-disputed one, and regional inflections once it is on the ground and
T in the United States is perhaps best understood to
embrace a number of different types of architecture:
inhabited).
Vernacular houses may be either owner-built or con-
buildings produced for lower budgets than those in structed by skilled craftspeople for clients . They may
the high style, and therefore exhibiting notable ethnic present a relatively rustic appearance, but may als o
and regional characteristics; buildings made by tradi- exhibit fine finishes and attention to ornamental detail.
tional methods for rural or provincial clients; and Of course, the greatest number in the United States
buildings in which ethnic or regional traditions merge have disappeared, either because they were con-
with current.styles to create interesting hybrids. In the structed as impermanent to begin with, or because
vernacular house there is likely to be a mix: some new owners have replaced them with something more
ideas, some tradition. imposing or up-to-date when improved resources
The ethnic character of these houses originates from allowed.
immigrant or often first-generation builders working The regional characteristics of vernacular houses
with techniques and planning ideas that they learned come from builders responding to the climate and
from their countries of origin. Such methods may be topography of an area, and making tise of local
preserved as valued traditions by subsequent builders materials. In New England, with its severe winters, the
-or sometimes they may be given up. The main ethnic favourite 17th- and 18th-century material was wood,
influences derive from the first permanent colonial used for framing houses and for exterior sheathing,
penetration of North America by European peoples- sometimes combined with brick or stone for chim-
the Spanish in the 16th century, the French, Dutch and neys, footings or basements. Strongly sloping timber-
English in the 17th century, followed by the German framed roofs shed the snow and provide attic space.
and Scandinavian immigrants in the 18th and 19th Dutch 17th-century settlers built houses using a series
centuries. Each tradition has contributed to the of heavy timber H-shaped frames, faced on the
character of American vernacular houses. exterior with brick or stone . German builders of the
Examples of the 17th-century vernacular are still 18th century in the Hudson River Valley and in Penn-
standing, though few survive from the earliest period. sylvania used stone for the body of the house and
At the other end of the time scale, the houses of our timber framing for the roof. Other German settlers,
own century are more !ikefy to participate in nationa{ 6oth. nortilern (for example, in Wisconsin) and south-
(and therefore non-vernacular) culture by virtue of ern (North Carolina), chose half-timbered building
their mass-produced materials and the information techniques in the 18th and 19th centuries: a heavy
networks that brought builders out of their insularity timber frame was combined with an infill of clay,
(although even modern manufactured housing shows brick, or mud with straw. Sloping roofs might be tiled
AMERICAN VERNACULAR 511
1 2
CD The jonathan Hager House, interesting pattern to the end- beginning in the mid-18th symmetrical facades without the
Hagerstown, Maryland, 1740. walls of this Dutch Hudson century. Old World half-timber stepped-out upper story that is
Stone was the preferred material River Valley house. HABS construction was ofren clad in found on 17th-century
of the Germans who settled in (J) Moravians created a clapboarding. HABS p_redecessors. HABS
the area. HABS religious community at Old @New England settlers Q) A ~at-roofed adobe house,
Brick construction gives an Salem, North Carolina, created increasingly Tucson, Arizona. HABS
5
512 AMERICAN VERNACULAR
or shingled. Brick w ith a timber-framed roof w as the pow ered sawmills, mail-order millwork and materials
preferred material for the large-scale house of the transported by the national rail network, did not
Chesapeake region, yet the small vernacular house - immediately put an end to traditional vernacular
commonly a one-room structure - was made all of building styles or methods . For newly arrived settlers
w ood. of the mid-19th century, traditional methods and
In the Mississippi Valley and Gulf Coast, 18th- locally harvested materials continued to serve; not
century French settlements w ere constructed of everyone in frontier settlements had the money or the
buildings combining vertically placed timber posts access to railroad-transported materials to participate
w ith a stone or earth infill, often w ith a smooth in mainstream building materials. However, vernacu-
rendered finish. Horizontal log construction w ith lar styles w ere also expanded and "improved" by
notched corners was also popular. A smooth finish is mass-produced materials, so that a hand-hewn log
found in walls of the 17th- and 18th-century Spanish house might have a store-bought window. Perhaps
settlements of the Southw est, w here the climate is the most far-reaching effect of the Industrial Revolu-
ho t and dry. Here builders made extensive use of tion was in the spread of information. The wide-
adobe or mud-brick laid up in courses, with relatively spread availability of printed materials containing
flat roofs supported on wooden beams. Scandinavian advice on building techniques made stylish architec-
settlers in the 19th-century Midwest used log con- tural details available to all builders, not just the elite.
struction techniques with corner notching; mud Throughout the 19th century, small, rural, inexpen-
chinking filled in when there were gaps between the sive houses were made with fireplace , door and
logs. On the prairies of the West, cut sod was used to window details showing a familiarity with Greek
create coursed w alls, much as cut stone might be used Revival, Italianate or other styles popular in profes-
elsewhere. sional architects ' repertoires, but adapted to local
The impact of industrial techniques on building in tastes.
the early 19th century, with mass-produced nails ,
AMERICAN VERNACULAR 513
1 4
11
514 AMERICAN VERNACULAR
1 3
F""'""
,....-
_,
WINDOWS
(])An early window, c.1700,
LY Massachusetts.
A typical window in an
adobe house, New Mexico.
5 6 0 From a Colonial house in
Deerfield, Massachusetts: a
simple, elegant sash window. RS
@ A Spanish-style screen, St
Augustine, Florida.
CD Small windows in a
Wisconsin log house. In the most
basic cabins, windows were
closed by sliding boards or
anima/skins. HABS
@ A simple shutter catch,
c.1800, from Massachusetts.
(Z) Shutter hardware: a typical
bolt, shutter hook and hinge.
7
ss:s:s: s ICI \l\1 "
1 2
WALLS
(])A "stovewood" wall, made of short
lengths of cut logs laid in mortar. Wisconsin.
The simple wall division ofa Shaker
interior, with base and peg boards.
-- - -
- --
AMERICAN VERNACULAR 515
1 2
CEILINGS construction. frames whose upper members beam crosses the middle ofthe
11
Amencan vernacular houses 0 The 17th- and 18th-century are visible as deep ceiling beams room and rests on the brick
o(ien have ceiling configurations Dutch house was constructed connected to the wall by knee- chimney, at a right angle to the
that directly refiect methods of using a series of bents or wood
11 11
braces. The diagram (below le~) rest of the ceiling beams.
shows the ceiling members in the Occasionally the ceiling
context ofthe structure as a beams were given decorative
whole. treatment. This carved rosette is
0 In this early New England from Surry County, Virginia.
kitchen (Dover, Massachusetts, The shaping ofthe beams is also
1701} a prominent Summer
11
noteworthy. HABS
I I
I \
~ 'i-'1..11
J ~ .,.
~] l
FIREPLACES 0 Turned ornament on the fireplace frieze irregular stones with a modest wooden
0 A fireplace in the kitchen ofa Dutch is a characteristic of Ca!tfornian adobe mantel shelf Monterey, California. HABS
house in Kerhonkson, New York, with an houses.
arched bread oven and a fireplace crane. Q) A small fireplace opening framed by
5 6 7
1 3
STAIRCASES Orleans courtyard staircase, constructed stairways for men and women. Varnishing
Some form ofstaircase was necessmy even simply out of wood. Seignouret House, of the handrail and balusters ofthe staircase
for houses which had merely an unfrnished c.1820. CRO was specifically allowed by the Millennia/
attic above the ground floor. 0 A wide wooden staircase from a Shaker Law of the Shaker faith, codified in 1821.
0 In New Orleans and other hot-climate dwelling house- that of the Church family, HABS
areas, exterior staircases were ofien used to in Hancock, Massachusetts. The slender Q) A staircase (rom an adobe house in
reach the upper floor - and sometimes {for balustrade is typical. The Shaker dwelling Monterey, California. The styling is
example, in some of the houses of St house, designed to accommodate a relatively primitive, and the only decoration
Augustine, Flonda) there was also a "family" living in celibacy, had segregated is a simple form of chamfering on the newel
staircase up to a flat roof This is a New dormitories with separate hallways and post. HABS
CD Simple cut-out designs could 0 Sponge and line decoration Connecticut staircase, which is 0 A more primitive approach,
give a rhythm to a balustrade. on the nsers. The treads, partly boxed in with a panelled in which diagonally laid boards
This example is from North typically, are left plain. wal~ surmounted by a are used.
Carolina, c.1790. (2) An early 18th-century balustrade.
1 2
5 ~
4
518 AMERICAN VERNACULAR
-- -
SERVlCES
(]) The sauna was an
important element of the
Wisconsin log house. It would
be housed in a separate @ Shaker stoves are typically
building containing a stone mounted on legs, which are
oven and wooden benches. mostly cast-iron (although they
0 A Spanish stove, with can also be wrought-iron with
"three-burner" top, from St penny feet, or in cabriole
Augustine, Flonda, c.1800. (curved) form). The doors
CD This is a Vermont version of opened from lefi to right. This
the freestanding six-plate one dates from c.1780.
heating stove, early 19th Q) The (rve-plate or 'jamb"
century. This type ofstove, stove was another
which took its name from the Pennsylvanian German type. It
number of cast-iron plates (rtted shared a ~ue with a (rreplace in
together in its construction, was the next room, as the cross-
manufactured by the section (lefi) shows. The front
Pennsylvania Germans as would ofien be embellished with
early as c.1760. Later, ten- Biblical scenes and texts. The
plate stoves were made which example here, with a date on it,
could also be used for cooking. shows a wedding feast.
2 4 5
,,
'
METALWORK
Repainting. Decorative wrought- and cast-iron w ork,
as found on balconies and railings, will often be rusted,
but not as badly as may at first appear: rust occupies
seven times the volume of unoxidized iron. All iron-
work should be painted both for decoration and for
protection against corrosion. The old paint surface
526
BI_OGRAPHIES
The following is a selective list of short biographies decorative approach included fla t grotesque panels and
of indexed architects, designers and others who were pilasters, elaborate colour schemes and delicate painted
significant to the development or dissemination of a ornament, with urns, swags and ribbons. Adam also designed
style discussed in the text. some large buildings in Edinburgh (e.g. the University, begun
1789) and some picturesque castles (e.g. Culzean Castle,
Aalto, Alvar (1898 -1976). Finnish architect and designer. 1777 -92), where he contrasted rugged exteriors with delica te,
A master of the Modern Movement, he designed highly refined interiors. The Adam style was widely disseminated
individual buildings that expressed a great sensitivity to through The Works in Architecture ofRobert and james Adam
site . His early work included some of the first Rationalist (1773 -8, 1779, 1822). Adam's ornament became increasingly
buildings in Scandinavia, notably the influential Sanatorium manne red towards the end of his career and was much
(1929 -32) at Paimio, a crisp, white building with strip criticized in the first half of the 19th century. An Adam
windows and cantilevered balconies . He later moved away Revival began after the London Exhibition of 1862 .
from the machine aesthetic, expressing his strong feelings
for materials in the use of timber (e.g. Finnish Pavilion, Paris, Adam, Robert (b 1948). English architect. He trained at the
1937) and developing a free-form approach (e.g. Finnish Polytechnic of Central London (1967 -73) and then studied in
Pavilion, New York World's Fair, 1939). After 1945 he Rome for a year. In 1977 he moved to Winchester and began
developed his distinctive form of Modernism, with curved designing classical revival buildings, particularly in the
walls, angular pitched roofs, extensive use of brick and timber Georgian style, which he adapted to modern technology. He
and awareness of environmental context, as seen in Baker is also associated with the polemic between Modernists and
House (1946 -9), MIT, Cambridge, Massachusetts; the Town Classicists surrounding the Prince of Wales and is involved
Hall (1952), Siiyniitsalo; the Cultural Centre (1958), Helsinki; with the Prince's Institute of Architecture .
and the Vuoksenniska Church (1958), Imatra. Aalto is also
well known for furniture designs exploiting moulded Ashbee, C. R. (1863 -1942). English architect and designer.
plywood shapes (e.g. the bentwood Paimio chair, 1933, and He was strongly influenced by the ideas of John Ruskin and
cantilevered chairs in laminated wood, 1946); he continued William Morris, particularly those on social reform. In 1888
to produce furniture through his company Artek all his life. he founded the Guild and School of Handicraft in London's
East End. The School closed in 1895 but the Guild continued
A ckermann, Rudol(1764 - 1834). English publisher, of for many years as an important centre for the ideals of th e
German birth. He worked as a coachmaker in Europe and Arts and Crafts Movement, producing furniture, metalwork,
in London, where he moved to in about 1783. In 1795 he jewellery, enamelling and printing. Ashbee created some
established a book and print shop in London, the Repository influential designs (e .g. simple Arts and Crafts jewellery and
of Arts. He subsequently published the Repository ofArts silverware). Among his surviving buildings are some houses
(1809 -28), an influential periodical covering art, architecture, (1898-9) in Cheyne Walk, London, with picturesque
interior design, fashion, science and other subjects. vernacular massing. He also completed many restoration
Contributors included J. B. Papworth and A. C. Pugin. projects in Chipping Campden, where he moved the Guild
Furniture designs published in the Repository in 1822 were in 1902 . He helped introduce Frank Lloyd Wright's ideas into
later reprinted as Fashionable Furniture (1823). The Repository Europe after meeting him in 1900. He also wrote several
was mainly dedicated to the classical style until1825, when books, including A Book of Cottages and Little Houses (1906),
Pugin began to contribute Gothic designs. Craftsmanship in Competitive Industry (1908), and Modern
English Silverwork (1909).
A dam , Robert (1728- 92). Scottish architect and designer. He
was one of the two most important architects in England in Audsley, George Ashdown (1838 - 1925). Scottish
the late 18th century (with William Chambers, his archrival) . architect and designer. In 1863 he set up practice with his
The son of a leading Scottish architect, Adam went on a brother William James Audsley in Liverpool. There they
Grand Tour to Italy (1754-8), where he studied classical designed several churches, but Audsley is best known for his
architecture; he also surveyed Diocletian's palace at Split. In publications, many produced with his brother. Cottage, Lodge
1758 he set up practice in London, later joined by one of his and Villa Architecture (c.1868) and a series of important books
brothers, James Adam. Early work included the classical, on Japanese art were followed by the pattern manuals
columned Admiralty Screen (1759-60), London, and many Outlines of Ornament in the Leading Styles (1881) and
house interiors in which Adam perfected his light and elegant Polychromatic Decoration as Applied to Buildings in the Mediaeval
Neo-classicism. This contrasted sharply with both the heavier Styles (1882). In 1892 Audsley and Maurice Ashdown Audsley
Palladian style that preceded it and with the Greek Revival (possibly his son) published The Practical Decorator and
that followed. Adam's best-known country-house designs Ornamentist, which was influential in the United States. He
include Harewood House (1759 -71); Kedleston Hall (from then moved to New York and continued publishing design
1759); Syon House (1760 -69); Osterley Park (1765 -80); Luton books with his son Berthold Audsley.
Hoo (1766 -74); Newby Hall (1767-85); and Kenwood House
(1767 -9). They were followed from the late 1760s Baillie Scott, M . H. (1865 -1945). English architect and
by many fine London town houses. In all he integrated the designer. He was a noted figure in the later stages of the
decorative arts into new schemes with contrasting plan Arts and Crafts Movement, when it acquired international
shapes derived from antiquity (e .g. the basilican hall, the influence and was seen as a precursor of early Modernism.
rotunda, and coffered apses screened by columns). His Baillie Scott adopted a simple vernacular manner in his
BIOGRAPHIES 527
houses but developed a new kind of open spatial planning, became Tiffany's European distributor. At the end of 1895
with living rooms focused around a massive inglenook he opened a new shop in Paris called L' Art Nouveau, which
fireplace and orientated to the garden instead of the street. displayed glass, graphic designs, metalwork, jewellery,
His finest houses include Blackwell, Bowness (1898); The wallpaper, fabrics and furniture. Artists represented included
White House, Helensburgh; and The Garth, Cobham (1899). Tiffany, Emile Galle, Aubrey Beardsley, Rene Lalique, Walter
His simple, unornamented furniture, metalwork and Crane, William Morris, C. F. A. Voysey and Henry Van de
wallpaper designs, often using brilliant colour, were shown at Veld e. Bing had his own pavilion at the Paris Exposition of
the Arts and Crafts Exhibition in London in 1896. He became 1900 and played an important role in the dissemina tion of
well known in Europe through his articles in The Studio from contemporary styles.
1895 and for his interiors at the Grand Duke of Hesse's palace
at Darmstadt (seat of the artists' colony founded in 1899). He Breuer, Marcel (1902- 81 ). Hungarian architect and
also produced influential houses for Hampstead and designer, active in Germany, England and the United States.
Letchworth garden cities (1904- 9) . He published his early A pioneer of the European Modern Movement, he studied
work in the book Hou ses and Gardens (1906) . His later work, and taught furniture design at the Bauhaus in Weimar (1920 -
published in Houses and Gardens (1933), was less distinctive. 24) and Dessau (1925- 8). There he developed new, functional
forms using clear structural articulation, as in his famous
Behrens, Peter (1869 - 1940). German architect and designer. Wassily chair (1925), one of the first tubular-steel chairs in
One of the key figures in the development of the early general production; the B32 cantilevered tubular steel chair
Modern Movement, he was involved in many of the (1928); and simple modular storage systems. From 1928 he
progressive artistic groups founded around the turn of worked as an architect and interior designe r in Berlin. In 1935
the 19th century. He initially studied painting, exhibiting he moved to England and practised with the architect F. R. S.
throughout the 1890s. He then began to produce designs for Yorke while continuing to design furniture (e.g. Isokon
graphics and the decorative arts. In 1899 he joined the artists' reclining plywood chair, laminated plywood nesting tables
colony at Darmstadt, where he designed his own house. He and stacking chairs). He then moved to the United States,
is best known for his work as designer-architect (1907 -14) for teaching architecture at Harvard (1937-47) and practising with
AEG in Berlin, where he introduced the concept of integrated Walter Gropius (1937-41). Breuer's American houses
corporate design covering advertising, graphic design, combined modern forms with the use of timber and rough
industrial products and buildings. His famous AEG Turbine stonework (e.g. Breuer House, New Canaan, CoP.necticut,
Factory (1909), Moabit, combined a monumental, symbolic 1947). His later work included theY-shaped UNESCO
design with modern steel and glass technology, and is an icon
of the early Modern Movement. He also designed typefaces,
building in Paris (1953 -8; with others) and the Whitney
Museum of American Art, New York (1966).
.
book-bindings, logotypes, glassware, cutlery, fabrics and
furniture. In his later buildings he turned to classicism (e.g. Britton, John (1771-1857). English architectural writer.
German Embassy, St Petersburg, 1911), Expressionism (e.g. He is known for the several important books he published
I. G. Farben Office Building, Hoechst, 1924), and then the on the architectural history of England, which included
International Style . All the great architects of the Modern carefully drawn plans and details as well as authoritative
Movement - Walter Gropius, Mies van derRohe and Le texts. Examples are The Architectural Antiquities of Great Britain
Corbusier - worked in his office between 1908 and 1911. (1807-26), The Cathedral Antiquities of England (1814-35) and
Illustration of the Public Buildings of London (1825-8). In 1821-3
Benjamin, Asher (1773 -1845). American architect. he published Specimens of Gothic A rchitecture, prepared with
Through his pattern books he was influential in the A. C. Pugin. His accurate records of medieval architecture
dissemination of the Neo-classical and Greek Revival styles in provided a highly useful model for Gothic Revivalists.
the United States. After an early career as a house-carpenter,
when he worked on Charles Bulfinch's Connecticut State Bulfinch, Charles (1763 -1844). American architect. He
House at Hartford (1795), he produced The Country Builder's was an influential exponent of the Federal or Adam style,
Assistant (1797). This, the first American builder's guide, drew acquiring a national reputation that popularized the style
on the publications of William Pain (who popularized the throughout the United States. After a two-year tour of Europe
Adam style) but was adapted to American usage. In 1806 he (1785 -7), he designed several churches and the Connecticut
produced (with Daniel Rayner d) The American Builder's State House (1795), Hartford. In 1795 he w as commissioned
Companion, which was influenced by Bulfinch's Federal style. to build the Massachusetts State House, Boston, one of the
It was immensely popular through several revisions during most important buildings of the period in the United States.
the next 20 years, when he added a variety of new sources, In this he drew on London's Somerset House, completed by
including William Chambers. Benjamin also developed an William Chambers only a decade before . The State House,
architectural practice in Boston in 1806-10, building three with a colonnaded central projecting block and high dome,
churches, the Exchange Coffee House and several fine houses became a model for many state capitols thereafter. In 1799
on Beacon Hill. His next books, The Practical House Carpenter Bulfinch obtained an administrative position with wide
(1830)- which became the most popular American responsibilities, through which he helped to transform
architectural book of the 19th century - The Practice of Boston. He designed many civic and commercial buildings
Architecture (1833) and The Builder's Guide (1838), promoted (e .g. India Wharf, Boston, 1807; University Hall, Harvard,
the new Greek Revival style. 1814; Massachusetts General Hospital, 1823) as well as
houses, developing a rather plain style with atten a ted
Bing, Samuel (1838 - 1905). German decorative arts Neo-classical details. His early churches, with tall belfries
dealer. After working in a ceramics factory in Germany, he characteristically placed at the junction of porch roof and
moved to Paris in 1871 and opened his first shop there. He main roof, established a model for church design in the area.
travelled to China and Japan in 1875, then opened another In 1817 Bulfinch took over as architect at the US Capitol,
shop in Paris to sell objects from the Far East. Louis Comfort Washington, completing the work begun by Benjamin
Tiffany was one of his customers and he subsequently Henry Latrobe. This established his reputation.
528 BIOGRAPHIES
Burlington, Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of (1694-1753). in his work, including French-Italian Neo-classicism (e .g.
English amateur architect and patron. He was the most Casino at Marino House, Dublin, 1758 -70); English
influential promoter of the Palladian revival in England in Palladianism (e.g. Duddingston House, Midlothian, 1763);
the 18th century. Burlington adopted the style after the and Gothic (e.g. Milton Abbey, Dorset, 1776). His best-
publication of Colen Campbell's Vitruvius Brittanicus and known work is Somerset House, London (1776-86), which
James Leoni's translation of Palladia's Four Books ofArchitecture showed the influence of Inigo Jones on the Strand front but
in 1715. He then employed Campbell to take over the French Neo-classicism in the courtyard. It also showed his
renovation of Burlington House from James Gibbs, and it skill as a designer of staircases and interiors, with some
became the first strictly Palladian building in London. rooms being early English examples of the Louis XVI style.
Burlington visited Italy to study Palladia's buildings, and he
acquired several original drawings by Palladia, as well as Chippendale, Thomas (1718 -79). English cabinetmaker.
prints and books. He returned to England in 1719 w ith his He was one of the most important cabinetmakers in
protege! William Kent, who worked with him on many London during the 1760s and 1770s. He opened premises
projects and whose Designs oflnigo]ones (1727) he financed. in StMartin's Lane, then a centre of artistic life, in 1753.
Burlington went on to design several Palladian buildings, He designed furniture not only for his firm but also for his
notably Chis wick House, London (1725- 9), his own villa, celebrated Gentleman and Cabinet-Maker's Director, first
partly based on Palladia's Villa Rotonda; and the Assembly produced in 1754. The Director illustrated "household
Rooms, York (1732), derived from Palladia's colonnaded furniture " in styles ranging from Rococo to Chinese and
Egyptian hall, which was in tum based on Vitruvius . Gothic. Popular among patrons and craftsmen, it showed a
Burlington's patronage assisted in the publication of many wider range of designs, including Neo-classical, in the third
learned books, including a better translation of Palladia by Isaac edition (1762). This was influential also in the United States
Ware . These provided the models adopted in innumerable and Europe, with copies acquired by Catherine II of Russia
builders' pattern books that helped spread the Palladian idiom and Louis XVI of France. Chippendale's best furniture
throughout Britain and the United States. reflected the elegant Neo-classicical style of Robert Adam and
William Chambers. He worked with Adam on a number of
Campbell, Colen (1673 -1729). Scottish architect. Together interiors, such as Harewood House, West Yorkshire. He also
with Lord Burlington, he was one of the most influential worked at other houses in Yorkshire (e.g. Nos tell Priory, Aske
proponents of the 18th-century Palladian revival. He Hall and Newby Hall); at Wilton House, Wiltshire; and at
established his reputation through the publication of Vitruvius Petworth House, West Sussex. His son Thomas Chippendale
Britannicus (1715 -17), a collection of plans and illustrations the Younger, who took over after his father's death, is often
drawn by him of houses built during the previous century or considered more innovative; he produced some fine Neo-
so. To these he added an introduction and some of his own classical furniture for Stourhead (1797 -1820).
designs promoting the work of Palladia and Inigo Jones in
place of the Baroque. The great success of the book helped Conran, Sir Terence (b 1931). English designer. He was
launch the Palladian revival and encouraged a wide general immensely influential in introducing into the British mass
interest in architecture. Campbell's buildings included the market after World War II the concept of good quality
new facade of Burlington House, Piccadilly, based on a modern design in furniture , textiles and homewares. In
palazzo design of Palladia's; some simple London town 1956 he formed the Conran Design Group, producing
houses using Palladian proportions; and some notable furniture and textiles for the commercial market. In 1964
country houses in which he adopted clearly recognizable he opened the first of his Habitat shops in London, using
elements such as the cubic hall and temple-front portico, innovative displays to sell attractive, functional, reasonably
providing easily reproducible models. Examples include priced furniture , fabrics, glassware and kitchenware to the
Wanstead House, Essex (1720; destr.), and Houghton Hall, domestic market. The designs were based on Scandinavian
Norfolk (1722 -9). His smaller Palladian villas include and Italian models, reproduced in affordable versions. The
Stourhead, Wiltshire (1722), and Mereworth, Kent popularity of his designs led to the opening of about 50
(c.1725), his own version of Palladia's Villa Rotonda. Habitat shops in Britain and abroad in the next 20 years.
London's Design Museum for mass-produced objects
Chambers, Sir William (1723- 96) . English architect and was sponsored (1989) by his Conran Foundation.
designer. His work, although less fashionable than Robert
Adam's, was of equal importance in popularizing Neo- Cottingham, Lewis Nockalls (1787 -1847). English architect
classical design in the second half of the 18th century. He and designer. He acquired an early knowledge of Gothic
also played an important role in the dissemination of exotic architecture through his work restoring medieval churches.
Chinese styles. Born in Sweden of Scottish parentage, he Much of this knowledge was disseminated through his
spent ten years in the Swedish East India Company (1739- publications, including Working Drawings of Gothic Ornamellfs
49), where he was introduced to Chinese art and design. In (1824), which contains fine illustrations. He also designed
17 49 he studied architecture in Paris, becoming familiar with Gothic-style furniture (e.g. for Snelston Hall, Derbyshire,
French fashions, and in 1750-55 he undertook two extensive 1840s), classical interiors, and metalwork in both classical
trips to Rome. In 1757 he became architectural tutor to the and Gothic styles. Some of the latter was published in his
Prince of Wales (later George Ill), publishing his lessons and influential Ornamental M etai1Xforker's Director (1823; revised
his designs as A Treatise on Civil Architecture (1759), one of the 1824), later issued as The Smith 's, Founder's and Ornamental
most influential books of its day. Chambers also worked for M etal Worker's Director (1845). His collection of casts,
the Prince's mother, laying out Kew Gardens with a variety of drawings and original Gothic fragments formed the basis
exotic elements, (e.g. his famous Chinese Pagoda, 1763). His of the Architectural Museum at Westminster (now in the
Designs of Chinese Buildings, Furniture ... and Utensils (1757) was Victoria & Albert Museum).
influential for both garden design and chinoiserie. He became
Architect of the King's Works in 1761 (jointly with Adam) and Crane, Walter (1845 -1915). English painter, illustrator and
Surveyor-General in 1782. Chambers adopted various styles designer. He achieved early fame as a popular book illustrator.
BIOGRAPHIES 529
He then became a successful decorative designer, at first designer of silverware, ceramics, glass, furniture, metalwork,
producing ceramics for Wedgwood and others. After meeting wallpaper, carpets and textiles. His style was often abstract
the leaders of the Arts and Crafts Movement, he began in the and geometric, with a concern for the honest use of materials,
1870s to produce designs for wallpaper, then embroideries, and he promoted machine production. Dresser also explored
textiles, carpets, mosaics and stained glass. He was a founder- exoticforms . In 1876-7 he visited Japan, returning with art
member of the Art-Workers' Guild (1884) and led the works collected for dealers, and he published the major work
breakaway Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society (1888), which japan, Its Architecture, Art and Art Manufactures (1882). Other
became influential in spreading abroad the ideas of the Arts influential books were The Principles ofDecorative Design (1873)
and Crafts movement. Crane was also a teacher and wrote and Modern Ornamentation (1886).
several influential books, including The Claims ofDecorative Art
(1892), The Bases of Design (1898), Line and Form (1900)- the Eastlake, Charles Locke (1833/6 - 1906). English designer
latter two comprising his lectures at the Manchester School and writer. Trained as an architect, he spent much of his
of Art - and Ideals in Art (1905). Many of his books were professional career with the Institute of British Architects
translated, and Crane had an established European and the National Gallery, London. He is best known for his
reputation by the 1890s. writings on design and ornament, notably Hints on Household
Taste in Furniture, Upholstery and Other Details (1868). This
Davis, Alexander Jackson (1803 -92). American architect. featured his own designs influenced by the Arts and Crafts
As one of the most influential architects in the United States and Queen Anne styles, the honest expression of materials
in the middle of the 19th century, he helped popularize the and construction, and the use of rectilinear, geometric
Greek Revival and introduced picturesque Italianate and ornament. It was particularly influential in the United States,
Gothic Revival forms. In 1829-35 and 1842-3 he worked in where six editions were published (from 1872) and where a
New York in partnership with Ithiel Town, designer of the distinctive "Eastlake style" developed for furniture . It was
Connecticut State Capitol (1827 -31; destr.). Together they later extended to architecture, particularly in California,
built two other monumental state capitols, at Indianapolis where houses that were basically Queen Anne or Stick Style
(1831-5; destr.) and Raleigh, North Carolina (1833 -42), and had curvilinear and turned ornament borrowed from
the New York City Customs House (1833 -42). They used furniture. Eastlake dissociated himself from both styles. His
Greek temple forms but usually added a central Roman other writings included A History of the Gothic Revival (1872)
Revival dome. Davis went on to work independently in a and Lectures on Decorative Art and Art- Workmanship (1876).
variety of styles, building classical institutions, Italianate
villas and Gothic college buildings . He is perhaps best Fry, E. Maxwell (1899 -1987). English architect. He was
remembered for his picturesque country villas, some an important pioneer of the Modern Movement in England
designed as rustic cottages ornes and many as castellated in the 1930s. He turned to Modernism after meeting Wells
Gothic mansions, among the first of their type in the United Coates in 1932, and he was a founder-member of the MARS
States (e .g. Lyndhurst, Tarrytown, New York, 1838; for which Group (1933) in support of Modernism. His best-known
he also made Gothic-style furniture). Davis was a fine work of this period included private houses (e .g. Sun House,
draughtsman and introduced the use of romantic settings Hampstead, London, 1936) and several blocks of low-cost
for his rendered drawings. He published some of his early flats (e.g. Kensal House, North Kensington, London, 1936;
designs in Rural Residences, etc. (1837). Many others appeared with others), which were carefully planned and designed for
in A. J. Downing's popular books, including Cottage Residences standardized construction. In 1934 -7 he was in partnership
(1842) and The Architecture of Country Houses (1850), which with Walter Gropius. After World War II, Fry and his wife
spread Davis's influence throughout the United States. Jane Drew and their partners carried out several large-scale
educational buildings in West Africa, where they adapted
Downing, A . J. (1815 -52) . American landscape designer Modernism to local tropical conditions and produced
and rural architect. He is best known Eor his writings in the important, well-researched books on the subject (e.g.
periodical The Horticulturist (1846 -52) and in such books as Tropical Architecture in the Humid Zone, 1956). Fry and Drew
A Treatise on the Theory and Practice of Landscape Gardening were influential in the appointment (1950) of Le Corbusier
Adapted to North America (1841), Cottage Residences (1842) to design the new capital of the Punjab at Chandigarh,
and The Architecture of Country Houses (1850). These books, where they also worked.
among the first of their type in the United States, were
mostly produced in collaboration with Alexander Jackson Geddes, Norman Bel (1893 -1958). American designer. His
Davis, who prepared the illustrations, including many of his early career was as an influential stage designer, developing
own recent villas and cottages, all shown in rural settings. modern productions that integrated plays with scenery,
They also drew on English sources (e .g. John Claudius lighting and costumes. About 1927 he took up industrial
Loudon). Downing's books were immensely successful and design, establishing the first specialist firm in the United
helped popularize the ideals of the Picturesque in the United States. He went on to develop futuristic projects based on the
States. In 1850 he established a practice with the English concept of aerodynamic streamlining. These included cars,
architect Calvert Vaux, which was among the first American buses, locomotives, ocean liners and airliners (one in the
firms to specialize in landscape design. Downing promoted form of a massive aeroplane wing), as well as gas stoves,
the development of urban parks, for which Vaux, with refrigerators, radios, interiors and window displays. His
Frederick Law Olmsted, later becll.me famous . designs were popularized through his book Horizons (1932).
His model of "Metropolis", the "City of Tomorrow" (1937),
Dresser, Christopher (1834 -1904). Scottish designer and incorporated advanced ideas for traffic control, while his
writer. He was an influential theorist on functional design in General Motors "Futurama" exhibit at the New York World's
the 1860s and after. He was initially a respected lecturer and Fair (1939) was a vision of the high-rise city towers and
writer on the application of botany in the decorative arts . His freeways of the future. It inspired his Magic Motorways
first book on design was The Art ofDecorative Design (1862). (1940), which was influential in the design of post-war
During the .next 30 years he was a successful commercial American freeways
530 BIOGRAPHIES
Gibbons, Grinling (1648 -1751). English wood-carver. He Gre ene & Greene. American architectural partnership
is considered to be the most important English decorative formed in 1893 by Charles Greene (1868 -1957) and his
carver, with a great virtuosity in naturalistic Gaiving. Born brother Henry Greene (1870 - 1954). Trained in carpentry
in Rotterdam of English parents, he probably studied Dutch as well as architecture, they were influenced by the Arts and
and Flemish still-life paintings, which may have inspired the Crafts ideals of John Ruskin and William Morris and by the
richness of his la ter carvings of fruit and flowers. He moved timber architecture of Japan. They moved to California in
to England c.1667 and was apparently" discovered" and 1893 and are best known for their development in the 1900s
introduced to Charles II by the diarist John Evelyn. Much of the popular California bungalow - typically a low timber
of Gibbons's most important and sumptuous Baroque house with wide eaves, flat gables, shingle or timber cladding
carving was carried out for the King, notably in the Royal and verandahs (e.g. The Gamble House, Pasadena, 1909). The
Apartments at Windsor Castle, Berkshire, in 1677-82 . He also type was widely imitated, particularly in Australia. They later
worked at Kensington Palace, London, and at Hampton reverted to a stucco and tile Mediterranean idiom.
Court Palace. In 1693 he became Master Carver to the
Crown, working under Surveyor-General Christopher Wren. Griffin, Walter Burley (1876-1937). American architect.
At Wren's St Paul's Cathedral, London, he produced oak He worked with Frank Lloyd Wright in 1901 -5 before setting
carvings in the choir (1696 -7). Work for private clients up his own office with his wife, Marion Mahony Griffin,
included the well-known Carved Room (1692) at Petworth who produced some of the finest architectural drawings
House, West Sussex, as well as architectural decoration in of the period. Griffin became known for a series of houses
stone, marble and bronze (e.g. at Blenheim Palace, 1708 - 16). influenced by the Prairie school, with massive central
Other works produced by Gibbons or his workshop fireplaces and split-level planning. These became increasingly
included statues and funerary monuments. rugged and cubic in form (e.g. Melson House, Mason City,
Iowa, 1912), as distinct from Wright's work. Griffin is best
Gibbs, James (1682-1754). Scottish architect. He was the known for his urban plan (1912) for Canberra, the new
most important church architect in London in the early capital of Australia, which combined Beaux Arts ideas with
18th century. He studied architecture with Carlo Fontana a sensitivity to the local topography. He also designed some
in Rome, and after returning to England in 1708 he became noted buildings in Australia in crystalline, abstract forms.
an influential exponent of the Baroque style. As Surveyor
(1713 -15) to the Fifty New Churches Commission in Gropius, Walter (1883 - 1969). German architect and
London he built St Mary-le-Strand (1714 - 23), the success designer. He was one of the most influential figures in the
of which led to his commission forSt Martin-in-the -Fields, European Modern Movement, the theories of which he
Trafalgar Square (1726), his best-known work. This has a taught in the United States for 30 years . He was particularly
temple-front portico topped by a steeple, which was much interested in building for society and technology, advocating
imitated. Its side windows feature the "Gibbs Surround" mass production. His early work included the Fagus Factory,
(window surrounds heavily rusticated with large blocks of Alfeld (1913), which introduced the glass curtain wall, and
stone), which was named after him. His private the Model Factory at the Deutsche Werkbund Exhibition,
commissions included the Octagon Pavilion at Orleans Cologne (1914); both were landmarks in the development
House, Twickenham; Sudbrook Park, Petersham (both of Modernism. In 1919-28 he was director of the Bauhaus,
c.1720); and several ornamental buildings at Stowe (from which became a focus of the European artistic avant-garde .
1726). His other important public buildings include the His rectilinear steel and glass buildings for the Bauhaus at
Radcliffe Camera, Oxford (1737 -49), a domed rotunda Dessau (1926) are clear statements of the purist International
form with echoes of Italian Mannerism. Gibbs was one of Style. Gropius was also prominent in the international
the first British architects to produce sculptural monuments modern architecture forum ClAM (from 1929) and designed
(e.g. in Westminster Abbey). His Book ofArchitecture (1728), prefabricated houses and blocks of flats for public housing
the first British book devoted to the work of a single projects. In 1934 he left Germany and went first to London,
architect, included designs for interiors and decorative where he was in partnership with Maxwell Fry. He designed
elements as well as buildings . Together with his Rules for furniture for Isokon and built Impington Village College,
Drawing the Several Parts ofArchitecture (1732), it was highly Cambridgeshire (1936 -9), a modern complex in brick, which
influential, particularly in the United States, in continuing became a model for later English work. In 1937 Gropius went
the popularity of his style. to the United States and began his teaching career at Harvard,
where he was later joined by Marcel Breuer. His own house
Gill, Irving (1870 - 1936). American architect. He trained with (1938) at Lincoln, Massachusetcs, a prismatic, flat-roofed
Louis Sullivan in Chicago, then opened his own office building executed in timber, was one of the first modern
in San Diego in 1896. His early buildings were influenced houses in the state. After World War II he established TAC
by the Shingle Style, but by about 1910 he had developed (The Architects' Collaborative) with a group of young
a remarkably simple, unornamented, geometric style, with architects, where he continued to have a strong influence.
flat roofs and plain, whitewashed surfaces softened by
exterior planting. Examples include the La Jolla Women's Halfpenny, William (d 1755). English architect. He is
Club (1912-14) and the Dodge House, Los Angeles (1914-16) . best known as a prolific writer of architectural pattern books,
This radical approach was at that time echoed only in the which were enormously successful in England and North
work of Adolf Loos in Vienna, not being generally adopted America. Among them was Practical Architecture (1724), one
in Europe until the 1920s and 1930s. Gill's inspiration was of the first books concerned with the Palladian revival.
probably Spanish architecture in California. He also favoured Others reflected a variety of styles from Baroque to Rococo
the use of reinforced concrete (then a new material) and and Gothic. They included The Art of Sound Building (1725);
developed prefabricated construction methods . New Designs for Chinese Temples (1750), one of the first with
Chinese designs; Twelve Beautiful Designs for Farmhouses
(1750); and The Country Gentleman's Pocket Companion (1753),
whose landscape settings anticipated the Picturesque.
BIOGRAPHIES 531
Haviland, John (1792 -1852). English architect, active in chateau style Biltmore House, near Asheville, North Carolina
the United States. He went to Philadelphia in 1816, where he (1895), all for the Vanderbilt family. The most important of
initially taught. His Builder's Assistmv (1818-21) illustrated his commercial buildings in New York was the New York
current architectural styles in England and was the first Tribune Building (1876; destr.), with a clock-tower and spire
American book to show the Greek orders. Haviland went on that made it the tallest building in the city for some years. He
to design some fine Greek Revival buildings in Philadelphia also designed the Beaux Arts entrance wing to the
(e.g. Pennsylvania Institute, 1823, now Philadelphia College Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (1894 - 1902). Hunt
of Art; and the Franklin Institute, 1825, now Atwater Kent helped to establish professional building standards and a
Museum) . He also designed churches, as well as prisons with proper fee basis for architects; he also helped found the
radiating panopticon plans, one in the form of a castellated American Institute of Architects in 1857.
Gothic fortress (the influential Eastern State Penitentiary,
Philadelphia, 1825) and others in the form of Egyptian pylon Jefferson, Thomas (17 43- 1826). American lawyer,
buildings (e.g. Trenton, New Jersey, 1832). statesman (President 1801-9) and architect. The author of
the Declaration of Independence, he was also an influential
Hope, Thomas (1769-1831). British amateur designer and architect (self-taught), introducing to the United States a
patron. He was born in Amsterdam of a Scottish family and robust Neo-classicism based on ancient Roman architecture
went on an extended Grand Tour (1787 -95) to Europe and and contemporary French Rationalism, which contrasted
the Near East, later making further visits to Europe. In 1795 with the lighter Federal Style. For his own house, Monticello,
the family moved to England. Hope began to collect classical Virginia (from 1770), he first designed an essentially Palladian
sculpture and pottery, and about 1800-04 he remodelled building, but later additions transformed it into a largely
his mansion (destr.) in Duchess Street, London, as a house- single-storey classical villa in brick, with a pedimented garden
museum, which he opened to the public. It had a Greek portico and shallow dome . For the Virginia State Capitol,
Room, with Greek Revival details and furniture inspired Richmond (1785 - 99), his design was derived from the ancient
by designs on ancient pottery, which became influential in Roman Maison Carree in N!mes, to which he was introduced
Regency design; an Indian Room; and an Egyptian Room, while in Paris as American Ambassador (1784-9). The Capitol
with Egyptian Revival furniture. This work was recorded was the first building in the United States designed in the
in his Household Furniture and Interior Decoration Executed form of a classical temple and was an important model for
from Designs by Thomas Hope (1807). Hope wrote several American public architecture of the period. Jefferson also
other works on architecture and design. He promoted influenced the planning of Washington through his
Greek Revival for urban designs but adopted the knowledge of European cities and classical architecture .
Picturesque in remodelling (1818- 23) his 18th-century His design for the University of Virginia, Charlottesville
house Deepdene, near Dorking (destr.), which acquired (1817 -26), as a group of separate faculty pavilions around a
an eclectic mix of elements. green, linked by colonnades, was possibly based on the
Chateau of Marly, near Versailles. The Rotunda at the head
Howard, Ebenezer (1850 - 1928). English theorist and of the green was based on the Roman Pantheon, halved in
amateur planner, who developed the principles of the scale. Jefferson was an inventive designer, experimenting
influential garden city movement. His professional life with geometric room shapes and practical ideas (e.g. for
was spent as a stenographer and he became a partner in the skylights, stairs and water closets).
firm appointed by Parliament. At the same time, perhaps
influenced by utopian writers of the United States where he Johnson, Philip (b 1906). American architect. One of
lived in 1872-7, he was interested in the problems of urban the most prominent figures in 20th-century American
crowding and rural depopulation. This led to his concept of architecture, he was, with Henry-Russell Hitchcock,
the garden city, described in Tomorrow: A Peaceful Path to Real instrumental in first exhibiting in the United States (1932) the
Reform (1898; revised as Garden Cities ofTomorrow, 1902) as buildings of the Modern Movement, including six American
an independent town of limited size, built as a satellite to a examples. They also co-authored the accompanying book,
larger city but surrounded by a green belt of farmland, and The International Style: Architecture since 1922, which coined the
planned in pleasant "rural" residential areas, with shopping, term "International Style" for architecture of the early
cultural and recreation facilities. In 1899 he founded the Modern Movement. This he promoted in terms of its
Garden City Association. The most important cities aesthetics, without the social context of the European work.
developed from his ideas are Letchworth (from 1903; by He later produced an important exhibition and book (1947)
Parker & Unwin) and Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire on the work of Mies van der Rohe. The influence of Mies is
(from 1920). His book was influential on planning theory apparent in Johnson's well-known Glass House, New
elsewhere in Europe, especially in Germany, where a garden Canaan, Connecticut ~1949), and he worked with Mies
city movement was formed in 1902. Many new towns on the glass curtain-walled Seagram Building, New York
developed in England after 1945 also reflected his ideas. (1958). Thereafter his work has ranged from stripped classical
(e.g. New York State Theater, 1964) to a series of large, late
Hunt, Richard Morris (1827 -95) . American architect. An modern and Post-Modern office buildings, designed with
eminent and prolific society architect, in his youth he spent others (e .g. the geometric, glass-clad Pennzoil Place, Houston,
12 years in Europe (1843 -55) and studied at the Ecole des 1976, and the "Chippendale" pedimented AT&T Building,
Beaux Arts - the first American to do so. This gave him New York, 1983).
firsthand knowledge of the French Renaissance Revival,
which he helped popularize in the United States. He is known Jones, Inigo (1573 -1652). English architect. He was
for a series of increasingly opulent mansions for which he immensely influential in introducing to England a rigorous
adopted a variety of styles, as seen in the Stick Style Griswold interpretation of classical architecture, including the correct
House, Newport, Rhode Island (1863); the Neo-classical use of the orders. He made various journeys to Europe before
Marble House, Newport (1892); the Italian Renaissance 1606 and was initi<)lly known as a designer of court masques.
Revival The Breakers, Newport (1895); and the French In 1613/ 14 he went with Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of
532 BIOGRAPHIES
Arundel, on a Grand Tour to Italy, where he became one of Lafever, Minard (1798-1854). American architect. Trained as
the first Englishmen to study the buildings of Palladio and a carpenter, he developed a successful architectural practice in
ancient Rome . In 1615 Jones became Surveyo;.of the King's New York, working in various revival styles. He designed
Works, introducing his knowledge of classical and Renaissance several churches, including the Gothic Revival churches of the
architecture in such important and novel works as the Queen's Saviour (1844; now First Unitarian Church) and Holy Trinity
House, Greenwich (1616-18; 1629-38), in the style of an (1847), both Brooklyn, and the Egyptian Revival Whaler's
Italian villa, and the Banqueting House, Whitehall (1622), in a Church, Sag Harbor (1844). He is better known for his
Palladian style. He also introduced European urban planning builder's manuals, particularly The Modern Builder's Guide
principles at Covent Garden (1630-31), where he planned a (1833) and The Beauties ofModern Architecture (1835). Based on
piazza bounded by unified houses and arcades, with St Paul's British sources, notably The Antiquities ofAthens (1762-181 6)
Church at one end. The latter - the first wholly classical church by James Stuart and Nicholas Revett, these were highly
in England - features a Tuscan portico, an original interpreta- influential in promoting the Greek Revival style. His last
tion designed for the Protestant cause . He later remodelled book, The Architectural Instructor (1856), showed his eclectic
St Paul's Cathedral with a classical exterior derived from later work, including Gothic and Italianate villas.
Palladio and a huge Corinthian portico (1642; destr.). Jones's
buildings were models for the Palladian revival initiated by Langley, Batty (1696-1751). English architect and writer.
Lord Burlington in the 18th century and were reproduced in He was a prolific and influential writer of architectural pattern
several books (e.g. William Kent's Designs oflnigo}ones, 1727, books. He first worked as a gardener, becoming an early
and Isaac Ware's Designs ofInigo jones and Others, 1731). advocate of natural garden design, which he espoused in such
books as New Principles of Gardening (1728). In this, as in most
Kent, William (1685 -17 48). English painter, architect and of his other publications, he drew heavily on the work of
designer. A noted and original figure in the early 18th century, others. Langley was unsuccessful as an architect, but his
he produced Italian Mannerist and Baroque decorative books on classical architecture, with clear plates and
schemes and furniture, Palladian architecture, and early construction details aimed largely at builders and craftsmen,
Go thick designs. He was also important in the development helped instigate a reaction to the prevailing Palladianism of
of the English landscape garden. Trained as a painter, he spent Lord Burlington. He is best known for his Gothic designs
10 years in Italy (1709-19). In 1719 he returned to England in Ancient Architecture Restored (17 41-2; revised as Gothic
with Lord Burlington, with whom he produced the influential Architecture, Improved by Rules and Proportions, 17 47), which
Designs ofin(go}ones (1727). He worked for Burlington as an shows designs for both buildings and individual elements,
interior decorator and won many prestigious positions such as chimney-pieces, doors and windows. He also
through his influence, notably at Kensington Palace (1721-7), included five "Gothick Orders", an attempt to establish
where he produced a unified decorative scheme in the Italian proportional rules for Gothic that was ridiculed by scholarly
Mannerist style, with antique elements. He also worked at authors. Langley's Gothic designs were among the first to be
many large country houses in England, first on interior published and made available to a wider audience, and they
decoration, then architecture and garden design. Among them were instrumental in popularizing the Gothic Revival in
were Holkham Hall, Chiswick House, Esher Place, Houghton England and the United States.
Hall, Rousham, Stowe and Claremont. The marble apsidal
entrance hall at Holkham (1735), perhaps designed with Latrobe, Benjamin Henry (1764-1820). English architect,
Burlington and Thomas Coke, is one of the grandest classical active in the United States. He was one of the best-known
interiors in England, with Ionic columns, a coffered ceiling exponents of Neo-classicism in the United States. He studied
and great staircase. In 1735 Kent became Master Mason and in Germany and worked in England, coming into contact with
Deputy Surveyor in the Royal Office of Works, where he the latest European Neo-classical fashions (especially the
designed his most important buildings: the Treasury (1737) ideas of the French Rationalists and John Soane) before
and Horse Guards (1748-59), Whitehall, London. These moving to the United States in 1795. The first fully trained
were influenced by the work of Inigo Jones as well as by architect to work in the United States, he established his
Italian Renaissance and Baroque architecture. His work was reputation with the Bank of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (1798;
popularized through John Vardy's Some Designs ofMr Inigo destr.), which featured a central domed cubic hall with Ionic
jones and Mr William Kent (17 44). porticoes. He also designed waterworks (in Philadelphia and,
later, New Orleans) and the first Gothick house in the United
La Farge, John (1835-1910) . American painter and designer. States (Sedgeley, Philadelphia, 1799; destr.), with rather
He became a respected painter of landscapes and stilllifes, superficial details. His most famous surviving projects are the
and he was an early collector of Japanese prints. In the 1870s US Capitol, Washington (1803 -17), where he altered William
he turned to the decorative arts. His interior decoration of Thornton's design and invented a "corn cob capital"; and his
H. H. Richardson's Trinity Church, Boston (1877), drew on Roman Catholic Cathedral, Baltimore (1804-18), with a
both Renaissance and medieval sources, and integrated other temple front, shallow dome and heavy Roman classical
arts, notably sculpture . It was the first such scheme by an details. He was close to Thomas Jefferson and advised on the
established painter and helped to initiate the American latter's University of Virginia. Many of Latrobe's other works
Renaissance. Other commissions included murals in public were demolished, but his influence continued through his
buildings (e.g. StThomas's Church, New York, 1878; pupils Robert Mills and William Strickland.
Minnesota State Capitol, 1905; Baltimore Courthouse, 1907).
La Farge also produced stained glass, sculpture and mosaic for Le Corbusier (1887 -1965) (Charles-Edouard Jeanneret].
private clients, mostly in New York and Newport, Rhode French architect, painter and designer, of Swiss birth. He was
Island (e .g. the Vanderbilt family). He is known for inventing the dominant figure in the Modern Movement from 1920
opalescent stained glass (1879), which was widely adopted, until his death. After training as a metal engraver, he worked
notably by Louis Comfort Tiffany, and was the United States' with Auguste Perret in Paris (1908- 9) and Peter Behrens in
principal contribution to Art Nouveau . He also introduced Berlin (191 0), then travelled widely in Europe. In 1917 he
Japanese motifs and floral designs for stained glass. moved to Paris, joined the artistic avant-garde and took up
BIOGRAPHIES 533
painting. He also began to edit the radical art journal L'Esprit Lubetkin, Berthold (1901 -90). British architect, of Russian
Nouveau. In several essays (some later published as Vers une birth. He designed some of the best-known early Modern
architecture, 1923), he elaborated the "Theory behind his buildings in Britain. He studied and worked in Moscow,
architecture of this period: omission of all historical Berlin and Paris, coming into contact with the European
precedent; adherence to rational design(" a house is a machine avant-garde and the social ideals of the Modern Movement.
for living in"); industrialization; and the "five points of a new In 1931 he moved to London and formed a cooperative
architecture": piloti to raise the building off the ground, roof practice, Tecton (1932-8), which built the influential
terraces, a free plan, free facade composition, and continuous Highpoint blocks of flats at Highgate (1936, 1938), Fins bury
ribbon windows. This was expressed in a series of crisp, Health Centre (1938), and structures at London Zoo,
white villas that became icons of the Modern Movement including the sculptural Penguin Pool (1934). The
(e.g. Villa Stein, Garches, 1928; Villa Savoye, Poissy, 1930). sophisticated concrete structures of these buildings gave
By the late 1920s Le Corbusier was in the forefront of him an international reputation.
international Modernist developments, involved with the
Weissenhofsiedlung, Stuttgart (1927) and mass-produced Lutyens, Sir Edwin (1869 -1944). English architect. He
housing, entering the major international competitions and is best known for his many fine, traditional-style houses.
promoting highly mechanized urban planning schemes that The early ones, influenced by the Arts and Crafts vernacular,
dominated the international modern architecture forum were among the best (e.g. Deanery Garden, Sonning, 1899 -
ClAM in 1933 and after. In 1945 Le Corbusier began to 1902). They were romantic compositions of gables
develop a new aesthetic based on the bold expression of and chimneys, and many had gardens designed by Gertrude
raw, board-marked concrete (biton brut), which later inspired Jekyll, for whom Lutyens had built Munstead Wood,
the Brutalist school in Britain. It was used in the Unite Godalming (1896). Later houses featured more eclectic
d'Habitation, Marseilles (1945 -52), which has two-storey styles (e.g. the classicizing Heathcote, Ilkley, 1906; and
apartments with shopping streets, communal services and the castellated Castle Drago, Devon, 1910- 30). His most
a roof garden, the proportions of which were designed important public work was his monumental Beaux Arts plan
according to his Modular system (1950). He also began to for New Delhi (1912), the new capital of India, where he built
employ an individual approach to design in contrast to his the Viceroy's House (1912-30). He is also known for some
earlier search for utopian, universal prototypes. He produced impressive war memorials, notably in Whitehall (1920), and
some poetic buildings, notably the sculptural Notre-Dame- at Thiepval (1927 -32); and for the neo-Georgian British
du-Haut, Ronchamp (1950 -55); the brick and concrete- Embassy, Washington (1928).
vaulted Maisons Jaoul, Neuilly-sur-Seine (1951-5); the .
cellular, cloistered monastery of Ste Marie-de-la-Tourette, McKim, Mead & White. American architectural partnership
Eveux-sur-1' Arbresle (1955- 9); and the Carpenter Center for formed in 1879 by Charles F. McKim (1847 -1909), William
the Visual Arts, Cambridge, Massachusetts (1963), which Mead (1846-1928) and Stanford White (1853 -1906). The
brought together many of his lifelong concerns. At most prolific and influential firm of its time, it produced grand
Chandigarh, the new capital of the Punjab, he produced classical buildings that established the idea of the "American
dramatic sculptural forms , mostly in reinforced concrete, for Renaissance " in the United States at a time when the nation
the principal government buildings (1951 -62) and houses at was becoming a world power. The firm made its reputation
Ahmedabad (1954- 6) featuring his characteristic brises-soleil. with several houses in Newport, Rhode Island, mostly in a
Le Corbusier was a tireless promoter of his ideas, exhibiting Queen Anne or Shingle style (e.g. Isaac Bell Jr House, 1881-2),
and publishing his work from 1930. He lectured widely and with isolated Colonial Georgian details. In the mid-1880s its
employed many students in his office, who later helped work became more overtly historicist, adopting French and
spread his influence around the world. Italian Renaissance styles (e.g. the Italian Renaissance Villard
Houses, New York, 1886), as well as Gothic Revival. The
Loos, Adolf (1870 -1933). Austrian architect. Regarded as firm's mature style (from the late 1880s) featured a
one of the most important early pioneers of the European monumental classicism, promoted as the most appropriate
Modern Movement, he developed a rational, unornamented style for the United States, which they saw as a product of the
architecture a decade before it was widely adopted in Europe. 16th-century Renaissance world . They drew on a variety of
After a three-year visit to the United States (1893- 6), he classical and Renaissance sources, as in the palazzo-style
became a strident critic of the luxuriant styles of turn-of-the- Boston Public Library (1887-95) and the Neo-classical Rhode
century Vienna, advocating a simple, functional approach that Island State Capitol, Providence (1891-1903). Their Columbia
re jected superfluous ornament. His early work in Vienna University, New York (1893-4), was influenced by Thomas
included some elegant interiors (e.g. the Cafe Museum, 1899; Jefferson's University of Virginia. Many artists were
and the American Bar, 1908), in which rich materials such as employed in the interior decoration of these buildings.
marble and wood veneers were used in place of ornament. McKim, Mead & White's classicism, opposed by the
He is best known for the plain Goldman & Salatsch Building rationalist Chicago school, triumphed at the 1893 World's
(191 0; "Looshaus") and some private houses in Vienna: the Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The office was an
Steiner House (1910), Horner House (1912) and Scheu House important training ground for architects, while A Monograph
(1913). In these he introduced reinforced concrete, flat roofs, of the Work ofMcKim, M ead and White (1915) was influential
cubic, white forms and free, open plans . Laos's influence was in architectural schools for another 25 years.
most strongly felt through his writings, notably his famous
essay "Ornament and Crime", which was widely circulated. Mackintosh, Charles Rennie (1868-1928). Scottish
He was also known for his entry to the Chicago Tribune tower architect and designer. The most important figure in the
competition (1922), showing a skyscraper in the form of a British Art Nouveau movement, he developed a geometric,
giant Doric column. In the early 1920s Laos became Chief stylized approach that was influential among Secession artists
Architect to the housing department of Vienna. He also built in Europe. His best-known projects include the Glasgow
other influential houses: the Muller House, Prague (1930), School of Art (1896 -1909), where he introduced continuous
was one of the first with a split-level design. glazing on one facade and a remarkable structural interior for
1
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534 BIOGRAPHIES
the library; fine interiors for four tea-rooms in Glasgow (e.g. Style. There Mies also showed his cantilevered steel chairs.
Willow Tea-Rooms, 1903); and Hill House, Helens burgh His German Pavilion at Barcelona (1929), one of the most
(1904) . In the interiors at Hill House the stylized Art Nouveau influential buildings of the 20th century, was a pure statement
decoration is reflected in stencilled wall friezes, carpets, of his approach, with an open plan, glass and marble-clad
stained glass, metalwork and furniture in a fully unified walls suspended between floor and roof planes, and finely
scheme. His designs feature attenuated rectilinear forms detailed steel columns. He continued to design furniture
contrasted with squares and delicately coloured flora l motifs, (e.g. an S-shaped cantilever chair and his celebrated X-frame
and white-painted walls contrasted with wood panelling. Barcelona chair) and was briefly director of the Bauhaus
The plain, rugged exterior of the house reveals influences (1930-32). In 1938 he moved to Chicago and began to teach
from Scottish architecture and the work of C. F. A. Voysey. at the Illinois Institute of Technology, where he had an
Together with Margaret Macdonald (whom he married in enormous influence on generations of students; he also
1900), and her sister and future husband, Mackintosh designed a new campus and buildings. Here and in his
exhibited graphic designs and paintings in London at the Arts famous steel and glass pavilion, the Farnsworth House, Plano,
and Crafts Society (1896). This led to an article in The Studio, Illinois, (1945 -50), he continued to evolve his minimalist
an invitation to design exhibits at the Vienna Secession (1900) style, later refined in some high-rise buildings that epitomized
and Turin (1902), and a European reputation. In London after the International Style after 1950 (e.g. Lake Shore Drive
1916 he produced some fine textile designs. Apartments, Chicago, 1951; Seagram Building, New York,
1958, both produced with others). His approach, adopting
Marot, Daniel (1661-1752) . French architect and designer, deliberately flexible open planning and universal construction
active in the Netherlands. He was immensely influential in methods, was adopted by innumerable architects but perhaps
spreading the Baroque style of Louis XN to the Netherlands most notably by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. In less skilled
and to England . He initially worked in Paris as an engraver. hands it was often debased and inappropriately used, and it
After the revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, he fled was heavily criticized by Post-Modernists.
to the Netherlands, where his knowledge of contemporary
French fashions led to a successful career as a court designer, Mills, Robert (1781-1855). American architect. An important
unifying interiors and architecture in a manner hitherto exponent of Neo-classicism, he considered himself to be the
unseen. His most important designs were produced for the first native-born and native-trained architect in the United
royal summer residence Het Loo (from 1690) and the States. Influenced by Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Henry
Binnenhof, The Hague (1698). He also worked at Hampton Latrobe, with whom he worked in 1803-8, he designed some
Court (1694 -7) following the accession of William and Mary, robust circular or octagonal Neo-classical churches based on
introducing his ideas to England. Around 1703 he began to the Roman Pantheon, with shallow domes and pedimented
publish new engravings of his designs for buildings, interiors, porticoes (e.g. Monumental Church, Richmond, Virginia,
furniture, metalwork, sculpture and gardens, which form an 1817). His reputation was made with the Washington
important record of the Louis XN style. This led to several Monument, Baltimore (1813 -42), the first monumental
architectural works in The Hague, where he built impressive column erected in the United States. In South Carolina in
town houses as well as extensions to the Huis ten Bosch. 1820- 29 he developed fireproof construction using masonry
vaulting, as seen in the Palladian-inspired Insane Asylum,
May, Hugh (1621-84). English architect. Following exile Columbia (1827), and County Record Building, Charleston
in the Netherlands and France, he returned to England upon (1827; now South Carolina Historical Society). In 1830 Mills
the Restoration and received various official appointments. moved to Washington, where his most significant work was
He is known for the introduction of a simple classicism the fireproof Federal Treasury, Washington (1836- 42), one of
influenced by contemporary Dutch work, often in brick the United States' finest Greek Revival office buildings, with a
with stone details and Palladian motifs, such as a central long Ionic colonnade and a modular, vaulted plan reflecting
pedimented frontispiece with pilasters. His most important French Rationalism. Mills also designed the Washington
surviving work in this style is Eltham Lodge , Kent (1664). Monument in Washington (1833 -84); although his scheme
His Baroque state rooms at Windsor Castle (1675- 84, with was not fully realized, this obelisk remains one of the world 's
Grinling Gibbons and the painter Antonio Verrio; most tallest masonry structures and the United States ' most famous
destr.) were highly influential, as were May's medieval-style monument.
exteriors at Windsor, designed to harmonize with the
original work. They inspired the castellated style adopted Morris, William (1834- 96). English designer and writer.
by John Vanbrugh in the 1720s and by later architects of He was instrumental in developing the philosophies of the
the Picturesque movement. Arts and Crafts Movement. Influenced by the ideas ofJohn
Ruskin, he believed that the arts could be used to create a
Mies van der Rohe , Ludwig (1886-1969). American better world for all. He spent a short time training as an
architect and designer, of German birth. One of the three architect with the Gothic Revivalist G. E. Street, where he
masters of the European Modern Movement (with Le met Philip Webb. He then turned to painting and design.
Corbusier and Walter Gropius), his sophisticated glass In 1859 he commissioned Webb to build The Red House,
curtain-wall structures had enormous impact on 20th- Bexleyheath, Kent, a simple, picturesque, vernacular brick
century architecture around the world. He was trained in building regarded as the first house of the Arts and Crafts
the building crafts and gained an appreciation for classicism Movement. Morris decorated the house with his friends, and
through work in Peter Behrens's office. In the 1920s he in 1861 he established a cooperative design firm, producing
began to explore the potential of new building materials in stained glass, furni ture, tiles and wallpaper. Morris was most
his famous visionary drawings fo r glass skyscrapers and skilled as a designer of wallpape r, textiles and, later, carpets,
concrete office buildings (192 1-3). He directed the creating marvellous patterns based on na tural forms. The
Weissenhofsiedlung at Stuttgart (1927), an exhibition of firm's products were influential in reviving interest in the
houses and flats by radical modernists that came to be seen decorative arts and interior design among artists and
as the defining moment in the creation of the International architects . In 1877, in opposition to contemporary res toration
BIOGRAPHIES 535
techniques, Morris founded the Society for the Protection of of Ardrossan. In 1810 he set up practice in London. He is
Ancient Buildings, which marked the start of the British best known for his many publications, on mathematics
environmental movement. In the i1rBOs he began to publish and perspective as well as architecture . First published
his lectures and essays (e.g. Hopes and Fears for Art, 1882). His were The N ew Carpenter's Guide (1792) and Principles of
influence was enormous, as seen in organizations formed in Architecture (1795- 8). These and later books were very
the 1880s (e.g. by C. R. Ashbee). His last endeavour was the influential, providing construction details for buildings
foundation of the Kelmscott Press (1891), for which he (e.g. Ne w Practical Builder and Workman 's Companion, 1823;
designed typefaces and book decorations. Carpenter, joiner& Builder's Companion, 1846) and for
furniture (Practical Cabinet-Maker, Upholsterer and Complete
Nash, John (1752 -1835). English architect. He was the Decorator, 1826 -7).
most important architect of the English Picturesque and
Regency, influencing English domestic design and helping Palladio, Andrea (1508- 80). Italian architect. He is
to change the face of London. His early work included some renowned as one of the great architects of the High
speculative London houses (1777 -82) in stucco, a material Renaissance, whose buildings achieved an enduring and
that later became widespread in London. In the 1790s and widespread influence . He trained as a mason in Vicenza,
1800s he was a successful country-house architect, initially where he came into contact with influential patrons with
(1796 - 1800) with Humphry Repton, and he developed classical learning who encouraged his study of antiquity.
asymmetrically planned houses to complement the From this he first attempted to derive a contemporary form
Picturesque landscapes in which they were set. He built both of villa architecture, combining elements from ancient
Italianate villas (e.g. Cronkhill, Shropshire, 1802) and Roman buildings with influences from the local vernacular.
castellated mansions (e.g. Luscombe, Devon, 1800). In smaller Palladia gradually perfected this ideal in a series of
houses he used rustic cottage-orne and thatched forms, as at celebrated rural villas, in which a prestigious formal
Blaise Hamlet, Henbury (1811), a model for future housing appearance was united with their functional role at the
estates . In 1806 Nash obtained a minor official post that led to centre of agricultural estates. Most of his mature villas have
his great works in London. He developed Regent's Park with pedimented temple fronts (some attached, some projecting,
a series of Neo-classical crescents and terraces with palatial some recessed, some in two storeys and some with a giant
stuccoed facades (1811-28) as well as some villas and cottages order) and tripartite elevations. Most are also Jinxed with
in Park Village (begun 1825), the whole forming a prototype their surroundings by embracing wings, open arcades and
of the garden suburb. He also planned Regent Street (from porticoes, or great fl ights of steps. Famous examples include
1812) as a grand, processional route from Regent's Park to Villa Barbaro, Maser (1558); Villa Emo, near Treviso (begun .
the residence of the Prince Regent (later George IV), c.1559); and the eno rmously influential Villa Rotonda, near
transforming the West End of London. He built Ail Souls, Vicenza (begun 1565/ 6), with four great porticoes linking it
Langham Place (1825), as a focal point in the plan; and he to the landscape . For his urban palazzi in Vicenza, Palladia
designed Carlton House Terraces (1826), StJames's Park and adopted more formal Renaissance solutions to facade
Trafalgar Square. For the Prince Regent, Nash designed the design, often adopting a giant order (e.g. Palazzo Valmarana,
onion-domed Royal Pavilion, Brighton (1815-22), with 1565 -71 ), but he also experimented with open loggias
Chinese ornament. Less successful was his conversion of (Palazzo Chiericati, c.1580). Meanwhile his public
Buckingham House (1825-30) into a royal palace, w ith a reputation was established with his brilliant reconstruction
triumphal arch at its gate (Marble Arch, moved to Hyde Park of the loggia surrounding the medieval town hall of Vicenza
in 1851). On the death of George IV (1830), Nash was (Basilica, begun 1548). He also designed important churches
dismissed and Buckingham Palace completed by others. in Venice, refining a vocabulary of interlocking pediments
(e.g. S Giorgio Maggiore, begun 1566; II Redentore, begun
Neutra, Richard (1892 -1970). American architect, of 1576). The elegance and the clear spatial composition of
Austrian birth. An influential exponent of the European Palladia's domestic work were considered ideal for
Modern Movement in the United States, he was known for aristocratic house and villa design, mediating between the
his ability to link its machine aesthetic to the California bourgeois and the princely. This was the stimulus for the
landscape. Like his compatriot Rudolph Schindler, he was success of the 18th-century Palladian revival, particularly
influenced by the work of Frank Lloyd Wright as well as by in England, Ireland and the United States. His theories and
AdolfLoos. He moved to the United States in 1923, worked work achieved widespread influence through his own Quattro
in Chicago and then in 1924 spent some months with Wright libri dell'architettura (1570), first translated into English by
before joining Schindler in Los Angeles. He achieved renown James Leoni in 1715, as well as through Idea de //'architettura
for his Lovell House (Health House) in the Los Angeles hills universale (1615) by his follower Vincenzo Scamozzi.
(1929), a setting that dramatized the rectilinear steel, glass and
concrete structure, with terraces overlooking the views. Papworth, J. B. (1775 -1847). English architect and
Neutra went on to design schools, apartments and houses, designer. A prolific and successful practitioner, he was
among the finest being his own multiple-level house at Silver influential in disseminating the ideas of the Picturesque
Lake (1933; 1964), the Josef von Sternberg House, Los Angeles through his publications. As an architect he designed in a
(1936), and the Kauffman House, Palm Springs (1946), an variety of styles and worked on country houses, suburban
elegant composition of window, wall and roof planes villas and garden buildings (e .g. at Claremont, 1817). He was
recalling the work of Mies van der Rohe but brilliantly sited also involved in planning suburban estates (e.g. Lansdowne
against a mountain backdrop . In his later houses he began to Place, Cheltenham, 1829), and he was known as a pioneer
use pitched roofs, timber, brick and rubble stone. In the 1950s of cast-iron. He contributed designs for cottages and
Neutra worked on several large commissions with others. ornamental buildings to Rudolf Ackermann's Repository of
Arts, which were reprinted as the immensely popular Rural
Nicholson, Peter (1765 -1844). Scottish architect. Initially Residences (1818) and Hints on Ornamental Gardening (1832).
trained as a cabinetmaker, he became a successful architect He also designed furniture, silver and stained glass .
in Glasgow, building several houses and planning the town
536 BIOGRAPHIES
Parker & Unwin. English architectural partnership Brown a generation before by adding gardens (increasingly
formed by Barry Parker (1867-1947) and Raymond Unwin formal) closer to the house and uniting Picturesque landscape
(1863 -1940) and activefrom 1896 to 1914. TMy were effects to "utility and convenience" . In 1796-1800 he was in
pioneers of modern town planning principles, best known for partnership with John Nash, and they produced some of the
their influential designs for Letchworth Garden City (from first schemes for asymmetrically designed houses
1904) and Hampstead Garden Suburb, London (from 1905). complemented by Picturesque siting and landscaping (e.g.
Their early work was influenced by the Arts and Crafts Luscombe Castle, Devon, 1800). Repton subsequently
Movement. In 1901 Unwin became involved with the Garden worked with his architect-son John Adey Repton, producing
City Association and was commissioned to build a model a number of important designs in an early Gothic Revival
housing estate for the Rowntree Company at New Earswick, style ("Queen Elizabeth's Gothic"). He also designed
near York (from 1902). His theories on housing design were suburban villas himself. His most important later schemes
published in Cottage Plans and Common Sense (1902) . In 1903 were executed at Woburn (1804), Uppark (1810), Sheringham
he was invited by Ebenezer Howard, founder of the garden (1812) and Endsleigh (1814). Repton was known for his "Red
city movement, to help find a site for the first garden city, Books" in which he reported on a site and illustrated his
which Unwin was subsequently commissioned to plan at proposals, using overlays to show the site before and after its
Letchworth. Surrounded by farmland, it was designed with improvement. His influential ideas and designs were
tree-lined roads and cottage houses grouped around greens published in such books as Sketches and Hints on Landscape
or cui-de-sacs. It was zoned for different uses, including an Gardening (1795), Observations on the Theory and Practice of
industrial estate, and was influential on the formulation of the Landscape Gardening (1803) and An Enquiry into the Changes
Town Planning Act of 1909. Hampstead Garden Suburb had of Taste in Landscape Gardening (1806).
a wider range of housing types, many designed by Parker &
Unwin (e.g. Reynolds Close, 1910 - 11). Unwin's book Town Richardson, Henry Hobson (1838 - 86). American architect.
Planning in Practice (1909) became a standard work, and his One of the most original architects of his day, he is known for
ideas were highly influential, particularly in Germany. He his creation of the influential "Richardsonian Romanesque"
went on to work for the government in housing and planning. style, which was distinctively American and marked a move
Parker continued to practise, developing Wythenshawe, away from historicist European styles . This approach first ap-
Manchester, with landscaped roads suitable for cars. peared in his Brattle Square Church, Boston (1873), and was
perfected in Trinity Church, Boston (1873 -7), built in mas-
Pugin, A. W. N. (1812 -52). English architect and designer. sive, rock-faced stone, with squat, pyramidal proportions and
The most influential proponent of the Gothic Revival in round arches. The building made Richardson's reputation and
England, he was instrumental in its adoption almost was widely copied. He went on to adapt the style to a variety
universally for Christian church building in the 19th century. of building types, progressively removing historicist detail
His father, the architect A. C. Pugin, was noted for his books except for typical deep Syrian arches at the entrances.
devoted to Gothic (e.g. Specimens of Gothic Architecture, 1821-3; Notable examples include libraries (e.g. Crane Library,
Pugin 's Gothic Furniture, 1827). The young Pugin worked on Quincy, 1883), railway stations and the Allegheny County
these books and in 1827 was given a commission to design Courthouse and Jail, Pittsburgh, 1888). Most famously, it was
Gothic furniture for Windsor Castle. In 1832 he began to also adapted to commercial architecture in the monumental
study medieval architecture in Britain and Europe. His Marshall Field Store, Chicago (1887; destr.), with an internal
dedication to Gothic as the only true and beautiful iron frame and plain, rock-faced masonry facades with huge
architecture was confirmed by his conversion to Catholicism arches. This building had a particular influence on the
(1835), and he gained an early reputation for polemic in Chicago school and is considered an important step in the
Contrasts (1836), a comparison of fine medieval buildings development of rational modernism. Richardson was also
with poor 19th-century counterparts. In 1837 he began an known for his Shingle Style houses, where he used shingles to
independent practice, building several Catholic churches clad the entire exterior and centred plans around large living
in Early English, Decorated and Perpendicular styles halls (e.g. Stoughton House, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
(e.g. StGeorge's Cathedral, Southwark, London, 1848; 1883).
St Augustine, Rams gate, 1845 -51; and St Giles, Cheadle,
1846). His churches often suffered from funding shortages Ruskin John (1819 - 1900). English painter and writer.
but were more archaeologically correct than earlier Gothic He was one of the most important art critics of the 19th
designs, and he made a point of reintroducing rood screens. century, influencing both the Gothic Revival and the later
He continued to design Gothic furniture and decorative arts, Arts and Crafts Movement. A prolific writer on many
including metalwork, stained glass, wallpaper, carpets and subjects, particularly painting, he attempted in his
tiles. He is best known for his rich Gothic-inspired interiors architectural writings to derive principles for design and to
and fittings (1844-51) for the new Gothic Revival Houses establish the pre-eminence of Gothic. An important early
of Parliament by Charles Barry. Pugin's influence was widely work, The Seven Lamps ofArchitecture (1849), established the
disseminated through his writings, such as Gothic Furniture in principles of Sacrifice (to the finest and most beautiful
the Style of the 15th Century (1835); The Glossary ofEcclesiastical works), Truth (to materials and construction), Power (of
Ornament and Costume (1844), which was instrumental in composition), Beauty (inspired by Nature), Life (inspired by
reintroducing many objects in church ritual; and True Principles hand manufacture), Memory (built for longevity) and
ofPointed or Christian Architecture (1841), which showed an Obedience (to a list of approved Romanesque or Gothic
understanding of Gothic structure and adopted a styles). The Stones ofVenice (1851-3), a detailed study of the
protofunctionalist approach to design. architecture of Venice, was influential in popularizing
Venetian Gothic details and polychrome brickwork. It also
Repton, Humphry (1752-1818) . English landscape contained a widely read chapter on the value of hand
designer. He was an important exponent of "natural" craftsmanship, which helped establish much of the theory
landscape design, which sought to enhance the character later espoused by William Morris and the Arts and Crafts
of an existing site . He developed the approach of Capability Movement.
BIOGRAPHIES 537
Schindler, Rudolph (1887 -1953). American architect, of arches and minimal, abstract ornament. His style was
Austrian birth. One of the pioneers of Modernism in the criticized by academic architects of the later 19th century but
United States, he was influenced byfl.dolfloos. In 1914 he received renewed recognition in the 20th.
moved to Chicago, joining Frank Lloyd Wright's office in
1916. He opened his own office in los Angeles in 1921 and Street, G. E. (1824-81). English architect. He was a
began to design revolutionary houses that were among the prominent Gothic Revivalist in the more eclectic period
earliest American buildings in the International Style . Among following A. W. N. Pugin. In 1844 -9 he worked for George
the best known are the Schindler House, Hollywood (1922), Gilbert Scott I, then set up his own office and began a largely
with an innovative concrete tilt-up slab construction and a ecclesiastical practice . In 1850 he became Diocesan Architect
series of terraces extending the living areas of the house; and in Oxford (later also in York, Winchester and Ripon) and
the lovell Beach House, Newport Beach (1925 -6), a dramatic elaborated his theories on the development of church design
structural composition of concrete frames and wall planes, in Th e Ecclesiologist (1850-53). At the same time he began to
with complex interior spaces. He worked for a short time travel regularly on the Continent, publishing Brick and Marble
with Richard Neutra, a fellow expatriate, then went on to in the Middle Ages (1855) on North Italian architecture and
develop his style in a series of houses, many designed for Some Account of Gothic Architecture in Spain (1865) . The former
splendid hilltop sites (e.g. Fitzpatrick House, Hollywood, helped popularize polychromatic brickwork, which Street
1936). His work was usually distinguished by complex used in his first important work in london, StJames the less,
structural expression, often using timber cladding. Westminster (1859-61). He also designed church furnishings,
stained glass, metalwork, woodwork and tile pavements. His
Shaw , R. Norman (1831-1912). British architect. One of secular work included some houses in a variety of styles (e.g.
the most prolific and successful architects of the later 19th the Old English Holmdale, Holmbury StMary, 1876). He
century, he produced influential buildings in a variety of remains best known for his Royal Courts of Justice, london
styles, notably Queen Anne Revival, that helped to break (1868- 82), where he used 13th-century Gothic forms for an
the dominance of High Victorian historicism. He worked for important secular building, combined in a newly picturesque
G. E. Street (1859- 62) and began as a committed medievalist, composition. He had a considerable influence on younger
designing strict Gothic Revival churches. For domestic work architects, many of whom worked in his office (e.g. Philip
he and his close friend W. E. Nesfield developed the Webb, R. Norman Shaw and William Morris) .
picturesque Old English style (e.g. Cragside,
Northumberland, 1869-85, where he designed furniture and Strickland, William (1788 -1854). American architect.
interiors). For london buildings he adopted the Queen Anne A pupil of Benjamin Henry latrobe, he became an influential .
Revival, using red brick, white stone details and Dutch gables proponent of the Greek Revival in American public
(e.g.lowther lodge, Kensington, 1875; now Royal architecture. He first achieved renown with his Second Bank
Geographical Society). Both Queen Anne and Old English of the United States, Philadelphia (1818- 24), which has two
houses were built at Bedford Park, london's first garden Greek Doric porticoes modelled on the Parthenon. The purest
suburb (1877 -80), while New Scotland Yard, london (1890), Greek Revival building in the United States at the time, it was
and the White Star line Offices, liverpool (1898), reflect highly influential. In 1825 Strickland visited Britain to study
Scottish castles. later work was more classicizing (e.g. the British transport systems (published as Reports on Canals,
Baroque Revival Piccadilly Hotel, 1905 -8) . Shaw used iron Railways, Roads, and Other Subjects, 1826); this helped
frames to achieve independent planning or cantilevered introduce the latest British technology to the United States.
facades, and Portland House, london (1908), his last building, British Neo-classical influences can be seen in buildings he
introduced reinforced-concrete. Each of his different styles designed in Philadelphia in the next few years, including the
found a multitude of followers and strongly influenced the Naval Asylum (1826 -33), with cast-iron balcony columns;
Arts and Crafts Movement. and the Philadelphia Merchants' Exchange (1832-4), w ith a
semicircular colonnaded portico topped by a tall lantern.
Soane, Sir John (1753 -1837). English architect. Regarded The Tennessee State Capitol, Nashville (1844-59), built
as Britain's most original architect, he evolved an individual, on an elevated site, has Ionic porches on all sides and a tall
abstract form of Neo-classicism that was reduced to lantern on the roof. He also designed the Egyptian Revival
geometric forms and attentuated details . The son of a First Presbyterian Church, Nashville (1851 ).
bricklayer, he trained with George Dance and worked for
Henry Holland in 1772-7 before travelling to Italy on the Sullivan, Louis H. (1856 -1924). American architect and
Royal Academy scholarship. In his early career he built some designer. A leading influence in the Chicago school in the
small classical houses but soon began to introduce innovative 1890s, he was at the forefront of the search for a new rational
interiors with top-lit umbrella domes (e.g. at Wimpole Hall, architecture, which he articulated w ith delicate, organic
Cambridgeshire, 1791). His best-known works included the ornament. He worked with the engineer Dankmar Adler in
Bank ofEngland (1788 -1823; destr.), which included the Chicago from 1879 to 1895. Their first important work, the
massive, cruciform Stock Office, with plain barrel vaults and Auditorium Building (1889), Chicago, was strongly influenced
groin vaults, top-lit through a shallow central dome and by Richardsonian Romanesque. In their first steel-framed
lunettes. Similar ideas were also explored at Soane's finest structure, the Wainwright Building, Stlouis (1890-91),
country houses, Tyringham, Buckinghamshire (1793 -7; Sullivan introduced his well-known theory of facade design
altered), and his own house, Pitzhanger, Ealing (1800- 04). His based on a classical order: a vertical "shaft" of identical office
london house at 13lincoln's Inn Fields (181 2 -24) was, like floors between a "base" for public areas and an "entablature"
Thomas Hope's, designed as a house-museum to contain his for plant rooms, with ornament on spandrels, friezes and
collection of casts, fragments, urns, sculpture, paintings and cornices . This approach was refined in the Guaranty Building,
books. It has an interlocking plan of rooms with contrasting Buffalo (1894-5) . In Sullivan's last commercial structure, the
lighting effects . For his famous Dulwich College Picture lower-rise Carson, Pirie & Scott Store, Chicago (1899-1901),
Gallery, london (1811-14), Soane designed a orimitivist the facade was determined by the structural grid w hile the
composition in plain brick, with receding planes, simple decoration was reduced to a minimum. Sullivan published
..._~ ,.
I
538 BIOGRAPHIES
several expressive writings on his architectural theories Pennsylvania (1962; with John Rauch), which incorporates an
(e .g. Kindergarten Chats, 1902 -3) and, later, his System of eclectic mix of elements, including a split-pediment gable
Architectural Ornament (1924). He was highly in.lli!ential among inspired by the Italian Baroque, and ribbon windows and a
the younger architects (including Frank Lloyd Wright) who spatial plan inspired by Le Corbusier. In his influential books
comprised the Chicago school and led the opposition to the Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture (1966) and Learning
Beaux Arts styles . Sullivan's late works included several from Las Vegas (1972; with others) he promoted an
massive, ornamented bank buildings in small Midwestern ambiguous, symbolic stylistic vocabulary embracing
towns, and the Bradley House, Madison (1909). "memory" and the ordinary instead of the utopian visions of
Modernism. This can be seen in his fire stations ("decorated
Swan, Abraham (fl1745-68). English architect. He sheds") at Columbus, Indiana (1966) and New Haven (197 4).
trained as a carpenter and joiner but remains known for Other work reinterpreted the Shingle Style in exaggerated
his influential publications illustrating designs for Palladian form (e.g. Trubeck and Wislocki houses, Nantucket Island,
buildings and Rococo interiors . Among them were The British 1970). The classical tradition was used for such public
Architect: Or the Builder's Treasury of Staircases (1745), a 1775 buildings as the National Gallery extension, London (1987-
edition of which was the first architectural book printed in 91), "deformed" by the impact of modern culture . With Rauch
North America; A Collection ofDesigns in Architecture (1757); and his wife Denise Scott Brown, Venturi also works on
One Hundred and Fifiy Ne w Designs for Chimney Pieces (1758); exhibition and product design, producing furniture, textiles
and The Carpenter's Complete Instructor in Several Hundred and homewares .
Designs (1768). These were very successful in North America,
with several in circulation before 1776. Voysey, C. F. A. (1857 -1941). English architect and designer.
He was one of the most influential figures in the domestic
Tiffany, Louis Comfort (1848- 1933). American designer revival in the later English Arts and Crafts Movement,
and painter. The son of Charles Louis Tiffany, founder of the producing houses that have been seen as precursors to
famous New York jewellers, Tiffany trained as a painter in the Modernism. His early work included wallpaper and textile
United States and Paris. In the late 1870s he turned to the patterns (1883), which he continued to design all his life .
decorative arts. He experimented with stained glass From 1888 he produced a series of modest country houses
techniques, designing geometric patterns and landscape combining functionalism, economy, free, convenient
scenes in brilliant colours and rippling effects. He established planning and harmony with the surroundings. In contrast
a successful design firm (1879-83), which created several to the picturesque compositions of the earlier Queen Anne
eclectic interior schemes (e.g. at the White House, Revival, his houses had a simple, abstract, astylar approach,
Washington, 1883) influenced by the British Arts and Crafts with basically rectangular volumes, pitched roofs and
and Aesthetic movements. In 1885 he set up Tiffany Glass, horizontally grouped windows. They were often boldly
producing flowing Art Nouveau designs (e.g. table lamps) modelled with gables, buttresses and chimneys, with their
and inventing new iridescent glass and a rough "Lava" glass. plain surfaces rendered in pebbledash, as at Perrycroft, near
Tiffany exhibited at Samuel Bing's shop in Paris and at the Malvern (1893), and the Sturgis House, Hog's Back, near
exhibitions in Chicago (1893) and Paris (1900). He also Guildford (1896). The latter, a long, low building, has a large,
designed some houses, including the eclectic Laurelton Hall, asymmetrical gable at one end and long bands of windows.
Oyster Bay (1902 -4; destr. ), where he set up an artistic His best-known house is The Orchard, Chorleywood (1899 -
foundation. 1900), with twin gables. Voysey designed all the interior
fittings, furniture, fireplaces, metalwork, wallpaper and tex-
Town, Ithiel (1784 - 1844). American architect. He was tiles. His furniture was plainer and lighter than most Arts and
one of the pioneers in the Greek Revival in the United States. Crafts designs, and he made several designs for machine
His early work included the Trinity Church, New Haven production. Voysey's houses, which have been compared to
(1814), in a Gothick style. In 1816 he became involved with contemporary work by Frank Lloyd Wright, inspired
bridge construction, inventing a successful lattice bridge truss countless house builders in the 1920s and 19SOs, and his
(1820). His later buildings were resolutely Greek Revival, approach was reflected in the work of Parker & Unwin.
seen in houses (e .g. Bowers House, Northampton, 1826)
and the Connecticut State Capitol, New Haven (1827-31 ; Walpole, Horace (1717 -97). English amateur architect and
destr. ), in pseudo-peripteral Doric style. After a European writer. He is principally known for his role in promoting the
tour, when he began his extensive collection of books and Gothic Revival at his house Strawberry Hill, Twickenham,
prints, he went into partnership (1829- 35) with Alexander London (1753 -76), which he bought in 1749. In 1750, with
Jackson Davis, with whom he created some of the grandest his friends the amateur architects John Chute and Richard
Greek Revival buildings in the United States: the Indiana State Bentley, he formed a "Committe on Taste" to help him in its
Capitol, Indianapolis (1831 -5; destr.), where a Greek Doric remodelling. Professional architects, notably Robert Adam
temple form was topped by a monumental Roman dome; and James Essex, were also later involved, but Walpole
North Carolina State Capitol, Raleigh; New York Customs selected the designs, borrowing extensively from medieval
House (both 1833 -42); the Ionic French Church du Saint cathedrals as well as from architectural pattern books .
Esprit, New York (1831-4); and many smaller buildings. The first (eastern) part of the house, was designed w ith
Town was later involved with further bridge projects, but he classicizing Go thick elevations. Later work included a round
worked with Davis on competition plans for the Illinois State castellated tower at the south-west corner and a free ly
Capitol in 1837 and on revisions to plans for the Ohio State planned western extension. The use of historical precedent
Capitol, Columbus (1839). was extended to the design of interior fittings, such as
chimney-pieces, screens, doors, furniture and wallpaper.
Venturi, Robert (b 1925). American architect and designer. Strawberry Hill was the first principal monument of the
He is a pioneer of Post-Modernism, in which he has sought Gothic Revival and was popularized through A Description
alternatives to the uniformity of the International Style. This of the Villa ofMr Horace Walpole at Strawberry Hill (1774, 1784)
was first explored in the Vanna Venturi House, Chestnut Hill, and Walpole's Gothic novel The Castle ofOtranto (1765).
BIOGRAPHIES 539
Its antiquarian approach was a model for the later Gothic no precedent in England (e.g. St Stephen, Walbrook, 1672-87).
Revival, and the asymmetrical composition was a model He also invented classical steeples (e .g. StMary-le-Bow,
for the Picturesque movement. - Cheapside, 1670 -77). His masterpiece, St Paul's Cathedral
(1675 -1709), is a scholarly essay in Italian Baroque
Walter, Thomas Us tick (1804 -87). American architect. classicism, dominated by a great, innovative hemispherical
He was one of the leading architects in the middle of the dome . Wren's important royal works introduced a simple
19th century. He initially trained as a bricklayer with his Dutch-inspired classicism in brick and stone at the Royal
father, who built William Strickland's Greek Revival Second Hospital, Chelsea (1 682-9); a monumental French
Bank, Philadelphia. He set up on his own in 1831 and was classicism in brick and stone at Hampton Court Palace (1689-
immediately successful, building the fine Greek Revival 1701); and a dramatic Baroque composition with perspective
Girard College for Orphans, Philadelphia (1833- 48). This effects at the Royal Naval Hospital, Greenwich (1695 -1735;
gave him a national reputation and led to a large number of completed by others). Wren also built other important works
designs for simple, monumental buildings mostly based on at Cambridge and Oxford (e.g. the upper part ofTom Tower,
the Greek temple form. In 1851 he was appointed to design Christ Church, 1681-2, in which he adopted a classicizing
extensions to the Capitol, Washington, where he built a Gothic).
large new building with Greek Revival colonnades,
porticoes and ornament. As a focus to the complex he Wright, Frank Lloyd (1869 -1959). American architect and
added a huge dome to the original Capitol building; the dome designer. He was one of the great masters of the 20th century
is Baroque in silhouette, supported on a tall, colonnaded and remains widely admired, but he worked in a highly
drum, and was built in cast iron. Completed at the end of individual manner, consistently evolving original solutions
the Civil War, it became a symbol of national unity and that had relatively little influence on mainstream architectural
was much imitated. It also acted as a stimulus to the currents. After working for Louis Sullivan in Chicago (1888-
developing iron industry. 93), he began to develop an increasingly abstract approach to
design, which culminated in his first innovative buildings,
Webb, Philip (1831-1915). English architect and designer. the Larkin Office Building, Buffalo (1903- 6; destr.), Unity
Together with R. Norman Shaw, he was one of the most Temple, Oak Park, Illinois (1905-8), and his famous Prairie
influential architects of the 19th-century English domestic houses of 1901-13 (e.g. Willitts House, Highland Park,
revival, turning away from the High Victorian historicist Illinois, 1902; Robie House, Chicago, 1908-1 0). These
styles in search of the "absence of style". While working in houses introduced asymmetrical plans extending out into
the office ofthe Gothic Revivalist G. E. Street in 1854-9 he garden terraces but anchored by a massive fireplace;
met William Morris, his lifelong friend, who commissioned horizontal lines were emphasised by widely overhanging
him to build The Red House, Bexleyheath (1859-61). roofs, bands of windows and projecting bases . A more
This is generally considered to be the first house of the Arts decorative approach was heralded in Midway Gardens,
and Crafts Movement, in which Webb introduced a local Chicago (1913; destr.), and the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo (1916 -
red-brick traditional vernacular that he considered most 22; destr.), where he used prismatic surface decoration. This
appropriate to the English climate, the local environment approach continued in the 1920s in some cubic, concrete-
and current building practices. The picturesque composition, block houses, where textile -like patterns were cast into the
emphasized by deep porches and steep roofs, was blocks (e.g. Millard House, Pasadena, California, 1923). In
determined by the arrangement of the rooms. Webb 1935 Wright began another stage in his career with
subsequently became involved in the cooperative Morris set Fallingwater, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1935), a
up to produce decorative arts, for which he designed dramatic, modernist composition of stone walls and concrete
fireplaces, glass, metalwork and influential Gothic-style terraces cantilevered over a waterfall. He went on to develop
furniture. Some of Webb's later houses were more the plain, rectilinear Usonian house as a simple low-cost
symmetrical, with gables and tall chimneys, and some were version of the Prairie house, eventually building more than
designed as fortified houses (e .g. Standen, East Grinstead, 100. In his non-residential architecture he developed an
1891-4). His few non-domestic works included the Bell increasingly geometric approach, using circular forms in the
Brothers' office building, Middlesbrough (1891), for which he Johnson Wax buildings, Racine, Wisconsin (1938, 1944 -50),
adopted the Queen Anne Revival, with curved parapets. and in the spiral Guggenheim Museum, New York (1943,
Webb was also an early conservationist, working with 1959). He also used triangular grids, and floors cantilevered
Morris's Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. from a central spine (e .g. Harold Price Tower, Bartlesville,
Oklahoma, 1956). For many of his buildings Wrignt designed
Wren, Sir Christopher (1632-1723). English architect. the furniture and fittings , from geometrical stained glass,
One of the greatest of all English architects, he designed complex bookcases and upholstered settles to metal office
some of the most important and influential buildings of the furniture and filing cabinets. His work was first extensively
English Baroque. Until after his 30th year he was involved published in 1910 in Berlin, and it was admired by many
in scientific studies, becoming adept in geometry and being architects of the emerging Modern Movement. He had a
appointed Professor of Astronomy in London (1657) and greater influence over pupils at the Taliesin teaching
Oxford (1661). His skill at mathematics and scientific communities he established, initially at Spring Green,
invention may have led to his involvement in architecture as Wisconsin (1932), and later also near Phoenix, Arizona
a gifted amateur, designing the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, (Taliesin West, 1938). He lectured widely in the 1930s,
and Pembroke College Chapel, Cambridge :both 1663). In publishing some of his lectures as Modern Architecture (1931);
1665 - 6 he visited Paris and studied classical and Baroque other books included The Disappearing City (1932), The Future
buildings. This experience served him well after the Great ofArchitecture (1953) and The Natural House (1954).
Fire of London (1666), when he became Commissioner for
Rebuilding and then Surveyor of the King's Works (1669) .
He was involved in the design of 51 new parish churches,
in which he introduced a classical approach that had almost
540
GLOSSARY
abacus: in classical architecture, the flat arched vault or ceiling in tunnel form, Male figures were termed atlantes.
slab topping a capital. either semi-circular or semi-elliptical in casement: a window frame hinged on
acanthus: a carved ornament of profile. one side so that it swings out or in to
conventionalized, serrated leaves, used baseboard: see skirting board open.
on Corinthian and Composite columns batten door: a door made from castellation: a short wall topped with
and mouldings. vertical boards joined together with alternating indentations and raised
achievem ent: in heraldry, the two or more horizontal boards nailed portions; also called a battlement.
complete display of a coat-of-arms, on to their back sides. cavetto: a concave moulding, of
with shield, helmet, crest and motto. bay window: a projection with a approximately quarter-circle section,
acroterion: an ornamental comerpiece window on a house facade. It may be typically used in ceiling cornices.
or cresting. curved (bow window) or angular chair rail: a wall moulding that tops
Adamesque: in the Neo-classical style (canted) in plan. See also oriel. the dado and prevents chairs pushed
pioneered in Britain by the Adam beaded moulding: a small curved against the wall from damaging the
brothers in the second half of the 18th moulding decorated by a series of surface; also called a dado rail.
century. beads. chamfer: the surface created by cutting
adobe: unbaked brick, dried by the blind arch: an arch attached to wall or off the comer of a square block of wood,
sun, as used for house-building in the other surface, for decoration. stone, etc, usually at a 45 angle.
south-western United States. boiserie: wood panelling decorated cheeks: the sloping sides of a fireplace
aedicule: literally, a "little house", used with carvings in shallow relief. opening.
to frame a niche or door or window bolection moulding: a moulding chimney breast: the stone, brick or
opening, usually created by two covering the uneven joint made oy two cement structure that projects into a
columns or pilasters with a lintel or members of different sizes, especially room and contains the fireplace flue.
pediment above. popular for fielded panelling in the late chimneypiece: a fireplace surround
Anaglypta: a compressed lightweight 17th and 18th centuries. and its overmantel.
moufded wallpaper, a less expensive boss: a projecting ball, knob or similar Chinoiserie: a European interpretation
version of Lincrusta. ornament, often carved, that is found at of Chinese art, popular from the late
andiron: see firedog the intersection of ribs in a vault or 17th to the 19th century.
anthemion: a classical ornament ceiling. chintz: a printed cotton with a glazed
featuring a repeating pattern of boxwinder: a staircase built into the finish.
honeysuckle flowers and foliage . space next to the chimney flue and churrigueresque: a Spanish and
arcade: a range of arches supported on hidden behind a door in the fireplace Mexican decorative style of the early
piers or columns. wall; it was common in small, fine and mid-18th century characterized by
architrave: the moulded frame around houses in the United States in the 18th lavish surface ornamentation.
a door or window opening; in classical and early 19th centuries. clapboarding: the overlapping wedge-
architecture, the lowest member of an breakfront: having a protruding shaped boards forming the external
entablature. central section. covering of a timber-fiamed structure.
area: an enclosed outdoor space below bressumer: a large horizontal beam dosed-string: the term applied to a
ground level that brings light and that spans a fireplace or other opening; staircase whose profile of treads and
ventilation to an inner part of a building also, the main horizontal rail in a risers is covered at the side by a string,
such as a basement. timber-framed house. or sloping member which supports the
ashlar: squared-off blocks of stone Betty lamp: an American boat-shaped balustrade.
used in building. lamp, fuelled by oil. Coade stone: an ornamental artificial
astragal: a semi-circular moulding broken pediment: a pediment with a stone manufactured by the company
often shaped like a series of beads or an gap in the crown, sometimes filled founded by Eleanor Coade in England
alternating series of beads and reeds. with an urn or other motif. A broken- during the late 18th and early 19th
Also used as a synonym for glazing bed pediment has a gap in the base. centuries, and used for a wide variety of
bar. Brussels carpet: a flat-weave carpet urns, statues and architectural
with a looped, uncut pile. ornaments.
balconette: a small window balcony cob: a building material, consisting of
often fitted with flowerpot holders. cames: cast lead strips, usually of "H" clay mixed with chopped straw; British.
balloon framing: a simple method of section and soldered into place, used to coffered ceiling: a ceiling in which the
timber-framed construction, common fix small panes of glass in windows. beams and cross-beams leave a regular
in the United States. cantilever: a beam or structure pattern of square or multi-sided sunken
baluster: a short, usually turned post; a projecting horizontally beyond its panels, or coffers, each of which is
banister. support, supported by leverage, by the often decorated with moulded, carved
balustrade: a series of balusters weight of the structure on its enclosed or painted decoration.
supporting a rail or coping. end. colonnade: a range of columns
bargeboard: A wide, flat board which capital: the head or top part of a supporting either arches or a straight
seals the space below the roof, column or pilaster. entablature.
between the tiles and the wall on a carreaux d'octagones: a floor pattern column: a vertical member, circular in
gable end. Barge boards often have in which small black diamonds are laid section, and normally w ith a gentle
decorative carving or pierced at the intersections of slabs of lighter- taper (entasis). In classical arcfutecture, it
decoration. Also called a verge board. coloured stone. is composed of a base, shaft and capital.
barrel-and-groin vaulting: a vault cartouche: a panel or tablet in round colza lamp: a lamp with a double
formed by two identical tunnel-shaped or oval form, often used for an cylinder that bums rapeseed, or colza,
vaults intersecting in the middle; also inscription or coat of arms. oil or another vegetable or animal oil;
called tunnel-and-groin vaulting. caryatid: a human figure, usually popular in the early 19th century.
barrel vault: a straight, continuous female, supporting an entablature. Composite: one of the classical Orders
GLOSSARY 541
of architecture. The capitals of the is dentillations, or a dentillated cornice. windows in a building.
columns combine Corinthian acanthus diaperwork: an overall pattern of small festoon: see swag.
leaves with Ionic volutes (scrolls). - repeated motifs, usually of diagonal, field: the upper part of a wall, between
console: a decorative scroll-shaped lozenge form. the frieze or cornice and the dado.
bracket. distemper: water-based paint. fielded panel: a panel with a plain
composition: an amalgam made from dog grate: a freestanding basket grate, raised centre.
paper or wood pulp, with whiting and for a fireplace. fillet: a flat, square moulding between
glue. Used for applied decoration. dog-leg stair: two flights of stairs other bands of moulding; also, the
console table: a side table supported parallel to each other with a half- narrow surface between flutings in the
against a wall only by consoles; many landing in between. shaft of a column.
are elaborately carved and gilded and doorcase : the wooden, stone or brick finial: an ornament on top of a spire,
have marble tops. framework around a hinged door. pinnacle, gable, etc.
coping: a cap or covering on top of a Doric: the earliest and plainest of the fireback: a thick iron plate placed at the
wall. classical Orders. Doric columns usually back of a hearth to protect the wall and
corbel: a projecting stone or timber have no base; the shaft is thick and reflect heat into the room.
block, often carved, supporting a broadly fluted, the capital spare and firedog: one of a pair of supports for
horizontal member such as a beam. unomamented. logs in a fireplace; also called andiron.
Corinthian: the latest and most ornate dormer: a roofed projection set into the fiie irons: fireplace tools, usually a
of the classical Orders of architecture. slope of a roof, usually containing a shovel, poker and tongs.
The column is slender, and usually window. Flemish bond: a form of brickwork in
fluted, the capital elaborately carved drab: a light greyish-brown or which, on each course, headers and
with acanthus leaves. greenish-brown colour, popular for stretchers alternate.
cornice: a projecting moulding located Georgian paintwork. flight: a series of stairs not interrupted
where the ceiling or roof and wall meet; drugget: a sturdy fabric floor covering, by a landing.
in classical architecture, the projecting used to protect boards or a better carpet Hoorcloth: canvas sheeting painted to
top of an entablature. from wear. look like a more expensive floor
cottage orne: a self-consciously rustic covering such as a carpet, parquet or
dwelling, often thatched. eaves: that part of a sloping roof which tile, and heavily varnished.
cove: a large concave moulding overhangs the wall. fluting: shallow vertical grooves on the
between wall and ceiling. eaves cornice: a decorative wooden shaft of a column.
coved ceiling: a ceiling that meets the cornice popular in the late 17th and foil: a lobe or leaf-shaped curve formed
walls at a large concave moulding, or early 18th century. between cusps inside an arch or circle.
cove. ebonized: wood stained and polished foliate: decorated with carved leaves.
cresset: a metal cup or basket, on a black to simulate ebony. forecourt: a court or courtyard at the
pole or hanging down, filled with a echinus: a moulding similar to an front of a building.
flammable substance which is burned ovolo, beneath the abacus of a Doric French doors: a pair of casement
as a source of light. capital. windows that reach to the floor and are
cresting: a decorative top border on a egg-and-dart moulding: a decorative hinged on the outer edges so that they
screen, wall or roof. moulding carved with a series of open in the middle.
crocket: a decorative leaf carving alternating rounded ovals and French windows: see French doors.
jutting out at regular intervals on the arrowheads. fret: a band of horizontal and vertical
sloped edges ofgables, spires and electrolier: an electric chandelier or lines forming a geometrical pattern,
canopies in Gothic architecture. pendant light. such as the l<ey or meander pattern.
crown glass: an early form of window elevation: one of the external faces of a &i.eze: the middle section of an
glass, cut from blown discs. building; also, an architect's drawing of entablature; a panel below the upper
crown moulding: an alternative term a facade, set out to scale. moulding or cornice of a wall.
for cornice. embrasure: a door, window or similar
cruck: one of a pair of large curved opening whose sides are slanted so that gable: that part of the wall immediately
structural timbers, forming the end- the inside is wider than the outside. under the end of a pitched roof, cut into
walls of some timber-framed houses. encaustic tiles: earthenware tiles a triangular shape by the sloping sides
crumb cloth: a cloth temporarily laid patterned with inlays of coloured clay of the roof.
over a floor or carpet to catch spills and slips. gallery: a mezzanine supported over
crumbs. engaged column: a column or half- the primary interior space of a building;
cupola: a dome, usually small, topping column attached to a wall. also, a long room used originally for
a roof or turret. English bond: a form of brickwork, in outdoor exercise and later for the
curb: the fixed framework that which courses of headers alternate with display of pictures.
encloses a raised fireplace hearth. courses of stretchers. gambrel roof a roof with a double
curtail step: the bottommost step in a entablature: in classical architecture, pitch, resembling a mansard roof.
flight, with a curved end to the tread. the top of an Order, made up of an gasolier: a gas-l:luming chandelier.
cusps: the projecting points formed architrave, frieze and cornice. Gibbs surround: a rusticated door or
where foils meet in Gothic tracery. escutcheon: a metal plate around a window surround with alternating large
cyma: a double-curved profile, convex keyhole. and small blocks of stone; named after
above and concave below, or vice versa. the British architect James Gibbs
faience: tin-glazed earthenware. (1682-1754).
dado: the lower wall surface, from the fanlight: a window above a door, girandole: a branched candleholder
chair rail down to the skirting usually semi-circular, with glazing bars with a back-plate fixed to a wall or
board/baseboard. radiating out like a fan. Also termed a overmantel.
dado rail: see chair rail. transom window in the United States. glazing bars: the bars, usually of
deal: wood planking; also a soft wood, fascia: a plain horizontal band in an wood, that hold panes of window glass
usually fir or pine. entablature. in place. Also termed astragals.
dentil: one of a series of small blocks used fender: a screen or guard in front of a gougework: an ornamental woodwork
to form an ornamental row, used fireplace to prevent hot coals from pattern made with a rounded chisel.
primarily in Corinthian, Ionic and damaging the surrounding floor or carpet. grate: a metal open basket in which
Composite mouldings; the collective term fenestration: the arrangement of coal or wood is burned in a fireplace.
542 GLOSSARY
Greek key pattern: a geometrical that used on doors, windows and stairs. tread, overhanging the riser.
decoration made of continuous right- joists: horizontal timbers laid parallel as oculus: a circular opening in a wall or
angled lines; also called Greek meander. a base for the floorboards . in the top of a dome.
Greek meander see Greek key ogee arch: a pointed arch formed by
pattern. keystone: the central stone in the curve two reversed curves, slightly S-shaped
groin: the ridge formed where vaulted of an arch or vault. in profile.
surfaces intersect. label: see hoodmould open-string: the term applied to a
guilloche: decoration of interlaced staircase whose profile of treads and
bands, forming a pattern of circles or leaded lights: small panes of glass set risers is visible from the side (that is, not
loops. into cames (lead strips) to form a closed off by a string). The treads
guttae: small drop-like projections window. support the balustrade.
usually carved beneath the triglyphs on lights: in a window, the openings orangery: a greenhouse or other such
Doric architraves. between mullions; more generally, panes. glassed structure w here oranges and
Lincrusta: An embossed wallpaper other tender plants are grown.
half-landing: a landing half-way up a intended to be painted and varnished; Order: in classical architecture, a
flight of stairs. popular from the late 19th century. particular style of column and
half-lap joint: the joint between two linenfold panelling: wooden entablature, each with its own
pieces of wood that have been halved panelling in which the individual distinctive proportions and detailing.
together, resulting in a flat surface. panels are carved with a motif like the The Five Orders are Doric, Ionic,
half timbering: a construction method vertical folds of linen, from the Tudor Corinthian, Tuscan and Composite.
in which vertical and horizontal timbers period. The first three are derived from ancient
make up the frame of the wall, which is linoleum: a floor covering made of Greek architecture; Tuscan and
then filled in with lath and plaster compressed cork, ground wood and Composite are Roman adaptations of
(nagging), sticks and mud or clay linseed oil backed by burlap or strong the earlier Greek models.
(wati:le and daub), stone, or brick. canvas. oriel: a bay window on an upper floor.
header: a brick laid so that only its lintel: a supporting wood or stone overdoor: a decorative section above a
short face is visible. beam across the top of an opening such door, often panelled or containing a
hearth: the floor of a fireplace, usually as that of a door or window. painting.
extending out into the room. loggia: a pillared gallery that is open on overmantel: a decorative treatment
herm: a head or bust on a rectangular at least one side. above a fireplace, often incorporating a
pillar. louver: one of a series of overlapping painting or mirror.
hipped roof: a roof with four sloped slats (for example, in window shutters). overthi:-ow: an ironwork hoop
stdes. lunette: a semi-circular opening, as in a supporting a lantern, forming an arch in
hob: a ledge on the back or side of a lunette window. front of the street door of a fiouse .
fireplace or grate for warming a pot or lustre glass: an iridescent glass, of the ovolo moulding: a wide convex
kettle. type made by Tiffany in the United moulding, often called a quarter-round
hob grate: a cast-iron grate in which States. because it forms a quarter-section of a
the fire basket is supported off the circle.
ground, between two flat hobs. The flat mansard roof: a roof with two slopes,
front is usually cast with shallowed the lower almost vertical to allow extra palisade: a strong wooden fence .
ornament or reeding. Termed a Bath roof space for the attic rooms. Palladian style: an interpretation of the
stove in the United States. mantel: the frame surrounding a classical style developed by Andrea
hoodmould: a projecting moulding fireplace; often used to denote just the Palladia (1508-80), the Italian architect.
above a door, window or other opening shelf (mantel shelf). Palladianism was revived in England in
to protect it from rain; also called a drip marbleized: painted or stained to the early 18th century by Lord
mould or label. resemble marble. Burlington and Colen Campbell and
medallion: see rose influenced American architecture in the
impost: the block set into a wall or above metopes: the plain or carved square late 18th century.
a column, from which an arch springs. spaces between the triglyphs in a Doric Palladian window: see Venetian
incised: deeply engraved or carved. frieze. window
inglenook: a recessed space beside a millwork: mass-produced woodwork. palmette: a decorative motif based on
fireplace, usually housing a bench. modillion: a small ornamental bracket the fan-shaped leaf of a palm tree.
ingrain carpet: an inexpensive pileless used in a series to support the upper pantile: a roofing tile, S-sha.ped in
carpet. Also known as a Scotch or part of a Corinthian or Composite section.
Kidderminster carpet. cornice. papier mache: an inexpensive
Ionic: one of the classical Orders of moire: a fabric or wallpaper, usually lightweight material made from paper
architecture, characterized by flute d silk, that has been treated so that it has pulp, used to form various items of
columns and prominent volutes on the a watered or wavelike look. interior embellishment.
capitals. moulding: a decorative contour, in parapet: a low wall surmounting the
Italian moulding: a heavy, wide wood or stone. exterior wall of a building.
moulding that usually surrounds a mullion: an upright bar that vertically pargeting: ornamental plasterwork on
fireplace; a type of bolection moulding. divides a window or other opening. walls and ceilings, most notably on the
muntin: the subsidiary vertical member exterior of timber-framed buildings and
jamb: the straight vertical side of a of the frame of a door, window, panel, often in the shape of figures and vines.
doorway, arch or window. etc. parquetry: small pieces of coloured
japanned: painted and varnished in hardwood made into a geometric floor
imitation of O riental lacquer work. newel post: the post at the end of a pattern.
jettied: a term describing a timber- staircase, usually attached to both the patera: a small oval or round ornament
framed building whose upper story handrail and the string; on a circular in classical architecture, often decorated
overhangs the Iower story. staircase, the central post around which with flowers or leaves.
jib door: a concealed door flush with the stairs curve . pebbledash: a form of rough external
the wall and usually decorated to match nogging: the brickwork between the wall rendering, with pebbles set into
it. timbers in a timber-framed building. cement.
joinery: finished woodwork, such as nosing: the rounded edging of a stair- pediment: a low-pitched gable across a
GLOSSARY 543
portico, door or window; any similar register grate: a fire grate with a the rectangular frame above it; also, the
triangular decorative piece over a moveable iron plate in the flue to space between two arches and the
doorway, fireplace or other feature . A.. regulate the updraught. horizontal cornice that runs above
pediment that is open on top is called a repousse: a pattern in relief, usually them.
broken pediment. made by hammering thin metal from spindle: a thin, turned column of
pendant: an ornament hanging down behind. wood, as used in series in staircase
from a ceiling, staircase, etc. reveal: the inner surface of a doorcase screens and the like .
pendentive: a concave triangular or window opening, between the edge splayed: sloping or bevelled, usually
comer vault that supports a dome of the frame and the outer surface of referring to a door, window or fireplace
above a square room. the wall at right angles to it. The openins that has slanting sides.
piano nobile: the principal floor of a corresponding space above is the soffit. spline JOint: the joint made when
house, containing the reception rooms. rinceau: an ornament of scrolled grooved boards are connected by a strip
piazza: an American term for a broad foliage, usually vine leaves . of wood.
veranda. riser: the vertical surface of a step. stair-end: on an open-string stair, the
picture rail: a moulding on the upper rocaille: the shell and irregular stone face formed between the riser and the
part of a wall from which pictures are decoration popular in the Rococo style . tread. Also, the cut-out or carved
hung. Roman cement: a patented plaster, decorative element applied to this space.
Picturesque: a term describing the 18th similar to stucco. Sometimes also called a tread-end.
and early 19th-century Romantic taste rose: on a plaster ceiling, a moulded, standard: an upright support or base.
for asymmetric, rustic features, such as radiating feature with a pendant light stile: a main vertical member of the
cottages ornes. suspended from its centre; called a frame of a door, panel, etc.
pier: a solid vertical element of a wall medallion in the United States. stoop: in the United States, a small
between openings such as windows; rosette: any rose-shaped ornament. platform with steps leading up to it at
the support for a lintel or arch. Also, a roundel: a round flat ornament or a the entrance of a building.
heavy masonry support used, for small round window. stop-chamfer: a triangular termination
example, at either side of a gate. row house: see terraced house to a chamfer, bringing a three-sided
pier glass: a tall, narrow mirror hung rubbed brick: the term used for carved form back to a right angle. A popular
between two windows. brickwork. feature in early English and Victorian
pilaster: a flat rectangular classical rustication: masonry cut in large architecture.
column fixed against a wall, or used to blocks separated by deep joints, used to strapwork: decoration formed by
frame a doorway, fireplace, etc. give a bold, exaggerated look to the interlaced strips, either applied or
pintle: the pin or bolt that fits inside a Iower part of an exterior wall, or to carved in wood, stone or plaster. Often
hinge.
plirith: the projecting base of a wall or
frame a door or window. used in screens and on ceilings and
cornices.
..
column. sash window: a window formed with stretcher: a brick laid so that only its
porphyry: a hard, fine-grained dark red sashes - that is, glazed wooden frames lonts face is visible.
or purple rock flecked with white which slide up and down in vertical string: one of the two sloping members
crystals embedded in it; also, grey and grooves by means of counterbalanced that hold the ends of the treads and
green igneous rocks of similar texture. weights. The standard form has two risers in a staircase.
porte-cochere: a porch wide enough moveable sashes and is termed a stucco: a fine cement or plaster used on
to allow access for a carriage. "double-hung sash". the surface of walls, mouldings and
portico: a roofed entrance porch, often saucer dome: a shallow dome. other architectural ornaments. By the
with columns. scagliola: a decorative finish imitating 19th century, stucco is generally used as
pulvinated: with a convex profile; the marble made from hardened and a term for exterior rendering.
term usually describes a frieze . polished plaster and marble chips. studs: the upright timbers in a timber-
purlin: a long horizontal member of a sconce: a wall bracket for holding a framed building.
timber-framed roof, forming an light source, particularly candles. summer beam: a principal rafter or
intermediate support for the rafters. Scotch carpet: see ingrain carpet. load-bearing beam, usually spanning
putti: cherubs or young boys used as a scotia: a concave moulding, as used at the w idth of a room.
subject in Italian Renaissance the base of a column between torus swag: a piece of fabric draped between
decoration. mouldings. two supports; a carved or painted
serliana: see Venetian window decoration resembling such a fabric; or
quany: a small square- or diamond- shaft: the main vertical part of a a garland of ribbons, flowers, fruit
shaped pane of glass used in leaded column between the base and the and/or foliage; also called a festoon.
windows. capital; also, in medieval architecture, swan's-neck pediment: a type of
quany tile: an unglazed floor tile. one of a cluster of thin columns that broken pediment with S-shaped curves,
quatrefoil: a four-lobed circle or arch together form a pillar on a door or like two swans' necks facing each other.
formed by cusping. window surround.
quirk: a V-shaped groove along a shingle: wooden tiles used to clad terraced house: a house that forms
moulding or between moulding joints. exterior walls, especially in American one of a whole straight or curving line
quoins: the dressed (finished) stones at Shingle-style houses. of at least three such houses attached to
the comers of a building. sill: the horizontal ledge at the bottom each other. Known as a row house in
of a window frame. the United States.
rabetted: two members joined skirting board: the flat moulding terracotta: unglazed, fired clay used for
together by interlocking grooves cut running around the base of a wall; tiles, architectural ornament, garden
into each; also spelled rabbeted. called a baseboard in the United States. pots, etc.
rail: a horizontal member of the frame slip: a strip or long, thin piece of wood; terrazzo: a polished finish for floors
of a door, panel, etc. also, a fascia (often marble or tiles) set and walls consisting of marble or stone
rebate or rabbet: a channel or groove into a fireplace surround. chips set into mortar.
cut into a surface edge (usually of soffit: the underside of a beam, arch or thatch: a roof covering of tightly
wood) to receive another member. other architectural element; also, the packed straw or reeds.
reeding: a form of decoration formed reveal of the head of a door or window. tongue-and-groove: a method of
by narrow convex mouldings in parallel spandrel: the approximately triangular joining wood so that the edge of one
strips divided by grooves. space between the curve of an ardi and board has a tongue, or lip, that fits into
544 GLOSSARY
a groove on the edge of another board. regional style, or in a manner based on
torus: a large convex moulding, semi- a naive misunderstanding of high-style
circular in profile; originally the architecture.
principal element of the column base. Vitruvian scroll: a classical frieze
tracery: an ornamental arrangement of ornament, made up of a series of wave-
intersecting ribwork, usually in the like scrolls; also called a running dog.
upper part of a Gothic window, volutes: in classical architecture, spiral
forming a pierced pattern. If applied to scrolls, most characteristically forming
a solid wall surface, known as blind the capital of a Greek Ionic column.
tracery. Also, scroll-shaped supporting members
transom: the horizontal member strengthening a wall or serving as
across the top of a door, or across the brackets.
top or middle of a window. voussoir: one of a number of wedge-
transom light: in the United States, a shaped radiating stones or bricks used
window or pane above a door, whether to form an arch or vault.
rectangular or arched (known as a
fanlig}it in Britain); also, a window that wainscot: the simple, early form of
is h.irl.ged along its top edge. wooden panelling, either full height or
tread: the horizontal surface of a step. on the lower half of a wall; also called
tread-end: on an open-string stair, the wainscotting. The term is also applied
triangular face formed between the riser to the oak or other timber used for
and the tread. Also called the stair-end. panelling.
trefoil: a three-lobed circle or arch weatherboarding: see clapboarding
formed by cusping. wicket: a small door set into a larger
trelliswork an open pattern of door or gate .
interwoven strips, usually of wood but widows walk: a rooftop platform or
sometimes metal; also called narrow walkway, often used as a
latticework. lookout for incoming ships on 18th and
triglyphs: the grooved projecting 19th-century New England coastal
blocks between the metopes in a Doric houses.
frieze . Wilton carpet: a carpet that has a
trompe l'oeil: a decorative effect, such looped pile cut to give it a soft finish.
as a painting of architectural detail or a
vista, that gives the illusion of reality.
trophy: an ornamental carving of arms
and/or armour, musical instruments or
other implements arranged as a
decorative motif.
truss: a wooden framework in the
shape of a bridge or large bracket, used
to support timbers, such as those in a
roof.
tunnel-and-groin vaulting: see
barrel-and-groin vaulting
turkey carpet: an English-made carpet
in the Turkish style, characterized by
bold colours, esrecially red and blue,
and geometrica patterns of stylized
living forms such as flowers and fruits,
often with a border.
tympanum: the semi-circular space
between a lintel of a door or window
and the arch above it; also, the usually
triangular space within the mouldings
of a pediment.
ARCHITECTURAL SALVAGE
(01273) 681656 (fel/Fax)
Restored architectural antiques,
Unit 6, Credenda Road,
Bromford Road Industrial Estate,
see Kitchens
.
including fireplaces, doors, stained West Bromwich B70 7)E Stiffkey Bathrooms
Antique Fireplace Warehouse glass, panelling and cast-iron balcony (0121) 553 2161 The Chapel,
194-200 Battersea Park Road, railing. Antique and Georgtim-style bathroom Stiffkey,
London SW11 4ND taps and matching accessories for Norfolk NR23 1Aj
(0171) 6271410 Conservation Building Products basins, bidets, baths and showers. (01328) 830099
Fax: (0171) 622 1078 see Building Materials Fax: (01328) 830005
Antique fireplaces, many in marble, Architectural Components Restorer ofantique sanitaryware,
from Georgtcm chimneypieces to Crowther of Syon Lodge see Doors including showers, baths, basins, taps
Victorian mantels. SyonLodge, and toilets. Also supplies original and
Busch Comer, Barwill Traditional Taps period accessories.
Architectural Antiques London Road, Barber Wilsons and Co. Ltd,
Ley Farm, Isleworth, Crawley Road, Winther Browne
Alswear Old Road, Middlesex TW7 5BH Wood Green, see Woodwork and joinery
Queens Nympton, (0181) 560 7978/7985 London N22 6AH
nr South Moulton, Fax: (0181) 568 7572 (0181) 888 3461 BUILDING MATERIALS
Devon EX36 4LE Carefully restored fine antiques from Fax: (0181) 888 2041
(01769) 573342 around the world. Speciabst in garden Long-time manufacturers of Arundel Stone
Fax: (01769) 57 4363 statuary but also hanliles antique traditional bathroom and kitchen 62 Aldwick Road,
Although much of their stock is more fireplaces, panelled rooms and fittings in non-tarnish brass, unplated Bognar Regis,
suitable for restaurants, bars and wrought-iron gates. polished brass, nickel plate and West Sussex P021 2PE
other public places, some items are conventional chrome. (01243) 829 151
appropriate for home restoration. Dorset Reclamation Fax: (01243) 860 341
see Building Materials Czech and Speake Reconstructed stone balustrading and
Architectural Antiques 244-254 Cambridge Heath Road, architectural stonework for restoration
351 King Street, The London Architectural London E2 9DA projects.
London W6 9NH Salvage and Supply Co. Ltd (0181) 980 4567
(0181) 7417883 St Michael's, Fax: (0181) 981 7232 Au Temps Perdu
Fax: (0181) 7411109 Mark Street, Period bathroomware including see Architectural Salvage
Wide range ofantique and London EC2A 4ER porcelain freestanding and inset
reproduction marble fireplace (0171) 739 0448 rolltop tubs, WCs, bidets and basins. Cathedral Works
surrounds, also installation and Fax: (0171) 729 6853 Edwardian fittings in uncoated brass, Terminus Road,
restoration-ofantique and new marble. A great selection ofpanelling non-tarntsh brass, chromium plate Chichester,
fireplaces, flooring and other decorative and nickel plate. Many accessories West Sussex P019 2TX
Architectural Heritage details in wood, stone and marble. such as hooks, towel rails, soap dish (01243) 784 225
Taddington Manor, holders and cistern levers. Fax: (01243) 813 700
Taddington, Moochers Specialist in stone masonry,
nr Cutsdean, 590 Warwick Road, Heritage Bathrooms restoration, conservation and stone
Cheltenham, Tyseley, Unit 1A, Princess Street, carving.
Gloucestershire GL54 5RY Birmingham B11 2Hj Bedminster,
(01386) 584 414 (0121) 680 7445 Bristol BS3 4AG
Fax: (01386) 584 236 Architectural antiques ofall kinds (0117) 963 9762
Suppliers ofa large collection of with nationwide delivery; restoration Fax: (0117) 9231078
authentic antique panelled rooms, services include complete fireplace Victon{m and Edwardian
chimneypieces, stained and leaded fitting and decorative paint finishes reproduction bathrooms; baths,
glass panels and windows, wrought- and marbling to surrounds and washbasins, water closets, bidets and
and cast-iron gates, period doors and interiors. cabinets in pine and mahogany
other interior and exterior items.
546 DIRECTORY OF SUPPLIERS: BRITISH
Conservation Building Products Bylaw Ltd CONSERVATORIES Aristocast Originals
Forge Works, The Old Mill, see Walls
Forge Lane, Brookend Street, Amdega Conservatories
Cradley Heath, Ross-on-Wye, - Faverdale, Barron Glass
Warley, Herefordshire HR9 7EG Darlington, see Windows
West Midlands B64 SAL (01989) 562 356 Co. Durham DL3 OPW
(01384) 569551 Fax: (01989) 768 145 (01325) 468 522 Brassart
Fax: (01384) 410625 Maker o( traditional solid oak and Fax: (01325) 489 209 Regent Works,
Suppliers o(reclaimed and new fruitwood furniture. lntenor work Conservatories and porches in period 78 Attwood Street,
building materials (or restored and includes solid-oak staircases, doors styles. Also 'onservatory blinds, fans Lye, Stourbridge,
pwod bwldings, incl. doors, bricks, and panelling. and floonng, and summer houses, West Midlands DY9 8RY
roofing materials, timbers floonng,
1 gazeboes and greenhouses. Has (01384) 894 814
mouldings, fireplaces and accessories. Hygrove Kitchens available a design service that will Fax: (01384) 423 824
see Kitchens design and build to order. Door fittings and electrical wall plates
Dorset Reclamation made from hand-made castings in a
Cow Drove, Bere Regis, Japac D esigns Fairmitre Thames Valley number of traditional styles. Finishes
Wareham, Dorset BH20 7]Z St Saviour's Church, 28 Kennylands Road, in polished brass, chrome plate and
(01929) 472 200 Whitstable Road, Sonning Common, satin chrome; French lacquered gilt
Fax: (01929) 472 292 Faversham, Reading, and gold plate available in some
Reclaimed traditional buzlding Kent ME 13 8BD Berkshire RG4 9ff styles.
materials and architectural antiques o( (01795) 537 062 (TeVFax) (01734) 723 380
all sorts including bricks, interior and Makers of fitted furniture, slzding sash Custom -made modem and traditional Classic D esigns
exterior flagstones, tiles, boards and windows and staircases built to conservatories and other small outdoor Unit 15C,
planks, finials, stones and cobbles, specification. structures. Bilton Industrial Estate,
doors, hand rails, bathroom fittings, Humber Avenue,
fireplaces and kitchen sinks. S. and H . Jewell Ltd D avid Fennings Conservatories Coventry CV3 1jL
26 Parker Street, Unit3a, (01203) 431040/431115
UK Marble London WC2B 5PH Sunrise Park, Fax: (01203) 443104
21 Burcott Road, (0171) 405 8520 Higher Shaftesbury Road, Custom-designed doors and windows
Hereford HR4 9LW Supplier o( Queen Anne, Georgian, Blandford, handmade from hardwoods in
(01432) 352 178 Regency, Victorian and Edwardian Dorset DT11 8ST traditional designs.
Fax: (01432) 352 112 {t1miture. (01258) 459259
Marble and granite (or bathrooms, Fax: (01258) 459305 Clayton-Munroe Ltd
floors, worktops, decorative borders John Ladbury and Co. Supplier of Victorian and Edwardian Kingston,
and panels, fireplaces, mouldings and Unit 11, conservatories and accessories. Staverton, Totnes,
the like. Alpha Business Park, Devon T09 6AR
Travellers Close, The Original Box Sash Wmdow (01803) 762 626
Victorian Lace Welham Green, Company Fax: (01803) 762 584
Units U3 and S7 Hatfield, see Windows Manufacturers o( 17th-century hand-
Rudford Industrial Estate, Hertfordshire AL9 7NT forged door hardware and fittings.
Ford, Arundel, (01707) 262966 (TeVFax) Room Outside
West Sussex BN18 OBE Maker of fitted furniture for Lakeside House T.J. Harwood and Co . Ltd
(01903) 731 030 traditional-style kitchens, bedrooms Quarry Lane, Harrison Street,
Fax: (01903) 731 031 and studies. Chichester, Briercliff,
Decorative structural columns in cast West Sussex P019 2NY Burnley BB 10 2HP
aluminium and cast iron for porches, Scottwood of Nottingham (01243) 776 563 (01282) 451110
staircases, balustrading, decorative Dabell Avenue, Fax: (01243) 776 313 Fax: (01282) 451160
panels, railings and gates. Also Blenheim Industrial Estate, A range ofmodular elements for Georgian, Victorian and other period
makers o(glazed canopies. Bulwell, modem and traditional conservatories styles of reproduction door hardware
Nottingham NG6 8WA that allow you to choose sizes, finishes, in brass, porcelain and cast iron.
York Handmade Brick Co. (0115) 977 0877 types ofglazing and other detailing.
Forest Lane, Fax: (0115) 977 0367 'In' Doors Ltd
Nne, Makers of fitted bathrooms, kitchens Rutland County lnvicta Works,
North Yorks. Y06 2LU and bedrooms in pine and hardwoods 'Snowhill' Preston, Mill Street,
(01347) 838886 in a variety of finishes. Oakham, East Mailing,
Fax: (01347) 838885 Rutland, KentME196BP
Manufacturers of handmade bricks Smallbone Leicestershire LE15 9Nj (01732) 841 606
and terra cotta floor riles. see Kitchens (01572) 737 502 Fax: (01732) 870 016
Fax: (01572) 737 602 Suppliers o( original old solid pine
BUILT-IN FURNITURE Ye o Valley Joinery Maker of tailor-made conservatories doors as well as glazed doors with
see Staircases and orangeries. plain and stained glass and
Archer and Smith Ltd cupboard doors.
Manor House, CEILINGS Vale Garden Houses Ltd
Chiseldon, Melton Road, B. Lilly and Sons Ltd
Swindon SN4 OLN Aristocast Originals Ltd Harlaxton, nr Grantham, Baltimore Road,
(01793) 740 375 see Walls Lincolnshire NG32 1HO BirminghamB421Dj
Fax: (01793) 741110 (01476) 64433 (0121) 357 1761-
Maker and designer o( reproduction Wheatley Fax: (01476) 78555 Fax: (012 1) 357 9029
period and custom-design furniture. Avonvale Studio Workshops, Designer and manufacturer of A small line ofantique door handles
Avonvale Place, traditional couservatories and garden . in polished brass and brown relieved
Artisan Period and Victorian Batheaston BA1 7RF rooms. finish.
Joinery (01225) 859 678 (TeVFax)
see Woodwork and joinery Ornamental plasterwork (or ceilings DOORS Mackinnon and Bailey
and walls, including cornices, ceiling 72 Floodgate Street,
Ashley Stocks Furniture Ltd centres, niches, plaques, panel Architectural Components Birmingham B5 5SL
Units 9 and 10, moulding, columns and fireplace 4-8 Exhibition Road, (012 1) 773 5827
Parkfield Trading Estate, surrounds. Will also fir items and do London SW7 2HF Fax: (012 1) 766 6072
Culven Place, rescoratimt work on existing (0171) 584 6800 Manufacturers of fittings for doors,
London SW11 5BA plasterwork. Fax: (0171) 589 4928 windows, and cupboards in polished
(0171) 627 1222 Manufacturers ofdoor fittings in brass, chromium plate and satin
Fax: (0171) 622 1053 Winther Browne Victorian, Georgian and Regency chromium plate. Also make hooks,
Traditional-style made-to-measure see Woodwork and joinery styles. Also cupboard, bathroom and plates, brackets and ventilators.
kitchens, wardrobes and bookcases in furniture fittings, electrical plates and
natural wood and painted finishes. locks.
DIRECTORY OF SUPPLIERS: BRITISH 547
The Original Box Sash Wmdow Firestyle Chimneypieces FLOORS IRONWORK
Company 158 Up minster Road,
see Windows IIminster, John Burgess Tiles Ballantine Boness Iron Co.
Essex RM14 2RB Unit B25, Maws Craft Centre, Links Road, Bo'ness,
Syntonic Joinery (01708) 456 895 jackfield, Shropshire TF8 7LS West Lothian,
see Woodwork and joinery Fax: (01708) 477 994 (01952) 884 094 Scotland EH51 9PW
Handcrafted marble chimneypieces in Reproduction Victorian and Art (01506) 822 721/281 281
Victorian Pine Save A Tree several classical and period designs; Nouveau ceramic wall and fioor tiles. Fax: (0 1506) 827 326
see Architectural Salvage also fireplace insens and a fitting Manufacturer and fitter ofornamental
service available. Crucial Trading Ltd cast-iron panels for railings, balconies,
FIREPLACES 77 Westbourne Park Road, gates and stairways.
Grahamston Iron Co. London W2 4BX
Acquisitions see Ironwork (0171) 221 9000 J.D. Beardmore and Co. Ltd
4-6 jamestown Road, Fax: (0171) 727 3634 3-5 Percy Street,
London NWl 7BX Hallidays Natural fioor coverings in a range that London WlP OE)
(0171) 485 4955 The Old College, includes seagrass, coir, sisa, rush and (0171) 637 7041
Fax: (0 171) 267 4361 Dorchester-on-Thames, medieval matting. Fax: (0171) 436 9222
Original and reproduction Victorian Oxfordshire OX9 8HL A large selection ofperiod
and Edwardian fireplaces, gas- and (01865) 340 028/340 068 S. Frances reproduction designs: decorative
coal-effect fires and accessories. Fax: (01865) 3401149 82 jermyn Street, grilles, electrical fittings, door and
Specializing in hand-carved Baltic Stjames's, cabinet furniture, locks.
Amazing Grates pine reproduction mantelpiece designs London SWl Y 6)D
61 -63 High Road, of the Regency, Georgian, Victorian (0171) 9761234 Britannia
East Finchley, and Edwardian pen'ods. Fax: (017 1) 930 8451 Old Coach House,
London N2 8AB Complementary marble slips, Hearths, Antique carpets, textiles and Draymans Ways,
(0181) 883 9590 firegrates, fenders and other tapestries. Alton,
Fax: (0181) 365 2053 accessories, both reproduction and Hampshire GU34 lAY
Manufacturers ofreproduction authentic antique; also wood panelled H. and R. Johnson Tiles Ltd (01420) 84427
fireplace settings and suppliers of rooms and cabinet furniture. see Walls Fax: (01420) 89056
original pen.od chimneypieces and Large range of Victorian cast-iron
in sen grates. Stock includes wood, Overmantels Original Style work for balconies, spiral and stracght
stone and marble mantels, fireplace 66 Battersea Bridge Road, Falcon Road, staircases and the like. Also
tiles, and a wide range ofaccessories. London SWll SAG Sawton Industrial Estate, restoration and repair work and
Also restores original fireplaces. (0171) 223 8151 Exeter, custom-made designs from original
Fax: (0171) 924 2283 Devon EX2 7LF castings.
Architectural Antiques (London) Overmantel gilt mirrors reproduced (0 1392) 216 923
see Architectural Salvage from Victorian, Regency, Georgtim Fax: (01392) 219 932 Capricorn Architectural
DIRECTORYOFSUPPLIERS:AMERICAN
Architectural Salvage Yards p.551 Architectural Antiques, Inc. Irreplaceable Artifacts of North DOORS AND WINDOWS
Doors and Windows p.551 801 Washington Avenue North, America, Inc.
Fabrics p.552 Minneapolis, 14 Second Avenue, Allied Window, Inc.
Fireplaces and Stoves p.552 MN 55401 New York, 2724 West McMicken Avenue,
Floors p.553 (612) 332-8344 NY10003 Cincinnati,
Hardware p.553 Architectural salvage & reproductions. (212) 777-2900 OH45214
Ki tchen and Bath Cabinetry p.554 Architectural Antiquities Interior and exterior elements from New (800) 445 -5411,
Lghting p.554 Harborside, York and surroundings. (513) 559-1212
Metalwork p.555 ME04642 Lost City Arts Invisible storm windows, instde or
Plum bing p.555 (207) 326-4938 275 Lafayette Street, outside.
Walls, Ceilings and Millwork p.555 Old house pans, hardware, !Jghting. New York, American Heritage Shutters, Inc.
Other Useful Addresses p.556 The Architectural Bank NY 10012 6655 Popler Street,
Magazines and Books p.556 1824 Felicity Street, (212)941 -8025 Suite 204,
New Orleans, Architectural lighting, advenising signs, Germantown,
This list includes many of the best and LA 70113 elements ofdemolished buildings. TN38138
most widely-distributed suppliers of (504) 523-2702 Miaterials Unlimited (901) 751-1000
home furnishings products, but is by Old and reproduction shuuers, 2 West Michigan Avenue, Interior and exterior shuuers
no means complete. Not only are fireplaces, hardware. Ypsilanti, Andersen Windows
literally hundreds of companies Berkeley Architectural Salvage MI 48197 Box3900,
making fine products for interiors, but 2741 Tenth Street, (313) 483-6980 Peoria,
the field is rapidly growing. Magazines Berkeley, Salvage plus new architectural ll61614
devoted to interior restoration, CA 94710 materials, antique furniture and (800) 426-4261
preservation and style are rich sources (415) 849-2025 accessones. Windows, glazed doors, sky!Jghts.
of craftspeople and manufacturers. Salvage hardware and new stock. Nostalgia Architectural Antiques Architectural Components
Most of the companies below Sylvan Brandt 307 Stiles Avenue, 26 North Leverett Road,
produce catalogs which they distribute 651 East Main Street, Savannah, Montague,
either free or at moderate cost. The Lititz, GA31401 MA 01351
catalogs themselves are often full of PA 17543 (912) 236-8176 (413) 367-9441
good ideas for restoration projects. (717) 626-4520 Doors, windows, fireplaces. All old and Pediment doorways, palladian
Manufacturing sources normally Flooring, windows, doors, hardware, new building and decorating materials windows, sashes, all woodworking
sell only to retail outlets. If you write log houses. and !Jghting. services.
or call, they will identify the source By-Gone Days Antiques Ohrnega Salvage Artistic Glass
nearest you. 3100 South Boulevard, 2407 San Pablo Avenue, 2112 Dundas Street West,
Sources which sell to the trade Charlotte, Berkeley, Toronto,
only may allow you to visit their NC28209 CA 94702 Ontario M6R 1W9
showrooms; many have catalogs or (704) 527-8718 (51 0) 843-7368 Canada,
brochures. To buy from these sources, Architectural salvage. Authentic hardware and architectural (416)531-4881
however, it will be necessary to use Coronado Wrecking & Salvage elements. Will search for panicular Tempered glass doors, windows,
the services of a decorator or architect. 4200 Broadway South East, needs. skylights, room dividers.
Albuquerque, The Renovation Source To the trade only.
ARCHITECTURAL NM87105 3512 North Southport, The Atrium Door & Wmdow
SALVAGE YARDS (505) 877-2821 Chicago, Company
Old house pans. ll60657 PO Box 226957,
Antiquarian Traders Elizabeth Street (312) 327-1250 Dallas,
9031 West Olympic Blvd., 210 Elizabeth Street, All elements needed for restoration and TX 75222-6957
Beverly Hills, New York, renovation. (2 14) 634-9663
CA90211 NY 10012 United House Wrecking Doors, windows, extenor hardware.
(310) 247-3900 (212) 941-4800 535 Hope Street, S- A. Bendheim Co., Inc.
and Outdoor and garden objects, fountains. Stamford, 61 Willett Street,
399 Lafayette Street, The Emporium CT06906 Passaic,
New York, 2515 Morse Street, (203) 348-5371 NJ 07055
NY 10003 Houston, Old and reproduction house pans, (800) 221 -7379,
(212) 260-1200 TX 77019 windows, doors, garden ornaments. in NJ (201) 471-1733
Antique architectural elements, lighting (713) 528-3808 Urban Archaeology Restoration glass made using the
and furniture on both coasts. Salvage and reproduction elements for 285 Lafayette Street, original cylinder method.
Architectural Accents old houses. New York, Blenko Glass Company
2711 Piedmont Road, Gargoyles NY10012 Box67,
Atlanta, 512 South Third Street, (212) 431-6969 Milton,
GA30305 Philadelphia, Doors, windows, fireplaces, exterior WV25541
(404) 266-8700 PA 19147 ornantent. (304) 743-9081
Old and reproduction architectural (215) 629-1700 Urban Artifacts Handblown reproduction glass.
elements. Decorative and architectural house 4700 Wissahickon Avenue, Grand Era Reproductions
Architectural Antiques elements. Suite 111, PO Box 1026},
121 East Sheridan Avenue, Great Gatsby's Philadelphia, Lapeer,
Oklahoma City, 5070 Peachtree Industrial PA 19144 Ml48446
OK73104 Boulevard, (800) 621-1962 (313) 664-1 756
(405) 232-0759 Atlanta, Fireplaces, doors, stained and beveled Victorian, colonial, Cape Cod style
Architectural salvage. GA30341 glass. screen/storm doors.
Architectural Antiques Exchange (404) 457-1905 Dennis C. Walker Historic Shutter & Restoration, Inc.
715 North Second Street, Large selection ofarchitectural antiques POBox309, 5700 Fourth Avenue,
Philadelphia, and reproductions. Tallmadge, Key West,
PA 19123 OH44278 FL33040
(215) 922-3669 (216) 633-1081 (305) 296-6332
Old house and building pans. Historic building materials: beams, Custom manufacturing and complete
flooring, stone, mantels, doors, shutter restoration.
dismantled buildings.
-
<~--' -~-... ~ ---
552 DIRECTORY OF SUPPLIERS: AMERICAN
Historic Windows Velux-America Inc. The Fabric Outlet Osborne & Little
POBox 1172, PO Box5001, 30 Airport Road, 979 Third Avenue,
Harrisonburg, Greenwood, Airport Executive Plaza, New York,
VA22801 sc 29648-5001 West Lebanon, NY 10022
(540) 434-5855 (800) 283-2831 NH03784 (212) 751-3333
Wooden interior shutters. Windows, skylights. (800) 635-9715 Fabrics and wallcoverings imported
Hope's Landmark Products Inc. Weathershield Mfg. Discount designer fabric. from England and France; Nina
POBox580, POBox309, Fabrics First Campbell, Designers Guild, Fardis
95-99 jamestown Avenue, Medford, POBox3359 lines. To the trade only.
Jamestown, Wl54451 Grand Rapids, Pierre Deux
NY 14702-0580 (800} 477-6808 M149501-3359 870 Madison Avenue,
(716) 665-6223 The Woodstone Company (800) 627-2526 New York,
Window hardware such as casement Patch Road, Fabric catalog - they will make up NY10021
operators and scroll handles. POBox223, window treatments and pillows to order. (800) 7-PIERRE
Jennifer's Glass Works Westminster, Fonthill, Ltd. French furnishing fabrics distributed
6767 Peachtree Industrial Blvd., VT05158 979 Third Avenue, through Pierre Deux shops nationwide.
Norcross, (802) 722-4784 New York, Raintree Designs
GA30092 Custom-made exterior doors, windows. NY 10022 979 Third Avenue,
(404) 447-4878 (212) 755-6700 New York,
Leaded, beveled and stained glass; FABRICS Fabrics and coordinating wallcoverings. NY 10022
window and door millwork. To the trade only. (800) 422-4400
Kenmore Industries Baker, Knapp & Tubbs Greeff Fabrics Manufacturers ofthe Victoria Morland
One Thompson Square, 917 Merchandise Mart, 210 Madison Avenue, fabrics and wallcovenngs widely
POBox34, Chicago, New York, disrn"buted at retail.
Boston, IL 60654 NY 10016 Arthur Sanderson & Sons
MA02129 (312) 329-9410 (212) 223-0357 979 Third Avenue,
(617) 242-1711 Fabrics for use in traditional settings. Fabrics and wallcoverings, including New York,
Exterior doors, windows. To the trade only. Winterthur Collection. To the trade only. NY10022
Lamson-Taylor Custom Doors John Boone Inc. Hinson & Company (212) 319-7220
3 Tucker Road, 979 Third Avenue, 979 Third Avenue, Traditional English fabrics and
South Ackworth, New York, New York, wallcoverings including William Morris
NH03607 NY 10022 NY 10022 designs. To the trade only.
(603) 835-2992 (212) 758-0012 (212) 475-4100 Scalamandre
Custom wood doors. Fabrics, wallcoverings and mmmings. Fabrics, wallpaper, decorative 300 Trade Zone Drive,
Marvin Windows & Doors To the trade only. accessones, lighting To the trade only. Ronkonkoma,
Warroad, Boussac of France, Inc. Houles NY 11779
MN56763 979 Third Avenue, 8584 Melrose Avenue, (516) 467-8800
(800) 346-5128 New York, Los Angeles, Specialists in fabrics for historic
inMN (800)552-1167 NY 10022 CA90069 restorations. To the trade only.
in Canada (800) 263-6161 (2 12) 421 -0534 (213) 652-6171, F. Schumacher & Co.
Woodframed doors, windows, French fabrics. To the trade only. Fax: (213) 652-8370 79 Madison Avenue,
skylights. Brunschwig & Fils French imported drapery and New York,
Morgan Products Ltd. 979 Third Avenue, upholstery trimmings. To the trade. NY 10016
500 Park Plaza, New York, Christopher Hyland Inc. (800) 523-1200
Box2446, NY 10022 979 Third Avenue, (212) 213-7900
Oshkosh, (212) 838-7878 New York, Traditional fabrics, wallcoverings,
Wl54903 Fabrics, wallcoverings, many NY 10022 carpets. To the trade only.
(800) 766-1992 documentary in source. (212) 688-6121, Silk Surplus
Wooden doors and windows in all To the trade only. Fax: (212) 688-6176 235 East 58th Street,
styles; a new line includes leaded, Calico Comers Imported English fabric and New York,
beveled panes. 203 Gale Lane, wallcovering including Watts & Co., NY 10022
National Wmdows Kennert Square, Gainsborough Silk Weavers, (212) 753-6511
2201 North 29th Avenue, PA 19348-1764 Timney-Fowler. To the trade only. Discount fabrics and trimmings, many
Birmingham, (800) 777-9933 for store locations Kravet from Scalamandri.
AL35207 Nationwide chain ofdiscount shops 225 Central Avenue South,
(205) 252-7157 carrying fine fabrics. Also mail-order Bethpage, FIREPLACES AND STOVES
Windows in all styles. catalog NY 11714
The Old Wagon Factory Manuel Canovas, Inc. (5 16) 293-2000 Danny Alessandro, Ltd.
PO Box 1427, 979 Third Avenue, Fabrics including the Mark Hampton Edwin jackson, Ltd.,
Clarksville, New York, collection. To the trade only. .307 East 60th Street,
VA23927 NY 10022 Lee/]ofa New York,
(804) 374-5787 (212) 752-9588 800 Central Blvd., NY10022
Victonl:m storm/screen doors, Fax: (212) 935-0619 Carlstadt, (212) 759-8210
gingerbread ornaments, garden gates. French fabrics. To the trade only. Nj07072 Antique and reproduction fireplaces
Pella Corporation Clarence House Imports (201 ) 438-8444, and accessories.
100 Main Street, 211 East 58th Street, Fal<: (201) 438-7034 Bryant Stove Works, Inc.
Pella, New York, Fabrics and wallcoverings. RFD2 Box 2048,
1A50219 NY 10022 To the trade only. Rich Road,
(800) 547-3552 (212) 752-2890, Marvic Textiles Thorndyke,
All windows and doors, including the Fax: (212) 645-8060 979 Third Avenue, ME04986
Architects Series. Traditional imported furnishing fabrics New York, (207) 568-3665
Shuttercraft and wallcoverings. To the trade only. NY 10022 Victorian-style woodstoves and
282 Stepstone Hill, Cowtan & Tout (212) 371 -4333 cookstoves, coal stoves, player pianos.
Guilford, 979 Third Avenue, Fine traditional fabrics. Buckley Rumford Fireplace Co.
CT06437 New York, To the trade only. PO Box 21131,
(203) 453-1973 NY 10022 Christopher Norman, Inc. Columbus,
Wooden interior shutters. (212) 753-4488 504 East 74th Street, OH43221
Touchstone Woodworks Traditional furnishing fabrics and New York, (614) 221 -6131
Depattment E.S., wallcoverings, including Colefax NY 10021 Efficient fireplace inserts; plans, kits,
PO Box 112, & Fowler,]ane Churchill. (212) 879-6559 components and fully -installed units.
Ravenna 1 To the trade only. Fabric, wallcoverings, furniture,
OH44266 lighting To the trade only.
(216) 297-1313
Victorian style screen/stomz doors.
DIRECTORY OF SUPPLIERS: AMERICAN 553
Classic Cast Stone of Dallas, Inc. Aged Woods ElonTtle Thos. K. Woodard
3162 Miller Drive North, First Capital Wood Products, Inc., 150 East 58th Street 799 Madison Avenue,
Garland, 2331 East Market Street, New York, New York,
TX 75042-7759 ::(ork, NY 10155 NY 10021
(214) 276-2000 PA 17402 (212) 759-6996 (212) 988-2906
Cast stone fireplaces and architectural (800) 233-9307, Tiles for floors, kitchens, baths. Early American-style carpets and
elements. To the trade only. in PA (717) 840-0330 Edward Fields Carpetrnakers runners; quilts.
The Country Iron Foundry Antique wood floor boards, ceilings, 232 East 59th Street,
PO Box 600, wall paneling. New York, HARDWARE
Paoli, Albany Woodworks NY 10022
PA 19301 POBox729, (212) 310-0400 American Home Supply
(610)296-7122, Albany, Custom carpets. To the trade only. PO Box 697,
Cast iron firebacks. LA 70711, Goodwin Lumber Company Campbell,
Draper & Draper, Ltd. (504) 567-1155 Rt. 2, Box 119-AA, CA95009
200 Lexington Avenue, Antzque pine flooring. moldings, Micanopy, (408) 246-1962
New York, paneling. doors, stairtreads. FL 32667 Solid brass reproduction hardware.
NY 10016 American Olean Ttle Co. (800) 336-3118, or (904) 373-9663 Anglo-American Brass Co.
(212) 679-0547 1000 Cannon Avenue, Heart pine flooring. lumber for PO Box Drawer 9487,
Handcarved reproduction PO Box 271, cabinetry. San jose,
American-style mantels. Lansdale, Harris-Tarkett Inc. CA 95 157-9487
Elmira Stove Works PA 19446-0271 2225 Eddie Williams Road, (408) 246-0203
22 Church Street, (215) 855-1111 POBox300, 1V1anu(acturers ofexterior and interior
Elmira, Tiles for floors, walls, kitchens, baths. johnson City, hardware in many styles. Lamps,
Ontario N3B 1M3 Authentic Pine Floors Inc. TN 37605-0300 shades and furniture hardware.
Canada, 4042 Highway 42, (800) 842 -7816 Ball and Ball
(519) 669-5103 POBox206, Hardwood flooring in plank and 463 West Lincoln Highway,
Fireplace insens, woodstoves, Locust Grove, parquet; pine floonng. Exton,
cookstoves GA30248 The Italian Ttle Center PA 19341
Hallidays America Inc. (800) 283-6038 Italian Trade Commission, (610) 363-7330
PO Box 731, 4-inch to 12-inch pine flooring. 499 Park Avenue, Exterior hardware, imenor hardware,
Sparta, Doris Leslie Blau New York, lighting.
Nj 07871 -0731 15 East 57th Street, NY 10022 Monroe Coldren & Sons
(201) 729-8876 New York, (212) 980-1500 723 East Virginia Avenue,
Antique and reproduction mantels from NY 10022 Information on Italian tile manu- West Chester, PA 19380,
England, distributed through Beacon (212)759-3715 facturers and distnbutors in the US. (610) 692-5651
Hill showrooms to the trade. Fine antique carpets and textiles. The Joinery Co. Original iron and brass hardware
Mantels of Yesteryear, Inc. J. R. Burrows & Co. POBox518, Crawford's Old House Store
70 West Tennessee Avenue, POBox522, Tarboro, 301 McCall, Room 907,
POBox 90S, Rockland, NC27886 Waukesha,
McCaysville, MA02370 (919) 823-3306 WI 53186
GA30555 (617) 982-1812 Heart pine for flooring. paneling. stair (800) 556-7878,
(706) 492-5534 American representative ofWoodward parts, cabinetry. (414) 542-0685
Antique mantelpieces to the trade. Grosvenor & Co. ofEngland. William Kentucky Wood Floors Reproduction Victorian hardware.
Rais & Wittus, Inc. Morris and other archival patterns. 4200 Reservoir Avenue, Crown City Hardware
Hack Green Road, Scottish lace, late 19th century Louisville, 1047 North Allen Avenue,
Pound Ridge, wallpaper patterns. KY 40213 Pasadena,
NY 10576 Carlisle Restoration Lumber (502) 451 -6024 CA 91004
(914) 764-5679 Box606D, Wood floors All restoration hardware.
Distributors of the Swedish Rais Stoddard, Patterson, Flynn & Martin, Inc. Elephant Hill Ironworks
woodstove. NH03464 979 Third Avenue, Rte. 1, Box 168,
ReadybuiltProduc~ (603) 446-3937 New York, Tunbridge,
1701 McHenry Street, Wood for wide-board floors, wall NY 10022 VT05077
Baltimore, paneling. (212) 751 -6414 (802) 889-9444
MD21223, Chevalier, Inc. Carpets and rugs including Colefax & Hand-forged iron latches, hinges,
(301) 233-5833 11 East 57th Street, Fowler and Stockwell from England. fireplace cranes, jamb hooks.
Manufacturers ofmantelpieces, heater New York, To the trade only. Liz Gordon
fireplaces, gas/electric logs. NY 10022 Mountain Lumber Los Angeles,
Royal Crown European Fireplaces (212) 750-5505, Route 2 Box 43-1, CA
333 East State Street, Suite 206, Antique tapestries & rugs, restoration Ruckersville, (800) 939-9003
Rockford, and cleaning. VA22968 Antique and reproduction hardware
IL61104 Conklin's (804) 985-3646 from mid-1800s to Bakelite.
(800) 373-2042 R.D. #1, Box 70, Antique heart pine. P.E. Guerin
Swedish -style ceramic stoves burning Susquehanna, Sandy Pond Hardwoods 21-23 & 25 jane Street,
wood or natural gas. PA 18847 921 -A Lancaster Pike, New York,
(717) 465-3832 OuartyVille, NY 10014
FLOORS Barnwood weathered over decades, PA 17566 (212) 243-5271
random-width planks and flooring. (717) 284-5030 Manufacturers and importers ofdoor
ABC Carpet & Home hand-hewn beams. To the trade. Tiger and bird's-eye maple, curly ash, and plumbing hardware.
888 Broadway, Country Floors Inc. oak, cherry. birch lumber and floonng. To the trade only.
New York, 15 East 16th Street, Stark Carpet Corporation Historic Housefitters Co.
NY 10003 New York, 979 Third Avenue, Farm to Market Road,
(800) 888-7847, NY10003 New York, Brewster,
in NY (212) 473-3000 (212) 627-8300 NY 10022 NY 10509
A fabulous store with every style ofold Vast selection of floors in all materzals. (212) 752-9000 (914) 278-2427
and new rugs1 carpeting furniture, Several trade showrooms nationwide. Antique and custom-made carpets. Brass and iron handmade hardware.
home accessories. Designs in Ttle To the trade only. The Home Book
POBox358, Trresias, Inc. 628 Santa Cruz Avenue,
Mt. Shasta, PO Box 1522, Menlo Park,
CA96067 Orangeburg, CA 94025
(916) 926-2629 sc 29116 Catalog of hardware, tools, lighting
Historic reproductions in many styles (803) 534-8478 plumbing fixtures, furniture and
such as; Art Deco, Gothic Revival, Wood floors, fireplaces, moldings. accesson'es mostly colltemporary
Willzam De Morgan, Arts & Crafts. in style.
554 DIRECTORY OF SUPPLIERS: AMERICAN
Hundley Hardware Williamsburg Blacksmiths SieMatic Corporation Hurley Patentee Lighting
617 Bryant Street, PO Box 1776, 886 Town Center Drive, 464 Old Rt 209,
San Francisco, Williamsburg, Langhorne, Hurley,
CA 94107 MA01096 PA 19047 NY 12443
(415) 777-5050 (413) 268-7341 (215) 750-1928 (914)331-5414
Door, ~1rniture and bathroom Quality wrought iron hardware. Kitchen cabinetry, including Smallbone. Reproduction early lighting, either
hardware. Wood's Metal Studios Wellborn Cabinet Inc. candle-lit or electrified. Hurricane
Kayne & Son Custom Forged 6945 Fishburg Road, 38669 Hwy. 77, shades, brackets, candles, bulbs.
Hardware Dayton, PO Box 1210, Iron Apple Forge
76 Daniel Ridge Road, OH45424 Ashland, Routes 263 & 413,
Candler, (513) 233-6751 AL 36251 POBox724,
NC 28715 Reproduction iron latches, shutter (800) 336-8040 Buckingham,
(704) 667-8868 hardware, pot racks. \Voodw cabinets for kitchen, bath. PA 18912
Hooks, brackets, custom forging. Woodbury Blacksmith & Forge Co. Wood-Mode (215) 794-7351
Kemp & George POBox268, Kreamer, Wrought iron chandeliers and ironwork.
9180 Lesaint Drive, Woodbury, PA 17833 Just Bulbs
Fairfield, CT06798 (800) 635-7500 936 Broadway,
OH 45014 (203) 263-5737 Kitchen cabinets. New York,
(800) 343-4012 Early American wrought iron NY 10010
Mail order extenor door hardware, hardware. LIGHTING (212) 228-7820
ceilings, moldings, lighting, kitchen Every sort of light bulb: quartz halogen,
sinks, bath hardware. KITCHEN AND BATH Marvin Alexander, Inc. globes, candle bulbs.
Kraft Hardware CABINETRY 315 East 62nd Street, King's Chandelier Company
306 East 61st Street, New York, Highway 14, PO Box 667,
New York, A11milmo Corporation NY 10021 Eden (Leaksville),
NY 10021 70 Clinton Road, (212) 838-2320 NC27288
(212) 838-2214 PO Box 629, Fine antique chandeliers and wall (910) 623-6188
Wide range ofarchitectural, bath and Fairfield, sconces. To the trade. Crystal chandeliers and sconces.
furniture hardware. To the trade only. NJ 07004 Authentic Designs Lighting Specialist, Inc.
Brian F. Leo (201) 227-2502 The Mill Road, 4103 San Fernando Road,
7532 Columbus Avenue, South, Kitchen and bath cabinets. West Rupert, Glendale,
Richfield, Alno Network USA VT 05776-0011 CA 91204
MN55423 One Design Center Place, #643, (802) 394-7713 (818) 240-3913
(612) 861-1473 Boston, Early American and Colonial Antique chandeliers, wall sconces and
Custom fabricator ofhardware, MA02210 reproduction lighting fixtures. lamps. To the trade.
architectural ornament and cast-metal (616) 482-5592 B & P Lamp Supply, Inc. Gates Moore
specialties. Kitchen cabinetry 843 Old Morrison Highway, River Road, Silvermine,
Uz's Antique Hardware Downsview Kitchens McMinnville, Norwalk,
435 South La Brea Avenue, 2635 Rena Road, TN 37110 CT06850
Los Angeles, Mississauga, (615) 473-3016 (203) 847 3231
CA 90036 Ontario L4T 1G6 Early American and Victorian Reproductions ofantique lighting.
(213) 939-4403 Canada reproduction lamps, lamp parts, Nesle
350,00 pieces ofold hardware in all (905) 677-9354 for nearest shades, bulbs. 151 East 57th Street,
styles from Victorian to Deco. showroom Brandon Industries New York,
Paxton Hardware Ltd. Kitchen cabinetry through designers. 1601 West Wilmeth Road, NY 10022
7818 Bradshaw Road, Beverly Ellsley Collection McKinney, (212) 755-0515
Upper Falls, 175 Post Road West, TX 75069 Amique and reproduction chandeliers,
MD21156 Westport, (214) 542 3000 sconces and lamps. To the trade only.
(41 0)592-8505 CT06880 Sconces, lamp posts, mailboxes. Progress Ughting
Distributors ofdoor and furniture (203) 454-0503 BrassUne 101 Corporate Drive,
hardware and lamp parts. Handcrafted kitchen cabinets. 5935 South Broadway, Spartanburg,
Plexacraft Products, Inc. The Kennebec Company Tyler, sc 29303-5007
5406 San Fernando Road, 1 Front Street, TX75703 (803) 599-6000
POBox3722, Bath, (903) 561-1111 Indoor and outdoor lighting.
Glendale, ME04530 Reproduction lighting from American, Rejuvenation Lamp & Fixture Co.
CA 91201 (207) 443-2131 English, and French originals. 11 00 South East Grand Avenue,
(818) 246-8201 Handcrafted wooden cabinetry. City Lights Portland,
Exterior and interior hardware. Merillat Industries, Inc. 2226 Massachusetts Avenue, OR97214
The Renovator's Supply PO Box 1946, Cambridge, (503) 230-1900
Millers Falls, Adrian, MA02140 Reproduction lighting; especially strong
MA01349 Ml49221 (617)547-1490 in arts-and-crafts styles.
(800) 659-2231 (800) 624-1250 Large stock ofantique fixtures and Roy Electric Co., Inc.
Mail order exterior hardware, ittterior Kitchen aud bathroom cabinets. lamps. 1054 Coney Island Avenue,
hardware, stairs, fireplaces, bath and Christopher Peacock Bespoke A . J. P. Coppersmith & Co. Brooklyn,
kitchen hardware, bath sinks. English Cabinetry 20 Industrial Parkway, NY 11230
Tremont Nail Company 151 Greenwich Avenue, Woburn, (800) 366-3347,
8 Elm Street, Greenwich, MA01801 in NY (718) 434-7002
POBox 111, CT06830 (617) 245-1223 Antique & reproduction Victonim and
Wareham, (203) 862-9333 Indoor and outdoor lighting. turn of the century lighting; antique and
MA02571 Kitchen cabinets in the English Conant Custom Brass reproduction plumbing fixtures, parts.
(508) 295 -0038 tradition. Brochure. PO Box 1523T, The Saltbox
Steel cut nails for historic restoration; Poggenpohl USA Corp. Burlington, 3004 Columbia Avenue,
hardware. 8010 Woodland Center, Suite 400, VT05402 Lancaster,
Virginia Metalcrafters Tampa, (802) 658-4482 PA 17603
1010 East Main Street, FL 33614 Solid brass and polished chrome (717) 392-5649
POBox 1068, (305) 923-2688 reproduction lighting and hardware. Reproductions of indoor and outdoor
Waynesboro, Kitchen and bathroom cabinets. Hammerworks lighting, mainly 18th century.
VA22980 Rutt Custom Kitchens 6 Fremont Street, Versailles Ughting, Inc.
(540)949-9400 PO Box 129, Worcester, 224 West 30th Street, 9th Floor,
Hardware, lighting, fireplace 1564 Main Street, MA01603 New York,
accessones from a number of historic Goodville, (508) 755-3434 NY 10001
restorations: Colonial Williamsburg, PA 17528 Handmade Colonial reproduction (212) 564-0240
Historic Newport, Old Sturbridge (215) 445-6751 chandeliers, sconces, lanterns in copper, Antique chandeliers and sconces.
Village, Mystic Seaport. Kitchen cabinets. brass, iron, tin To the trade.
DIRECTORY OF SUPPLIERS: AMERICAN 555
Victorian Lighting Works Robinson Iron Anthony Wood Products Decorators Supply Corp.
251 South Pennsylvania Avenue, Box 1119, PO Box 1081, 3610 South Morgan Street,
POBox469, 1856 Robinson Road, Hillsboro, Chicago,
Centre Hall, """7\.lexander City, TX76645 1L 60609
PA 16828 AL35011 -1119 (817) 582-7225 (312) 847-6300
(814) 364-9577 (205) 329-8486 Balusters, finials, porch rosts, fretwork, Moldings, brackets, capitals, fireplaces.
Victorian-style lighting fixtures. Cast iron lighting, fountains and brackets, corbels. Driwood
statuary. Architectural Paneling, Inc. PO Box 1729,
METALWORK Steptoe & Wife Antiques, Ltd. 979 Third Avenue, Florence,
322 Geaty Avenue, New York, sc 29503
AA Abingdon Affiliates, Inc. Toronto, Canada M6H 2C7 NY 10022 (803) 669-2478
2149 Utica Avenue, (416) 530-4200 (212) 371-9632 Wall paneling, moldings, stairs,
Brooklyn, Cast iron spiral stairs. Paneling, moldings, fireplaces; all fireplaces.
NY 11234 Stewart Iron Works Co. made to order and to the trade only. Eisenhart Wallcovering Co.
(718) 258-8333 PO Box2612, Arvid's Historic Woods 400 Pine Street,
Tin ceilings, moldings. 20 West 18th Street, 2500 Hewitt Avenue, Hanover,
Architectural Iron Company Covington, Everett, PA 17331
Box 126, Route 6 West, KY 41012-2612 WA98201 (717) 632-5918
Milford, (606) 431 -1985 (800) 627-8437, Traditional wallcoverings widely
PA 18337 Fences and gates in (206) 252-8374 dtstributed at retail.
(717) 296-7722, Victoriatt!F--tlwardian styles. Wood moldings, corbels, fireplaces. Empire Woodworks Co.
(212) 243-2664 Wind & Weather Bendix Mouldings, Inc. POBox407,
Wrought and cast iron fences and The Albion Street Water Tower, 37 Ramland Road South, johnson City,
restoration. POBox2320, Orangeburg, TX78636
Cassidy Bros. Forge, Inc. Mendocino, NY 10962 (210) 868-7520
U.S. Route 1, CA95460 (800) 526-0240 Interior and exterior gingerbread.
Rowley, (800)922-9463, Wood, metal and plastic moldings. Raymond Enkeboll Designs
MA01969-1796 (707) 937-0323 Joseph Biunno 16506 Avalon Boulevard,
(508) 948-7303 Weather vanes, sundials, weather 129 West 29th Street, Carson,
Custom architectural ironwork. instnmzents, cupolas. New York, CA90706
Chelsea Decorative Metal Co. NY 10001 (310) 532-1400
9603 Moonlight Drive, PLUMBING (212) 629-5630 Carved wood architectural moldings
Houston, Carved fimals which may be used as and fireplaces. To the trade only.
TX77096 American-Standard newel posts. Evergreene Painting Studios, Inc.
(713) 721-9200 POBox6820, Blue Ox Millworks 635 West 23rd Street,
Embossed metal ceilings. Piscataway, Foot of X Street, New York,
Erie Landmark Company NJ 08855 Eureka, CA 95501, NY 10011
4449 Brookfield Corporate Drive, (800) 821 -7700 (800) 24-VICKY (212) 727-9500
Chantilly, Kitchen and bath fixtures. Historically accurate millwork: Architectural painting and murals for
VA22021 -1642 Bates & Bates moldings, balusters, fimals, handrails. public and private buildings.
(800) 874-7848 3699 Industry Avenue, Bradbury & Bradbury Fe Fi Faux Inc.
National Register plaques, meta/signs Lakewood, PO Box 155-C, 337 South Davis Street,
and logo medallions. CA 90712 Benicia, Greensboro,
Mike Shaffer, Blacksmith (213) 595-8824, CA 94510 NC 27401
Mountain Forge, (800) 726-7 680 (707) 746-1900 (910) 272-3289
1155 Dante! Court, Bath fixtures and hardware. Victorian wallpapers, handprinted 4-day workshops in all faux finishes.
Stone Mountain, To the trade only. borders, friezes, ceiling papers. Fisher & Jirouch Co.
GA30083 Eljer Plumbingware Cabot Stains 4821 Superior Avenue,
(770) 469-2680 17120 Dallas Parkway, 100 Hale Street, Cleveland,
Custom ornamental iron work, hand Dallas, Newburyport, OH44103
forgings. TX75248 MA01950 (216) 361-3840
Monte Haberman (800) 42-EL)ER (800) 877-8246 Handcrafted plaster ornaments,
1202 East Pine Street, Bathroom fixwres. Stains and sealers in wood hues and moldings, frie:::es.
Placentia, Kohler Co. colors including white. Gold Leaf Studios
CA92670 Highland Drive, Chadsworth, Inc. PO Box 50156,
(714) 993-4766 Kohler, PO Box 53268, Washington,
Hand-forged fence parts, lamps. WI53044 Atlanta, DC20091
The Iron Shop (800) 4 KOHLER GA30355 (202) 638-4660
POBox547, Kitchen and bath fixtures. (404) 876-5410 Expert restoration ofarchitectural
400 Reed Road, Sherle Wagner International Architectural wooden columns for gilding and picture frames.
Broomall, 60 East 57th Street, intenor and extenar. Gracie, Inc.
PA 19008 New York, Constantine's 1010 Lexington Avenue,
(610) 544-7100 NY10022 2050 Eastchester Road, New York,
Aluminum spiral staircases in cast-iron (212) 758-3300 Bronx, NY 10021
style. Exclusive bathroom fixwres and NY 10461 (212) 861 -1150
Moultrie Manufacturing Company hardware. (212) 792-1600 Antique wallpapers and reproductions
PO Drawer 1179, Waterworks Many kinds ofpaint induding milk in antique style. To the trade.
Moultrie, 237 East 58th Street, paint. Haas Wood & Ivory Works, Inc.
GA31768 New York, Craftsman Lumber Company 64 Clementina,
(800) 841-867 4' NY10022 436 Main Street, San Francisco,
(912) 985-1312 (800) 899-6757 for catalog Box222), CA 94105
Fences, furniture, fountains, statuary. Elegant bath fixtures in traditional Groton, (415) 421-8273
W. F. Norman Corp. styles. To the trade. MA01450 Stock and custom millwork, moldings,
PO Box323, (508) 448-6336 balusters, porch parts.
Nevada, WALLS, CEILINGS AND Kiln-dried lumber for paneling, Hosek Manufacturing Company,
M064772 MILLWORK moldings, floors, dual wainscoting. Inc.
(800) 641 -4038, Cumberland Woodcraft Co., Inc. 4877 National Western Drive, Suite
in MO (41 7) 667-5552 Anaglypta & Lincrusta PO Drawer 609, 205,
Steel ceilings, moldings, all kinds of To find local dealers:, Carlisle, Denver,
ornaments, weathervanes, finials. East Coast (800) 824-4777, PA 17013 co 80216
West Coast (800) 992-8700 (800) 367-1884, (303) 298-7010
Embossed wallcoverings and borders in in PA (717) 243-0063 Plaster and fiberglass moldings,
classical and Victorian patterns. Wood corbels, brackets, moldings, stair- ceilings, exterior columns, fireplaces.
case parts, paneling, lattice, porch parts.
556
Hyde Park Fine Art of Pagliacco Trend Lines the publisher, the American
Mouldings, Inc. POBox225, 170 William Street, Association for State and Local
2916 40th Avenue, Woodacre, Chelsea, History, 530 Church Street, Suite
Long Island City, CA94973 MA02150 600, Nashville, TN 37219, (615) 255-
NY 11101 (415) 488-4333 (617) 887-0153 2971. The book costs $79.95 plus
(800) 843-3015, Victorian style turnings and millwork Milk paint. $3.50 shipping and handling.
(718) 706-0504 and columns, interior and exterior. Tania Vartan Studio
Plaster moldings, fireplaces and Garry R. Partelow 970 Park Avenue, SCHOOLS & UNIVERSITIES
architectural ornament. POBox433, New York,
Jennifer's Glass Works 34 Lyme Street, NY10028 Most universities have courses in
1151 Hammond Drive, Old Lyme, (212) 744-6710 historic style and preservation,
Atlanta, CT06371 Murals, trompe l'oeil, faux finishes. usually in the departments of
GA30346 (203) 434-2065 Vmtage Wood Works architecture and fine atts. Many
(770) 393-0981 Custom wood turnings, balusters, Highway34, courses are available through
Leaded, beveled and stained glass; newel posts, fluting, spiral rope twist, Box R. #3052, extension or adult education
windows and door millwork. furniture pans. Ouinaln, programs. State and local historical
Dimitrios Klitsas, Fine Wood Paxwell Painting Studios TX75474 societies very often have associated
Sculptor 223 East 32nd Street, (903) 356-2158 courses. The National Trust also
378 North Road, New York, Moldings, porches, shingles, doors, offers opportunities to take part in
Hampden, NY10016 stairs, gazebos. research programs.
MA01036 (212) 725 -1737 J. P. Weaver Co. Schools teaching the crafts
(413) 566-5301 Decorative painting, murals. 941 Airway, associated with preservation such as
Hand woodcmving for private, Pratt & Lambert Glendale, special paint finishes and gilding
corporate and ecclesiastical 75 Tonawanda Street, CA 91201 exist in many locations. The most
applications. Buffalo, (818) 841-5700 famous of all such schools, drawing
Mad River Woodworks NY 14207 Fine wood moldings, paneling, students &om all over the country, is
PO Box 1067, (716) 873-6000 ornament; also books and vrdeos on The Isabel O'Neil Foundation, 177
189 Taylor Way, Early Americana colors from Henry architectural ornament. East 87th Street, New York, NY
Blue Lake, Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. Worthington Group, Ltd. 10128, (2 12) 348-2120. Ex-O'Neil
CA 95525-1067 Widely distributed in paint stores. POBox868, students have set up schools in
(707) 668-5671 San Francisco Victoriana Troy, many other towns.
Wood moldings, paneling, porch 2070 Newcomb Avenue, AL36081, Craftsmen often take on
pans, stairs, gazebos. San Francisco, (800) 872-1608 apprentices. Art schools sometimes
MB Historic Decor CA94124 Moldings, trim, doors. teach wood carving as well as paint-
POBox880, (415) 648-0313 ing. The best way to find out about
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vrososs ceiling roses, cornices, swags, capitals, ADDRESSES/SOURCES local papers and art and craft shows.
(802) 649-1790 Crown Anaglypta embossed
Historically accurate wall and floor wallcovering, antique embossed The National Trust for Historic MAGAZINES AND BOOKS
stencils in New England style. wallpaper borders. Preservation
Mendocino Millwork A. F. Schwerd Manufacturing Co. 1785 Massachusetts Avenue, Architectural Digest, Colonial Homes,
Box669, 3215 McClure Avenue, North West, Country Living, Country Home, Elle
Mendocino, Pittsburgh, Washington, DC 20036, Decor, Fine Homebuilding, Historic
CA95460 PA 15212 (202) 673-4000 Preservation, House Beautiful, House &
(707) 937-4410 (412) 766-6322 A membership organization which Garden, Metropolitan Home, Old-house
Moldings, porch pans, doors, shingles. Wooden columns and capitals for preserves historically imponant journal , Southern Accents , Southern
Benjamin Moore Paints interior and exterior use. buildings, publishes Historic Living , Traditimral Homes
51 Chestnut Ridge Road, Sheppard Millw ork, Inc. Preservation magazine, publishes
Montvale, 2102070thAvenue, W., books via the Preservation Press, sells Carley, Rachel, The Visual Dictionary of
NJ 07645 Edmonds, books by mail, and operates the American Domestic Architecture, Henry
(201) 573-9600 WA 98020-6701 Histonc Houses Association, an Holt, New York, 1994; Garrett,
Historical Collection colors. Widely (206) 771 -4645 infornration center for those interested Wendell, Classic America and Victorian
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Moyner & Shepherd Joyners Inc. fireplaces. Urban Center Books Gottfried & jennings, American
122 Naubuc Avenue, The Sherwin-Williams Company The Villard Houses, Vernacular Design 1870- 1940, Van
Glastonbury, 101 Prospect Avenue, 457 Madison Avenue, Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1985;
CT06033 Cleveland, New York, NY 10022, Greene, Fayal and Bonita Bavetta, The
(203) 633-2383 OH44115 (212) 935-3595 Anatomy ofa House, Doubleday, New
Paneling, moldings, windows, doors, (800) 321-1386 Comprehensive architecture and York, 1991; Harris, Cyril M., Dictionary
entryways, Q/d glass. Interior and exterior paints and stains design bookshop, located in the ofArchitecture and Construction,
Old-Fashioned Milk Paint including Preservation Palette historic building which also houses McGraw-Hill, New York, 1993;
Company authentic exterior colors from the Municipal An Society, one of Highsmith, Carol M. and Ted
Box 222, Colonial to the 1970s. New York's main preservation Landphair, America Restored,
Groton, Silverton Victorian Millworks organizations. Preservation Press, Washington, DC,
MA01450 PO Box 2987, New York Landmarks 1995; Kennedy, Roger G., Greek
(508) 448-6336 Durango, Conservancy Revival America, Stewart, Tabori &
Milk-based paim in authentic colors co 81302 141 Fifth Avenue, Chang, New York, 1989; Kitchen,
for walls, furniture, stenciling. (303) 259-5915 New York, NY 10010, judith L., Canng for Your Old House,
OracDecor Molding, porches, exterior doors and (212) 995-5260 Preservation Press, Washington, DC,
Outwater Plastic Industries, windows, stairs, fireplaces. A private organization dedicated to 1995; McAlester, Virginia and Lee, A
4 Passaic Street, Dock No. 1, Stone Legends preservation, pub!tshers ofThe Field Gwde to American Houses, Knopf,
Door#S, 301 Pleasant Drive, Restoration Directory, a guide to New York, 1984; Miller, Martin &
Wood-Ridge, Dallas, services in the New York Area. judith, Period Details, Crown
Nj07075 TX75217 Publishers, New York, 1987;
(800) 888-0880, (214) 398-1199 Local historical and preservation Poppeliers, john, S. Allen Chambers,
inN), (201) 340-1040, Cast stone architectural elements and societies are the most valuable Jr., and Nancy B. Schwartz, What Style
High density polyurethane moldings, columns. To the trade. resources for authentic information Is It?, Preservation Press, Washington,
wall lights, columns, niches. Stromberg's Architectural Stone about the many variations in DC, 1983; Praz, Mario, Interior
I 30West, architecture around the country. Decoration, Thames and Hudson, New
Greenville, The invaluable Directory ofHistorical York, 1982; Savage, Beth L., Editor:
TX75401 Organizations in the United States and Afri~n American Historic Places,
(903) 454-0904' Canada is in its 14th edition, Preservation Press, Washington DC,
Cast stone moldings, fireplaces, published 1990, and should be 1995; Thornton, Peter, Authentic Decor,
columns, balustrades, fountains. available in public libraries or &om Viking Press, New York, 1984.
~~--- --
557
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Detailing in Residemiallmeriors, 1748, Routledge and Kegan Paul, Sourcebook of Tum of the Century
Whitney Library of Design London, 1984 Architectural Woodwork, E. L. Victorian a- Floor plans and Renderings
(Watson-Guptill Publications) Roberts and Co., Chicago, 1903, from the Gilded Age, Eugene
New York, 1990 Wilson, Richard Guy, McKim, Mead reprinted New York, 1988 Mitchell, Van Nostrand Reinhold
and White Architects, Rizzoli, New Co., 1983
Stevens, John Calvin, and Albert York, 1983 Sears, Roebuck Home Builder's Catalog,
Winslow Cobb, American Domestic Sears, Roebuck and Co., Chicago, Victorian Home Building: A
Architecture, The American Life Wise, Herbert H., Attention to Detail, 1910, reprinted New York, 1990 Transcontinental View, E. C.
Foundation and Study Institute, Perigee Books, New York, 1979 Hussey, origina[y published as
The Library of Victorian Culture, Sloan's Victorian Buildings, E. S. )ones Home Building: A Reliable Book of
Watk.insGlen,NewYork, 1978 Yerbury, F. R., Georgian Details of and Co., Philadelphia, 1852, Facts, Leader and VanHoesen,
Domestic Architecture, London, 1926 reprinted New York, 1980 New York, 1876, reprinted
Stickley, Gustav, The Best of American Life Foundation,
Cra~sman Homes, Peregrine Smith, Yorke, F. R. S., The Modem House, Turn-of-the-Century Houses, Cottaf.es Watkins Glen, New York, 1976
Inc., Santa Barbara, 1979 Architectural Press, London, 1934 and Villas, R. W. Shappell eta .,
The Modem House in England, Shappell's catalogues, 1880-1900, Villas and Cottages, Calvert Vaux,
Stillman, Damie, et al, Decorative Architectural Press, London, 1937 reprinted New York, 1983 Harper and Brothers, New York,
Work ofRoben Adam, Tiranti, 1857, reprinted Da Capo Press,
London, 1966 Dover reprints Victorian Cottage Residences, Andrew New York, 1968
Architecture and Ornament in Late jackson Downing, reprinted New
19th Century America, University of Historic architectural pattern books York, 1981 \'(/oodward's National Architect, George
Delaware, 1981 and catalo~ues are reprinted by a E. Woodward, New York, 1869,
number o publishers, most notably Victorian Domestic Archite~tural Plans reprinted Da Capo Press, New
Strattan, Arthur, The English Interior, Dover Publications, Inc., whose list and Details, William T. Comstock, York, 1975
Batsford, London, 1920 includes the following: New York, 1881, reprinted 1987
Summerson, John, The Classical The American Builder's Companion, R. A Victorian House Builder's Guide,
560
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The following architectural consultants are PHOTO CREDITS
gratefully acknowledged for their advice and good
offices: Dr N. Alcock, Leamington Spa, England; A Batty Langley, A Sure Guide ASA Abraham Swan, A Collection
to Builders, 1729 ofDesigns in Architecture, 1757
John Biggs, Bournemouth, Dorset; Merill Carrington,
AA Andrew Adams AT R. Lugar, Architectural Sketches
London; Dr Christopher Currie, Institute of Historical
AB Asher Benjarrtin, The for Cottages, Rural Dwellings
Research; A. Stuart Gray, Hampstead Garden Suburb, Architect, or Practical House and Villas, London, 1823
England; Linda Hall, Middlesex; Ruth H. Kamen, Royal Carpenter, 1830 B Batty Langley, The Builder's
Institute of British Architects, London; Paul F. Miller, ABA Asher Benjarrtin, The Compleat Ass1stant, 1738
Newport, Rhode Island; Tom Savage, Charleston, South American Builder's Companion, BA James Gibbs, A Book of
Carolina; Wendy Potts, Bournemouth, England; John 6th edn, 1827 Architecture, London, 2nd
Stubbs, New York City; Peter Sutton, Totnes, England; AC Anaglypta, illustrated edn, 1739
Penny Thompson, Russell-Cotes Art Galley and catalogue, 1926 BAN Bang & Olufsen, c/o Munro
Museum, Bournemouth, England; Mark Wenger, ACG T. Mawson, The Art and & Forster Communications,
Craft of Garden Making, London
Williamsburg, Virginia
Batsford, London, 4th edn, BB Bishops bam, York; thanks to
1912 Major and Mrs Lane
Thanks are due to Kuo Kang Chen for help with the AD Crooked Pightle, Crawley, BC Prof. H. Adams, Building
artwork projections on combined photo/artwork images nr. Winchester (Robert Construction, Cassell, London
Adam); thanks to Robert BE Berry's Electric Ltd, Berry's
Invaluable research help was provided by: Ad~m, Winchester Design Heating of Today, London
Laura Arnette, Peter Bejger, Fayal Greene, Carol (Architects) BF Beautiful Rooms, The
Hupping, Caroline Russell, James Elliott Benjamin, AE A. Emanuel and Son Ltd, Wallpaper Manufacturers
Francis Graham, Melanie Mills, Deirdre Nolan, general catalogue, 1901, Ltd, Manchester, c.1910
Emma Rance, Lee Roberts, Jeff Wilkinson London BG Belling Electric Heating and
AG Gas, The National Fuel, Ascot Cooking, illustrated
Gas Water Heaters Ltd, catalogue, Enfield,
The following kindly allowed their own photographs
London, 1935 Middlesex, 1958
to be used in this book: Andrew Adams, James Elliott AH Avenue House, Ampthill BH Courtesy of Glynn Boyd
Benjamin, Mike Brown, Stephen Calloway, Elizabeth Bedfordshire; thanks to Harte, Dolphin Studio
Cromley, Philip Dole, Kim Furrokh, Mike Gray, Linda SimonHoufe BHL Belton House, Lincolnshire;
Hall, David Martin, Alan Powers, Anthony Ouiney, AHH Abraham Hasbrouck House, courtesy of The National
Peter Sutton, Simon Thurley, Sarah Polden, Robert New Paltz, New York; Trust
Saxton, Katie True courtesy of the Huguenot BI A.J. Bicknell and Company,
Historical Society Bicknell's Village Builder and
Substantial help of various kinds was also provided AJD A.]. Downing, Cottage Supplement, 1878
Residences, 1873 edn Bll. Biltmore Estate, Ashville,
by: Sarah Boothby; Camilla Costello; Diana Lanham
AK Rudolf Ackermann, North Carolina
(National Trust, London); Francesca Scoones (National
Repository ofArts, Literature, BJ Batty Langley, The Builder's
Trust, London) Fashions Etc, London, early jewel, London, 1746
19th century BJB Bayliss, Jones and Bayliss,
The Directory of Suppliers was compiled by Carol AL Ashley Hall School, illustrated catalogue of iron
Hupping and Emma Shackleton (Britain) and Fayal Greene Charleston, South Carolina handles, fencing, field and
(United States) (Patrick Duncan House) entrance gates,
AM Courtesy of the Ashmolean Wolverhampton, 1891
The publishers and general editor are especially indebted Museum, Oxford BL Batty Langley, Builder's and
to those individuals and institutions who allowed AOH About Our Homes, 8th edn Workman's Treasury of
AP Andrea Palladia, First Book of Designs, 1770 edn
photographer Kim Sayer to photograph inside their
Architecture, translated by BM The Builder's Magazine, 2nd
houses . In the photo credits below, owners have not
God&ey Richards, London, edn,London, 1779
always been specified: some preferred to remain llthedn, 1729 BO New York; thanks to Raf
anonymous. The code letters relate to the codes used in APR Architectural Press, Borello
the captions throughout the book. As well as houses and London BOD Courtesy of the Bodleian
house owners, the list identifies those who allowed their AQ Anthony Ouiney Library, Oxford
own photographs to be used for reproduction; some of AR The Ideal Fitter, American BP Boulton and Paul, general
the codes refer to historic books in private collections Radiator Company, 1904 catalogue, 1898
which were specially photographed by Ian B. Jones. The ARC Richard Bryant/ Arcaid BR Burbage Road, London;
letter after a name indicates the copyright holder of the AS Abraham Swan, The British thanks to Barbara Cantor
Architect, 1758 edn BRI Britannia Domestic
photograph, in cases where copyright does not belong
Appliances
with the publishers
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 561
BS john Bolding and Sons Ltd, CN/B Michael Wickham House DHH Drayton Hall, Charleston, FR S. Franses :.td , 82 jermyn
catalogue, London, c.1925 and Garden, Conde Nast, South Carolina/Gene St, Stjames's, London SW1
BT Bennett's "Tungit" Wood UK Heizer FRE Michael Freeman
Flooring Company, CNY Courtesy of Christie's, New DK Courtesy of Dickens' GB Gaillard-Bennett House,
catalogue, London York House, Doughty Street, Charleston, South Carolina
BU Builder's Practical Director, co Carron Company, London GBV Regalia delli Cinque Ordini
published by j. Hagger, catalogue, Stirlingshire, DM David and Barbara Martin, D'Architettura diM. Giacomo
London, c.1865 Scotland, c.1895 Robertsbridge, Sussex Barozzio da Vignola , 1620
BUL Bulthaup COL Colchester Museum, Essex; DO G .A. and M.A. Audsley, The GE The Grange, Drexel Hill,
BV The "Boyle" System of thanks to 0 liver Green Practical Decorator and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;
Ventilation, catalogue, CP john Britton, The History and Ornantentist, Blackie, thanks to Mrs Ackerman
London, 1899 Descnption ofCassiobury Park, Glasgow, 1892 GEC General Electric Company,
BW Bartow-Pel! Mansion, London, 1837 DR David Rowell and complete catalogue, vo!. lll,
Bronx, New York CR Cragside, Northumbria; Company, illustrated London, 1911 -12
c Chastleton House, courtesy of The National catalogue, Westminster, GF George Farmiloe and Sons,
Oxfordshire; thanks to Mrs Trust London, c.1900 general catalogue, London,
A. Clurton-Brock CRO Elizabeth Cromley DS Spitalfields, London; thanks 1891
CA Carron Company, architect's cs Derek Patmore, Colour to Denis Severs GFB George Farmiloe and Sons
catalogue, 1913 Schemes and Modern EA Lewis F. Day, Every-day Art, Ltd, catalogue no. 9,
CAF Chicago Architecture Furnishing, The Studio, B.T. Batsford, London, 1882 London, 1901
Foundation London, 1945 EB "Evered" Brassfoundry, GG Gamble House, Pasadena
CB Isaac Ware, The Complete CT Courtesy of The Charleston illustrated catalogue, (Charles and Henry Greene);
Body ofArchitecture, London, Museum, Charleston, South Birmingham, c. 1910, thanks to Ted Bosley
1756 Carolina updated 1925 GH Gibbons Hinton and
CBA Cotterell Bros, Wallpapers, cu George Smith, Cabinet- EC Eagle Combination Grates, Company Ltd, tile
Latest Designs in stock, Maker's and Upholsterer's catalogue, Birmingham, catalogue, Brierley Hill,
catalogue, Bristol, 1914 Guide, 1826 c.1935 South Staffordshire, c.1905
CBB Cotterell Bros, catalogue, cv Cliveden, Germantown ECR Benjamin Count of GJ G. jackson and Sons Ltd,
Bristol, 1937 Avenue, Philadelphia, Rumford, Essay>, 5th edn, Fireplaces, London, c.1935
cc Catesby's Cork Lino, Pennsylvania; a co- vol. I, London, 1800 GJA George jackson and Sons, .
Attractive Patterns, catalogue, stewardship property of the EG Willow Road, London (Ernii Examples ofArchitectural
London, c.1925 National Trust for Historic Goldfinger); tha:li<s to Ornaments, 2 vols, London,
CF Carter and Co. Ltd, Carters Preservation Ursula Goldfinger 1889
Fires, catalogue, Poole, cw Cooper Hewitt Museum, EH Edward Hoppus, The GL Gravel Lane, Houndsditch,
Dorset, c.1929 New York City (Andrew Gentleman's and Builder's London
CG M.F. Cummings, Cummings' Carnegie Mansion) Repository, 1738 GPB Leadwork by George P
Architectural Details, New CWF Courtesy of Colonial EL Ebnall House, Shrewsbury; Bankart, catalogue,
York, 1873 Williamsburg Foundation thanks to Dr Gordon Rose Nottingham, c.1910
CH C. Hindley and Son, D Daulton and Company, EO Henry Shaw, Examples of GR john P. White, Garden
catalogue, London, c.1880 illustrated catalogue, Ornamental Metal Work, 1836 Furniture and Ornament,
CHS/B Chicago Historical Society/ London, 1887 EP E.L. Tarbuck, The catalogue, Bedford, c.1908
Hedrich-Blessing DA Daulton and Company Ltd, Encyclopaedia ofPractical GS Gardiner, Sons and
CHS/H Chicago Historical Society/ catalogue, 1904 Carpentry and]omery, Company Ltd, Bristol,
Ken Hedrich, DAV Richard Davies London, c.1860 illustrated catalogue,
Hedrich-Blessing DB De benham House, London; ER Erco Lighting Ltd. c.1900-05
CI Courtesy of Christie's, courtesy of the Richmond ES The Elms, Newport, Rhode GV Argyle Square, London;
London Fellowship Island; courtesy of the thanks to Gavin Stamp
CJ C. jennings and Co. Ltd, DC Spitalfields, London; thanks Preservation Society of GW George Williams House,
price list, c.1910 to Dan Cruickshank Newport Country; thanks to Charleston, South Carolina
CK William T. Comstock, DD j. Aldam Heaton, Designer Monique Panaggio (Calhoun Mansion)
Modern Architectural DesigtiS and Decorator, catalogue, EST Peter Aaron /Esto H Furniture by Harrods,
and Details, New York, 1881 London, c.1885 FG Frances Goodwin, Domestic catalogue, c.1910
CL G.A. and W.j. Audsley, DE Abraham Swan, Designs in Architecture, vo!. 3, 2nd edn, HA Hale House, by permission
Cottage, Lodge and Villa Architecture, 1757 1843 of Heritage Square Museum,
Architecture, c. 1860 DF D.F. Company Ltd, FH Forest Hills, Queens, New Los Angeles, California
CM The Contractor's, Merchant's catalogue, 1910 York; thanks to Rosalind HABI Habitat UK
and Estate Manager's DG The Davis Gas Stove Co. Esakoff HABS Historic American Building
Compendium, London, 1900 Ltd, Up-to-date Gas Heating FL Floyd, Wells and Company, Survey, Library of Congress,
CN Casa Nueva, Los Angeles; Stoves, catalogue, London, Royerford, Pennsylvania, Washington D.C.
thanks to Max A. van 1901 catalogue, c.1893 HB Hedrich Blessing
Balgooy, Workman and DH Drayton Hall, Charleston, FO Dobbie and Forbes and Photographers/jon Millar,
Temple Family Homestead South Carolina, a property Company, catalogue, Illinois
Museum of the National Trust for Larbert, Scotland, c.1910 HD H. and C. Davis and
CN/A Andreas von Einsiedel Historic Preservation; thanks FP F. Pratten and Company Ltd, Company, Pattern Book of
House and Garden, Conde to Christine Castaneda catalogue no. 42, Bath, 1936 Best Cast Brass Foundry,
Nast, UK London, 1888
562 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
HE Health and Healthy Homes, JE The Thematic House, MB Mason's Bricklayer's, MT Minton Hollis and
The Sanitary Engineering London (Charles Jencks) Plasterer's and Decorator's Company, Minton Tiles,
and Ventilation Company, JG john Goldi6utt, Specimens of Practical Guide, James catalogue, Stoke-on-Trent,
London, 1877 Ancient Decorations franz Hagger, London, c.l865 1910
HEG H.E. Gaze Ltd, catalogue, Pompeii, 1825 MC Macfarlane's Castings, MU Moulton Hall, Richmond,
c.l920 JM james Malton, An Essay on catalogue, 6th edn, 2 vols, Yorkshire; thanks to the
HEI Thomas A. Heinz, Illinois British Cottage Architecture, Glasgow, 1882 Hon. john and Lady Eccles
HF Thomas Hope, Household 1798 MCA Macfarlane's Castings, MV Mount Vernon Ladies
Furniture and lntedor JNP john Plaw, Rural Architecture, catalogue, 7th edn, vol. I, Association of the Union,
Decoration, 1807 1794 Glasgow, 1907 Virginia
HG M.H. Baillie Scott, Houses JO Peter Blundell jones MCG Norman McGrath MX joseph Moxon, Mechar~ick
and Gardens, London, 1906 ]P john Plaw, Fenue Ornie, 1795 MD C. Middleton, Designs for Exercises, 1703
HH Courtesy of Home House, JS S.C. johnson and Son Ltd, Cates and Rails, 1806 MY Courtesy of the Museum of
Portman Estate, London The Proper Treatmettt for ME Messenger and Company the City of New York
HHF W. Shaw Sparrow, Hints on Floors, Woodwork and Ltd, catalogue, NA Newport Art Museum,
House Furnishing, 1909 Furniture, 1924 Loughborough, c.l91 0 Newport, Rhode Island
HHH Hammond-Harwood JW john Wright and Company MH Modern House Construction, (Griswold House); thanks to
House, Annapolis, Ltd, leaflet, Birmingham ed. G. Lister Sutcliffe, vol. I, Mark Simmons
Maryland KE Robert Kerr, The Cemleman's Gresham Publishing NB N. Burst and Company,
HI C.L. Eastlake, Hints on House, John Murray, Company, 1909 lighting catalogue, London,
Household Taste, Longmans, London, 1871 MHA james Ford and Katherine c.1900
London, 1872 KF Courtesy of Kenmore Morrow, The Modern House NC Nicholls and Clarke Ltd,
HJJ Description of The House mtd Association, Fredericksburg, in America, Architectural ironmongery catalogue No.
Museum of Sir john Soane, Virginia Book Publishing Company, II , London, 1906
London, 1836 KH Courtesy of Keats' House, lnc.,NewYork, 1940 NCA Nicholls and Clarke Ltd,
HL The Hill House, Hampstead, London MI Milton Castings, catalogue, Shoreditch,
Helensburgh, Scotland; KT Katie True, New York MacDowall, Steven and London, l912
courtesy of the National KW Kentish Wallpaper Company Ltd, catalogue, NE Nico Electric Lighting,
Trust for Scotland Company, Artistic Wallpapers, London, c.l900 catalogue, 1930-31
HP Huncoat Plastic Brick sample book, 1932 MID G.A. Middleton, Modern NH Newby Hall, North
Terracotta Works, catalogue, L Liberty's Solid Oak Buildings, vol. II, Caxton Yorkshire
Accrington, c.l91 0 Panelling, catalogue, Regent Publishing Company, NHH Nichols-Hunter House,
HS Hampton and Son, Street, London, c.l910 London Newport, Rhode Island;
illustrated catalogue, LF Louis G. Ford, catalogue no. MJ Morris-)umel Mansion, courtesy of the Preservation
London, 1892 41, Eastboume, c.l935 New York; thanks to Society of Newport County
HSA Hampton and Son, London, LG Leighton House, London Susannah Elliott NN Peter Nicholson, The N ew
illustrated catalogue, (Royal Borough of MJB Mike Brown Practical Builder, 1825 edn
London, c.l91 0 Kensington and Chelsea); MLIB Minard Lafever, The M odem NP ). Molinson, New Practical
HSMC Courtesy of Historic St thanks to joanna Banham Builder's Guide, 1833; Window Gardener,
Mary's City, Chesapeake, LH Longfellow House, courtesy of the Charleston Groombridge and Son,
Maryland Cambridge, Massachusetts; Library Society, Charleston, London, 1877
IN William !nee and Thomas courtesy of Eastern National South Carolina NR Nathaniel Russell House,
Mayhew, The Universal Park and Monument MIJC Minard Lafever, Beauties of Charleston, South Carolina;
System ofHousehold Fumiture, Association Modern Architecture, 1835; thanks to). Thomas Savage
1759-62 LHT Courtesy of the Lamport courtesy of the Charleston NW Newmarket Palace,
IJT I. and). Taylor, Ornametttal Hall Trust Library Society, Charleston, Cambridgeshire
!ron Work, 1795 LL Photo by Linda Hall, South Carolina 0 Olana, Hudson River Valley,
IW Isaac Ware, The Complete Middlesex MM Michael Main Ltd, New York; thanks to james
Body ofArchitecture, 1756 LIF Sir john Soane Museum, Architectural Antiques , Ryan
JB Messrs johnson Bros and Lincoln's Inn Fields, London The Old Rectory, Cerrig-y- OB O'Brien Thomas and
Company, Studies ofWrought LP Laxton's Price Book, London, Drudion, Corwen, North Company, catalogue,
!ron Entrance Cates, 1878 WalesLL21 ORU Rotherarn, London, 1911
catalogue, London, May LSH Courtesy of Linley MO Moulton Manor, Richmond, oc Octagon, Orleans House
1873 Sambourne House, London Yorkshire; thanks to Captain OE Claygate Brickfields Ltd, Old
JBE james Elliott Benjamin LV Lavenharn, Suffolk Vaux English Fireplaces, catalogue,
JC john Carwitham, Various M Courtesy of The Minories MOR Michael Moran, New York Surrey, 1929
kinds ofFloor Decoration Art Gallery, Colchester, MOT j.L. Mott Iron Works, New OH H. ). jennings, Our Homes
represented both in Plano and Essex York and Chicago catalogue and How to Beautify Them,
Perspective Being use(lil MA Metal Agencies Co. Ltd, G, 1888 2nd edn, Harrison and Sons,
Designs for Ornamenting the catalogue no. 56, Bristol, MOU Kate Mount London, 1902
Floors ofHalls, Rooms, Summer 1932 MiP Mount Pleasant, OL Landfall, Poole, Dorset
Houses, etc. Whether in MAA Metal Agencies Co. Ltd, Philadelphia; thanks to (Oliver Hill); thanks to Dr
Pavements of Stone, or Marble, catalogue no. 66, Bristol, Philadelphia Museum of Art and Mrs C. E. Upton
or with Painted Floor Cloths.lr~ 1937 MR Marble Hill House, OM Old Merchants House, New
Twenty four Copper Plates, MAB Floor design, Maggie Angus Twickenham, Middlesex York; thanks to Elizabeth
1739 Berkowitz Churchill Cattan
ACKN OWLEDGMENTS 563
ou Sussex, England Oohn RO E.L. Roberts and Company, ST Stencil House, Shelburne UI Courtesy of the Ukrainian
Outram) general catalogue, Chicago, Museum, Shelburne, Institute, New York
OUP Based on a plan in R.T. 1903 Vermont, photograph by vc Villa and Cottage Architecture,
Gunder's The Architecture of ROC Paul Rocheleau, Richmond, Ken Burris Blackie and Son, Glasgow,
Sir Roger Pratt, Oxford Massachusetts STE Stephenson/Bell, Architects Edinburgh and London,
University Press RR ).B. Papworth, Rural and Planners 1869
ov Barley Splatt, Cornwall Residences, London, 1818 su Sutton House, Hackney, VE Stony Creek, Connecticut
(Graham Ovenden); thanks RS Robert Saxton London; thanks to Mike (Venturi, Scott Brown and
to Graham Ovenden RU Shirley Hibberd, Rustic Gray Associates); thanks to Mr
p Paycockes, Coggeshall, Adornments, London, 1857 SUM Drawing by Alison and Mrs George Izenour
Essex; courtesy of the s The Swdio, Special Summer Shepherd, reproduced in WA Warne's Rubber Flooring
National Trust Number, 1901: Modem john Summerson's Georgian and Tiling, Barking, Essex,
PA Palliser and Company, British Domestic London, Barrie and jenkins, c.1937
Palliser's American Architecture, Architecture and Decoration 1988 edn we William Cooper, general
New York, 1888 SA Sarum Chase, London SUT G. Lister Sutcliffe, ed., catalogue, London, 1893
PB Peter Nicholson, Practical SAL Courtesy of Salve Regina Modem House Construction, WD Woodward's National Architect,
Builder, London, 1822 College, Newport, Rhode London, 1909 New York, 1869
PC A. W. N. Pugin, True Island r,:Natt Sherman House) SV john Ruskin, The Stones of WF Wallpaper catalogues, by
Principles ofPointed and SB Steven Bros and Company, Venice, val. I, 4th edn, courtesy of Warner Fabrics
Chnstian Architecture, section III, Rain Water George Allen, 1886 WG Waring and Gillow, general
London, 1841 "Plumbing" Sanitary sw G. jennings, The South catalogue, London, c.1910
PD Philip Dole, Oregon Castings catalogue, c.1885 Western Pottery, catalogue, WGE Waring and Gillow Ltd, The
PE Sydney Perks, Residential sc Sandeman and Company, 1874 Carpet Book, London, c.191 0
Flats, B.T. Batsford, London, illustrated catalogue of TA Sebastian le Clerc, A Treatise WH Winslow Hall,
1905 general brass foundry, ofArchitecture, London, 1724 Buckinghamshire; thanks to
pp Pryke and Palmer, illustrated London, 1895 TAL B.). Talbert, Examples of Sir Edward and Lady
catalogue, London, 1896 SCA Courtesy of Scalamandre, Ancient and Modem Furniture Tomkins
PPA Pryke and Palmer, illustrated New York etc., R.O. Rickatson, 1876 WHP William Halfpenny, The
catalogue, London, 1906 SCY Stephen Calloway TB Christopher Dresser, Truth, Modem Builder's Asststant,
PL William Salmon, Palladia SE Sebastiana Serlio, The First Beauty, Power; Principles of 1742 .
Londiniensis, London, 8th Book ofArchitecture, printed Decorative Design, 2nd edn. Wl Photo by Wildlife Matters,
edn, 1773 for Robert Peake, London, Cassell, Petter and Galpin, Battle, Sussex
PO Alan Powers 1611 London Wl Souvenir of\Yiickham Hall,
PR Private collection SF LN. Cottingham, The Smith TC Tynecastle, illustrated Kent, 1897
PS Peter Sutton and Founder's Director, catalogue, Edinbucgh, c.1900 WM Courtesy of William
PW Parker, Winder and Achurch London, 1824 TCH Thomas Chippendale, The McDonough Architects,
Ltd, The "Devon" Fire, SG Sam Gratrix Jnr and Brothers Gentleman and Cabinet ewYork
catalogue, Birmingham, Ltd, illustrated catalogue of Maker's Director, 3rd edn, WN Manders Brothers Ltd,
c.1920 brass fittings, Manchester, 1762 Winslow Wallpapers,
RA The Works in Architecture of 1911 TCM W. Young, Town and Country catalogue, 1952-3
Robert and james Adam, 3 SH Strawberry Hill, Mansions, London, 1879 wo Courtesy of Woodward
vols, 1778 Twickenham, Middlesex; TE Tenement House, Glasgow; Grosvenor and Co. Ltd,
RB Rowe Bros and Company thanks to StMary's College courtesy of the National Kidderminster; thanks to
Ltd, Builders' Ironmongery, SHU julius Shulman, Los Angeles, Trust for Scotland Geoffrey C. Smith
illustrated catalogue, California TG The Studio, Highgate, WP William Pain. Practical House
Birmingham, 1935 SI john Simpson & Partners, London (Tayler and Green); Carpenter, 1766
RBA Rowe Bros and Company London thanks to S. O'Rhiordan WPB William Pain, The Practical
Ltd, catalogue, Bristol, 1937 SK Sears, Roebuck and TH Thorpe Hall, Builder, 4th edn, 1779
RC Russell-Cotes Art Gallery Company, Our Spwal Northamptonshire; courtesy WT Woodland Terrace,
and Museum, Boumemouth Catalog for Home Builders, of the Sue Ryder Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;
; thanks to Penny Thompson Chicago, 1910 Organization thanks to Lauren
RE Richard Elsam, The Practical SM StMartin's, Oxford; thanks TI Timber Homes by Bolton and Leatherbaum and Bill Owen
Builders's Perpetual Price Book, to Ben Lenthall Paul Ltd, Norwich, c.1937 ww William Wood and Son Ltd,
1825 SN Samuel Sloan, The Model TI Taylor and Law Bros, catalogue, Taplow,
RG Thanks to Roderick Architect, E.S. jones and Mouldings, Architraves, Buckinghamshire
Gradidge, Elliot Road, Company, Philadelphia, Skirtings etc, catalogue, YM Young and Marten,
Chis wick 1852 Bristol, c.1890 catalogue of builders'
RH Red House, Bexleyheath, so Courtesy of Sir John Soane's TP Thomas Parsons and Sons, requisites, 1910
near London; thanks to Mr Museum, London Ornamental Decora:ion, YMA Young and Marten Ltd,
and Mrs Edward Hallam by SP Sarah Pol den London, 1909 catalogue, London, c.1910
RIBA Royal Institute of British SR West Hollywood, California TW T. and W. Farrnilow Ltd, YH Yaffle House, Dorset; thanks
Architects, London (Rudolph Schindler); thanks catalogue, London, 1909 to Peter Holguette
RL Robert Lewis and Company, to Robert Sweeney TY Simon Thurley YS John Reid, The Young
"Anaglypta" relief ss Selden and Son, illustrated UD Universal Design Beak, Surveyor's Preceptor, 1848
decorations, catalogue, trade catalogue, june 1902, Chicago, 1903
Cardiff London
INDEX
Page numbers in italics refer to Arts and Crafts 292, 306-35, 336, Berkowitz, Maggie Angus 485 candle lighting 70, 103, 197, 132, 267
captions 355,377, 380,470,478, 499 Bestlite 467 carpets 59, 91, 120, 152, 185, 186,
Ashbee, C.R. 316,322, 526 Betty lamps 132, 228, 518 218,218, 251,252, 259,259,275,
A Ashfold House, Sussex 491, 494 Biddle, Owen 206 287,288, 294,320, 345, 345, 349,
Aalto, Nvar 449, 469, 526 Aston Hall, Birmingham 28, 45, 191 bidets 300,379,443, 466,466,496 369,400,417,430,431, 484,484
Abbotsford, Roxburgh 197 Auden, W.H. 459 Bigelow, Erastus B. 288 see also rugs
Abendrath Brothers (New York) 405 Audsley, George Ashdown and Bing, Samuel336, 527 Carr, A.C.E. 325
Abraham Hasbrouck House, New Maurice Ashdown 247, 249, 250, Birge (M.H.) and Sons 342 carreaux d'octagones 91, 153
York 106 286 Birmingham Guild of Handicraft 333 Carrere, john M. 385
acanthus ornament 55, 56, 66, 159 Audsley, W. and G. 243,260 Bitter, Karl385 Carron Company 187, 191,254,256,
Ackermann, Rudolf 171, 189,526 aumbries 38, 38 Blackie. W.W. 336 258,372
Adam, Robert (1948- ) 475,476, Austin's 423 Blaise Hamlet 171 Carter, Cyri1458
477, 486, 490, 526 Axminster carpets 252, 369 Blanco-White, justin 469 carving, wood 10, 55
Adam, Robert and james 136, 136, Ayrton, Maxwell382 blinds/shades 391 Carwitham, john 92
137, 137, 140, 141, 142, 143,146, boilers 300, 412 Casa Nueva, Los Angeles 416,417
147, 148, 149, 150, 151,152,152, B bolection moulding 10, 142 Case Study houses, Los Angeles 470,
154, 155, 157, 159,166,167,168, Babb, Cook and Willard 384, 391, Book ofArchitecture (James Gibbs, 470,489
204, 219,526 411,412 1728) 75,89 casement windows 20, 22, 23, 50,
Adamesque style 139, 141, 144,148, Bacon's Castle, Virgina 106 bookcases 68, 68, 101, 225,225,410, 81, 82, 112, 113, 114, 180,242,
156, 165,210, 255, 359,363, 366, Baillie Scott, M.H. 307, 307, 309, 439, 440, 492, 494 245,312, 362, 393,423,424, 5C4
367, 371,373, 432 319, 324,325,526-7 see also libraries Cassia bury Park, London 195
Adams and Adams (United States) balconets 167, 168 Boorde, Andew 39 Castiglione, Achille 497
319 balconies 53, 71, 71,135, 167, 168, bootscrapers 133, 133, 230, 269, 333, Castle Drago, Devon 331, 331
Adamsez496 169,178,198,199,200,201,229, 382, 519 Castle Howard, Yorkshire 43
Adelphi, London 136 230, 268, 303, 382, 383,388,414, Boston, Massachusetts 205,205,211, Celtic styles 335,353
adobe houses, 512, 513,514, 516, 446,466,468,468,511,519 213 Centre brook 483
519 balloon &aming 272 Boughton, john W. 287 Chambers, Sir William 136, 159, 528
Aesthetic movement 239,250, 279, balusters 35, 36, 37, 66, 67, 98, 99, bow windows 180, 360 chamfer stops 506
281,284,286, 307, 308, 310, 312, 104, 126,127, 128, 159,161,231, Bowler House, Bar Harbor 415 chandeliers 70, 70, 71, 103, 132,132,
315,317,319,320,321,322,323, 259,261, 326,327, 328, 375, 376, box beds 284, 517 166, 166, 197, 228,228,267,301,
324,331,333,334 490,508 box cornice 90 332, 413,413,497,497, 518
AGA stoves 436, 488 Bang & Olufsen, 496 box winders 126 Charles, Prince of Wales 473
Ndington, Peter 473, 494 Bankan, G.P. 366 Boyle, Robert 234, 266 Charleston, South Carolina 205, 204,
Ndrich, Chester H. 385 Barbon, Nicholas 41 Bracketed style 286 216,217
Nexander, Christopher 47 4 Barb reck House, Argyll150 Brandt, Edgar 446, 446 Chastleton House, Oxfordshire 12,
Numinaire House, Long Island 450 bargeboards (vergeboards) 15,271, Breuer, Marcel469, 470, 472, 527 13, 15,35
American Builders Companion, The 304, 305,334, 334, 383,415 brickwork 13, 137, 502 Chatsworth House, Derbyshire 67
(1827)205 Barley Splatt, Cornwall479 Brick and Marble from Northern Italy Cheltenham, Gloucestershire 199
American Encaustic Tiling Company Bam, The, Exmouth 306 232 Cherrnayeff, Serge 450,463,465,
321, 331,346 Barnicot, j.M. 498 Briggs, Robert A. 354 468
American Manufacturing Company Baronial styles 191,370,434 Brighton, Sussex 167, 177, 194 chimneyboards 64, 156
390 Baroque 37, 40-71, 78, 83, 89, 105, Bristol, Avon 200 chimneys 15
American Radiator Company 412 446 Britannia Domestic Appliances 489 "Chinese Chippendale" 135
American Radiator and Standard nee-Baroque 327 British Architect, The (1745) 124 Chinese styles/chinoiserie 82, 96, 99,
Corporation (New York) 442 bars409 Britton, john 195,527 142, 156, 168, 172,174, 181,321
American Woman's Home (1869) 293 Bartow-Pell Mansion, New York broderie 59 Chippendale, Thomas 87, 96, 97,
Amonite order '175 209,219,221, 223,224,227,229 Broughton Castle, Oxfordshire 38 124, 168,528
Anaglypta 246,248, 249,355, 363, Bath, Avon 89, 102, 105, 136, 140, Brussels carpets 185, 186,288,400 Church, Frederic E. 314
364, 365,366,366, 367 141, 145, 167, 168 Buckland, William 107, 109, 111, 127 City and Country Builders and
andirons 31, 34, 64, 93, 121, 125, baths 227,265, 299,299, 351, 351, buffets 69 Workman's Treasury, The (17 45) 89
219,222,292,325, 373,404,435, 378, 411,411, 412,412, 442,442, Builder, The 233 City and Country Workman's
516 443, 466, 495, 495 Builder's Assistant, The (1819) 206 Remembrancer (1745) 77
Andrew Carnegie Mansion, New Bauhaus 467 Builders Compleat Assistant, The clairvoyees 71
York 384, 391, 392,412 bay windows 21, 242,244,281,282, (1738)83 clapboarding25, 512
anthernion motif 167, 168, 183,201 312, 360, 362,377 Builders Director or Bench-Mate (175 1). Clark (George M.) Company 405
apartment buildings 354,354,454, Bayliss, jones and Bayliss 269 94 Classical Revival223, 472-3,4 76,
455 Beaufait door 226 Builders jewel, The (1746) 75 490
Architect, The (1915/ 17) 319,335 Beauties ofModern Architecture (1835) Builders Magazine, The(1778) 158, Cliveden, Philadelphia 108, 110, 112,
Architect, or Practical House Carpenter, 210, 217 168, 169 114,117,123
The (1830) 212, 215,220,223,231 Beaux Arts (United States) 384-415 Builders Practical Director, The 233 close stools 227
Architectural Forum 451 Bedford Park, London 306, 313, 334, Building Acts 72, 81, 82, 136-7, 144, closed-string staircases 11, 35, 98
Architectural Sketches for Cottages, 334 170,202 closets 297, 410
Rural Dwellings and Villas (1823) bed lights 234, 445 Building News, The 233 Coade stone 137, 139, 143, 144, 148
179 beds 56, 129, 440, 464,464,493, 517 Bulfinch, Charles 205,211,213,527 cobblestones 30, 512
Architecture of Country Houses, The Beecher and Stowe 293 bulkhead lights 497, 497 cock's head style 44, 49, 52, 66
(1850) 273,277,286 "Beeton" stoves 374 "bullseyes" 423 cocktail bars 439
"Arctic" lights 380 Behrens, Peter 433, 527 Bulthaup 489 Cadman, Ogden 355, 390, 395, 410,
Argand Lamps 166,166, 197,228, Belling Company 433, 488 BumpZoid (architects) 476 414
228 Belton House, Lincolnshire 91 bungalows 360,416, 447 Cadman, Samuel395
Art Amateur(1880) 311 Belvoir Castle, Nottinghamshire 184 Burlington, Lord 72, 528 coffered ceilings 27, 88,149, 150,
Art Deco 416-17,416,418,420,421, Benjamin, Asher 205, 206, 207,209, butterfly plan 306 216,397, 398
422, 423, 425, 430, 431' 433, 434, 212,215,220,223,230,231,527 Coleshill, Berkshire 41
437,439, 445, 446, 462, 497 Bennett's Wood Flooring Company c Collcutt, T.E. 322
Art Nouveau 336-53, 355, 356, 358, 368 Cabilret Makers and Upholsterers Collection ofDesigns in Architecture, A
359, 360,365, 367, 370,378, 381, Benson and Company 332, 332, 380 Guide (1826) 181 (1757) 72
382,497 Bentley, Richard 95, 100 Campbell, Colen 72, 72, 86, 98, Colonial, American 106-35
Arteluce company 497, 497 Bentley Wood, East Sussex 450,465 528 Colonial Revival272, 275, 276, 279,
INDEX 565
281,282,297,304,386,387,388, double-pile plan 41 faucets 300, 351, 379, 411, 412, 444, Gentleman sand Bui!Ju's Repository,
390,391,391,393, 394,395,397, Douglas House, Lake Michigan 487, 466, 466, 495 The (1738! 2
399, 406, 406, 407, 408, 409, 410, 491 Federal128, 204-31,278, 393 Gentleman's HouSt The 232
413, 413,415,415,422 Dowlton and Company 243, 264, fences 133, 133, 134, 135, 199,203, George, Prince of Wales (Prince
colza lamp 166, 167, 197 346,378 231 , 270, 271 , 334, 335, 415,447, Regent) 170
Complete Body ofArchitecture, A (1756) Downing, A). 273, 277, 283, 283, 499 Georgian 72-1 05, 106, 11J6, 107, 112,
76 284, 286, 298, 305, 529 fender benches 291 125, 127, 134, 13~
Comstock, William T. 290 Drayton Hall, South Carolina 110, Ferme Ornee (1795) 202 Late 136-69, 19-i
Conran, Sir Terence 487, 528 115,117,119,120,121 , 124,126, Fernandez-Uambias House, St neo-Georgian
conservatories 271, 353, 383 133 Augustine 519 American 385, 389, 390, 393,
Contemporary Sryle 470,481,486, Dresser, Christopher 246, 320, 320, ferneries 271 394, 397, 401, 406,406,4 10
497,497 529 Festival of Britain style, 469 British 174,255,262, 363, 366,
Cooper (William) and Company dressers 100,101,164,263, 509 fielded panel142 370, 371' 381 , 471 , 475, 476,
271,383 Dreyfuss, Henry 441 Finella, Cambridge (England) 452 , 478
coppers 102, 196 drop-handles 80 457 , 457, 458 German Colonial510, 511 ,513, 517,
Corbin, P. and F. 421 Drummond, William E. 350 firebacks 32, 60, 62 , 64, 125, 219, 333 518
Corbusier, Le 448, 451 , 456, 462, Duany, Andreas 473 firedogs see andirons Gibbes House, Charleston 2 17
466, 532-3 Duchy of Comwall473 fireplace heaters 292 Gibbons, Grinling 43, 55, 63, 64, 530
Cordelora 366 Dufour, joseph 214 Fiske, j.W. (New York) 303 Gibbs, james 75, 76, 77, 83 , 87, 89,
Cornelius Vanderbilt Il House, New Dugdale and Ruhemann, 465 Five Orders ofArchiteclure 42 95, 97, 99,104, 107,110, 134,530
York404 "dumb waiters" 263, 464 flagstones 30, 30, 59, 152,153, 185, Gilbert, C.P.H. 384, 401
Cornell G.B.) Foundry (New York) Durie House, New jersey 51 0 251 , 320, 506 Gill, Irving 530
333 Dutch Colonial106, 129, 510, 51 0, floorcloths 120, 120,218,251, 259, Gillis and Geoghegan (New York)
Cottage, Lodge and Villa Architecture 511,515,516,517 287 412
243,260 Dutch influence in England 13, 40, Flos company 497,497 Girnson, Emest313, 332
"Cottage Style" (Victorian) 232 42 Floyd, Wells and Company (Penn.) girandoles 103, 157, 166, 166, 228,
cottages ames 171, 171 Dymaxion House 450 292 228
Cottingham, L.N.184, 197, 198,201 , Ford, Louis G. 425 Glasgow 233, 234, 263,284, 336, 347
381,528 E Forest Hills, Queens, New York 384, glass bricks 422, 456
Country Gentleman Magazine, The 355 Eames, Charles and Ray 470 396, 407,411 Glass House, New Canaan 470
Cours complet d'archirecrure (1691) 59 Eames House, Santa Monica 470 foundries 198, 229, 268, 381 glazmg, development of 12-13, 20,
cozy comers 262, 262, 263, 297, 305, Earl Butler House, Des Moines Franc;ois Premier styles 384, 385, 387, 23
377 450-1,451 391 , 391,392,397, 401 , 401,406, Gluck (Peter L., and Partners 482
Crafisman, The 307, 316, 320, 327, earth closets 102 414 Gold finger. Emo 450, 451, 454,454,
330, 335 Eastlake, C.L. 274, 529 Frankl, Paul416 -t56, 461J, - 62, -t68
Craftsman style 308, 313, 320, 330, Eastlake decoration 274, 275, 282, Franklin stoves 125,219,222 Goldicuu, john 182, 185, 186
331 300 French Deco 419 Gorton and Lidgerwood Company
Cragside, Northumbria 235, 240, Ebnerite floors 369 French doors 143, 144, 178, 179, 180, ( ewYork) ~ 12
250,259,263,285, 321 Ecole des Beaux Arts 384 212,213, 362, 392, 393, 425, 455 Gorhic style
Crane, Walter 316, 321 , 528-9 Edinburgh 136, 161, 168, 176 French influence m Britam I/. 8'1 , 137, 139, 141,
cressets 228 Edis, Robert W. 324, 325 inBritain42, 59,155, 170, 189, 1+; , 151,172,174, 1- 5,178, 1/9,
Crittall, F.W. 46 7 Edison electric lighting 301 274,275,358' 381,422,468 181, 1 8. 190. 191,232-3,232,
Crittall's 454, 454,455 Edward C. Waller House, Illinois 327 in United States 205, 281,288, 238, 2 9. 242, 4!. 25-!, 251, 260,
Crooked Pightle, Hampshire 475, Edwardian 354-415 385, 385, 386, 387, 388, 389, 390, 326,r3. - -o
476, 477,4 79,486 egg-and-dart mouldings 148 391 , 391,393, 394, 396, 399, 401 , in United Srates 213, 272, r3,
cruck construction 501 Egyptian styles 137,141, 172, 174, 403,404 , 406,406,41 0, 412 , 412, 274,276.219,281.285,290,294,
Cubitts Reinforced Concrete 355 181, 188, 189, 272, 429 414, 414, 422,512, 513 295, 29- . 385-6, 39/. -t01, 408
Cullinan House, London 489 Eisenmann, Peter 47 4 Frink (J.P.) Company (New York) 332 Gorhick 77. - , 0, 82, 91J, 9-t, 95, 96,
Cummings' Architectural Details (1873) elecrricity, introduction of 267, 301, Frisbipendant497 r, we. W3. u, -
290 332, 344, 352, 366, 380, 405, 413 From Kirchen to Garret (1893) 267 gougework 214
Electrolux (London) 441 Fry, E. Maxwell448, 468, 529 Gradidge, Roderick -1 93
D The Elms, Newport, Rhode Island Fty, H.L. and W.H. 322 Grarrix of Manchester 24 I
Dalen, Dr. Gustav 436 396, 407, 411 Fuller, Buckminster 450 Graves, Michael -1-4
Dana House, Springfield (Ill.) 339 Elsam, Richard 171 Future Systems 474,476, 478, 489, Greeff wallpape rs .j8 I
Davies (H. and C.) and Company Elsley, Thomas 311,316 491 Greek influence in Britain 139, 140,
260 Eltham Lodge, Kent 42, 42 , 48, 61 149, 151, 154, 171, 173, 174, 175,
Davis, Alexander 209, 529 Emanuel, Charles 311 G 181, 183, 18-J, 194, 195
Dawson, Nelson 325 Encyclopaedia of Carpentry and joinery gable windows 281 Greek key design 161, 168, 220, 411
Day, Lewis F. 261, 311 243, 247 Gaillard-Bennett House, Charleston Greek Revival, American 204, 206,
de Clermont, Andien 90 Encyclopaedia ofPractical Carpentry, 204,211,216,221,224,229 207,208,209, 210, 211 ,211, 2 12,
de Morgan, William 31 7, 321 , 324, The 233 Gamble House, Pasadena 306, 307, 213, 214,215, 216,218, 221 , 223,
331 English House Design (1911) 355 310, 314,323, 330, 331 ,332, 334 224,225, 226,227,229, 230, 231,
De Stijl448 Eppenstein, james F. 441 gambrel roofs 510 231
Debenham House, London 310, 323 Erco 498 garages 447, 447 Greenaw ay, Kate 321 , 322
Decoration ofHouses, The (1898) 355 Erith, Raymond 473, 473 , 474 Garagia Rotunda, Cape Cod 484 Greene, Charles and Henry 306, 307,
Decorator and Furnisher (1886) 320 Etruscan decoration 138, 141 , 155, Garden Cities ofTomorrow (1898) 355 307,3 10,3 11,312,312, 317, 318,
Decorator and Ornamentist (1892) 247, 181 garden cities/ suburbs 23L, 355 326, 327, 328, 330, 331, 333,333,
250 Examples of Ornamental M etal W'ork garden designers, influen:e of 202 334, 335,530
decorum, theoryof40-1, 41 (1836) 193 garderobes 39, 39 greenhouses 245, 383
Delano, William A. 385 Exposition Intemationale des Arts Gardiner and Sons Ltd (Bristol) 325, Griffin, W.B. 322, 530
delft tiles 125,156 Decoratifs 416 371,376,382 Grimsthorpe Castle, Lincolnshire 88
Des(gns for Gates and Rails (1806) 203 Eyre, Wilson 307 gargoyles 300 Gropius, Walter 448,448, 451, 454,
Designs oflnigo}ones (1727) 121 gas, introduction of 197, 228, 253, 455, 462,463, 468, 469,530
Deutsche Werkbund 448 F 258, 264, 267, 293, 301, 301, 380 Guerin (P.E.) company (New York)
Dickens' House, London 176, 184 Fallingwater, Pennsylvania 450, 456, gates 71, 71 , 133, 133,135, 167, 168, 392
Dietary ofHealth, The (1540) 39 460 169,199, 203,230, 231,268,269, Guns ton Hall, Virginia 111
dog gates 37 fanlights 77, 138, 139, 174, 177, 209, 271, 302, 333, 333, 335, 353, 382, Gwynne, Patrick 463, 492
dog grates 60, 93, 97, 158, 253, 256, 237, 269, 276, 353, 353,389,414, 383, 415, 447
257, 322, 370 414 Gaze (H. E.) Ltd. 36 7 H
Dolphin Studio 481 Farrniloe (George) and Company Geddes, Norman Bel436, 529 Habitat (Conran) 493 , 498
Doric House, Bath 194 270,379 General Elecrric Company 374, 380, Hadfield, George 206
dormer windows 82, 144, 280,281 , Farnley Hey, Yorkshire 472, 491 , 494, 405, 489 Hale House, Los Angeles 272, 276,
361' 392, 425 498 Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's 302
Darn, Marion 417 Farnsworth House, Plano 470, 470 Dirwor, The (1762) 87, 97 Halfpenny, William 73, 530
566 INDEX
half-timbering 272 jack, George 324 Lea, David 473, 494 May, Hugh 51, 61,534
Hammond-Harwood House, jacks 93 Leamington Spa, Warwickshire 199 medallions, ceiling see roses, ceiling
Annapolis 107, 110, 114, 127 jackson (George) and Sons 250 Leighton House, Kensington 320, Meier, Richard 487, 491
Hampstead Garden Suburb, London jacobean Revival ~6, 394 329 Mellow, Meigs and Howe Company
310,314, 355 jacuzzis 495,495 Lescaze, William 449,450, 451 416
Hampton Court Palace, London 30, japanese influences 306-7, 315, 319, Letchworth Garden City 355 Mendelsohn, Erich 463
53,63 322,327,331,332,334,355,482, letterboxes/mailshots 238,241, 359 Mercer, Henry Chapman 322
Hampton and Sons 239,247,251, 497 Libetty designs 336, 342, 353 Merrill, Scott474
252,355 jay, William 205 ,204,217, 225 libraries 68, 68, 100, 162, 163, 164, Messenger and Company 383
Handel and Company (United jeckyll, Thomas 315, 333 195, 195,263, 297,297,298, 329, Metamorphosis ofAjax; a C/oacinean
States) 352 jefferson, Thomas 205 , 212,218, 330, 3 77, 493 Satire (1596) 39
Hanley House, Oregon 278 225,226, 531 see also bookcases Miami Beach, Florida 417,419,423,
Harington, Sir john 39 jeffrey and Company 317 Lightolier (New York) 445 430,446
Harrods368 Jencks, Charles 472, 476, 479, 483, Lincrusta246, 248,355 Michelangelo 42
Harte, Glynn Boyd 481 492 linenfold panelling 24, 25, 26, 38, Middleton, C. 203
Hastings, Thomas 385 jenn-Air 484, 488 316,420 Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig 448, 470,
Haviland, john 204, 531 jennings, George 266 linoleum 251, 259, 287, 368, 368, 4 70, 473, 534
Heaton,). Aldam 250 jib doors 162, 177 430,431,458,485 Miller, Duncan 417
Henry Osborne Havemeyer House, jib windows 114 Liverpool454 Mills, Robert 204, 534
NewYork309 john Storer House, Los Angeles 316 log houses (United States) 513 millwork catalogues 304, 390
Henry Villard House, New York 404 johnson, Francis 473,477,483,485, locks 17, 44, 49, 111,210,311,359 Milne, Oswald P. 355
Herbert, Henry, 9th Earl of 487,490 London41, 47, 81, 85,143, 150,165, Minton's 251, 290, 321, 325, 326
Pembroke 72 johnson, Frank 476 174, 176,233,234 mirror glass 60, 157
Herbert Bruning House, Wilmette johnson, Philip 457, 470, 531 Adelphi 136, 136 mirrored walls 417, 426
450 jonathan Hager House, Hagerstown Bedford Park 334 Mission Revival see Spanish styles
Herter, Gustave and Christian 385 511 mansion blocks 354, 354 Mr Light498
Hicks, David 482,484 )ones, lnigo40, 56, 58, 61, 86, 96,531 -2 Nash terraces 137 Mitchell, Arnold 309, 324
High Cross House, Dartington 449, )ones, William 94 Laos, Adolf 448, 533 Mizner, Addison385, 413,429
450,451 joseph Reynolds House, Rhode Louis XN styles 188, 354,392 Modem Architectural Designs and
High-tech style 472 Island 124 Louis XV style 354 Details (1881) 290
Highpoint apartment block, London Louis XVI style 247,354,411,412 Modem Builder's Assistant, The (17 42)
455 K Lovell Beach House, California 44 9 73
Hill, Oliver 417,443,448,462,462 Kahn, Louis 491 louvered windows 423 Modem Builder's Guide (1797) 206
Hill House, Helens burgh 336, 338, Kaufmann, Angelica 149 Low 0. and ).G.) Art Tile Works Modern Builder's Guide, The (1833)
339, 34 1, 342,343,345,346,348, Keats' House, London -171 , 180 (Mass.) 321,331 208,215
349, 350, 352, 353 Keay, Lance lot 454 Lowther (R.) and Company 245 Modem Movement 416-17,418,
Hindley (C.) and Sons 254,263 Keck, George Fred 450 Lubetkin, Berthold 451,452,453, 448-69, 470
hinges 18, 49, 111,241, 310,390 Kedlestone Hall, Derby 157 454, 457, 533 Mollison, john 245
shutter 84 Kenmore, Fredericksburg 118,119, Lugar, R. 179 Monticello, Virginia 218,226
Hints on Household Taste (1872) 252 122 lunette windows 211 Moore, Henry 450
hob grates, 93, 97, 137, 154, 155, Kent, William 72, 94, 121,532 Luscombe Castle, Devon 144 Moore, Lydon, Turnbull & Whitaker
156, 158, 187, 190, 191 Keogh (C.B.) and Company 277 Lutyens, Edwin 307,310,331,331, 494
Home House, London 136, 140, 143, kerosene lighting 301, 301 371' 425, 438, 533 Moorish influence 315,402, 408
t46, 153, 155, 159,166 Kerr, Robert232 Moravian styles 111,131,227,511,
Homer, Winslow 322 Kholucy, Shawn 491 M 513
The Homewood, Esher 463,467 Kilkenny Workshops 498 McClary Company cookers 488 More Colour Schemes for the Modem
Hood, Raymond 416 Kimbolton Castle, Cambridgeshire McComb, john 205 Home (1938) 417
Hope, Thomas 195, 195,531 47 MacDonald, Donald 473, 479 Morris and Company 307, 326, 327
Hope's catalogue (1934) 423 Kindersley, David and Linda 485 MacDonald, Margaret336, 352 Morris and Company, William 307,
Hopkins and Dickinson 390 King's Manor, York 46 McDonough, William 490, 495 314, 328,330
Hoppus, Edward 82, 96 Kingswaldenbury, Hertfordshire 473, Macfarlane's (of Glasgow) 260,269, Morris-jumel Mansion, New York
horns (on sash windows) 242 474 378 205,207,209,218,224,231
House Beawi{l1l Building Annual (1925) kitchens 107, 129,227,284, 293, 297, McGrath, Raymond 457,457,458, Morris, Roger 72
438 298,416, 442, 461,465, 488, 492, 463 Morris, William283, 306,307,314,
House Beawi(lil Furnishing Annual, The 493 Mcintire, Samuel205, 208 316,317,318,318,320,320,326,
(1926) 431 Klint, Kaare 498 McKim, Charles F. 386 329, 395, 534-5
Houses for Homemakers (1945) 499 knockers, door 49, 142, 177,210, McKim, Mead and White 273, 385, Morton and Company 345
Howard, Ebenezer 355, 531 236,241,311, 390, 513 388,391,408,414,533 Morton, Gavin 345
Humphreys, Mary Gay 289 Koenig, Pierre 4 70, 489 McKnight Kauffer, E. 417 mosaics 185, 185, 186, 369,400,458,
Hunt, Richard Morris 384,391,414, Korman House, Pennsylvania 491 Mackintosh, Charles Rennie, 336-7, 481,485
531 Kohler Company (Wisconsin) 299, 336, 337, 338,338, 339,340, 341, Moss, Eric Owen493
Hunter House, Rhode Island 110, 443 342, 342, 343, 344, 345, 345, 346, Mossberg House, South Bend 451
117, 123, 128, 135 Kraetsch & Kraetsch451 346, 347, 348,349, 350, 350, 351, Matt G.L.) Iron Works (New York)
352, 353,533-4 299, 325,412
L Mackmurdo, A.H. 352 moulding profiles 10
imperial staircases 159, 490 La Farge, john 340, 385, 393, 404, "Magicoal" fire 433 Moulton Hall, Yorkshire 40, 43, 47,
!nee, W. 96, 10t 532 Maher, George H. 324 52
Induroleum 458 Lafever, Minard 207, 208, 210, 215, Manigault, Gabriel205 Moulton Manor, Yorkshire 40, 50
inglenooks262, 321,323,330,370, 217,532 mansard roofs 27 4, 280 Mount Pleasant, Philadelphia 106,
377,432, 507 Landfall, Poole, Dorset 448, 453, 462, mansion block apartments 354, 354, 110, 114, 117,123
Isaac Fletcher House, New York 384 462,468 454,455 Mount Vernon, Virginia 119,205,
Islamic influences 310,315,317,321 Lange, Emile 310 Marble Hill House, Twickenham 72 217,225, 231
Italian influence Langley, Batty 75, 77, 79, 83, 89, 92, "margin lights" 178 mullioned windows 20, 20, 21, 22,
in Britain 13, 42, 73,481 94, 96,532 Marot, Daniel68, 534 50, 50, 51,312,504
in United States 272,272,274, lanterns 70, 70, 103, 103, 132, Marsh Estate, East Coast, USA 483 murals 417, 426, 456,456
274, 276,277,282,284, 285,286, 166,166,228,228,518 Mason's Bricklayer's, Plasterer's and
290, 294,295, 319,388, 396,399, latches 17, 18, 52, 80,210,503,513 Decorator's Practical Guide (1868) N
404.406,406,412,414, 414, 415, lath-and-plaster ceilings 115 249,251 Narbonne House, Salem,
484 Latrobe, Benjamin Henry 204, 532 Mason's Patent Ironstone 188 Massachusetts 512
lavatory 264 matting 30, 30, 218, 287 Nash, john 137,139, 144,148,151,
J see also water closets Maufe, Edward 453,455,458 170, 171, 184, 194,535
).).Glessner House, Chicago 273 Lavenham, Suffolk 18, 20,29 Maugham, Syrie 417,440 Nathaniel Russell House, Charleston
). Piermont Morgan House, New le Clerc, Sebastien 82 Maurer-Beeker, Dorothee 498 216,221
York408 Le Pautre, jean 56, 64 Maw Company 251 Navajo rugs 515
INDEX 567
'e!son. Paul416, +II ~3, 85, 85, 86,108, 110, 111, 115, Queen Anne houses, 42, 47, 52 Rowell (David) and Company 360
'eo-classtcal styles 117,146,214,214,246,247,283, Queen Anne Revival Royal Pavilion, Brighton 172, 194
American 205,206, 208,213,222, 284,285,315, 342, 394,394,426, American 272, 272, 27 4, 274,277, Rudolph and Associates 485
223, 231,231,281, 289 427 280, 281' 284, 286,290, 292, 295, rugs 120,345,400,430, 458,515 see
British 88, 136, 142, 146, 149, ~ bequest68 296,297,298, 302,303,304,305, also carpets
152, 155, 170 Panton, Mrs. 267 306,311,410,415,422 Rumford, Count 154, 155,187
Nee-Georgian style 473 "paper stucco" 366, 366 British 233,254, 306, 309, 310, Rural Residences (1818) 198,200,203
Nether Lypiatt Manor, papers, ceiling 285, 318, 366 311,331,334,334,354,356,357, rus in urbe 202
Gloucestershire 46 Papworth, ).B. 198,200, 202,203, 358,360,361,370,373,383,422, rushlights 70, 132, 518
Netherlands 40, 42 535 423,424 Ruskin, John 232,237, 242,243, 306,
Neutra, Richard 449, 450, 460, 535 pargeting 53, 500, 502, 502 Queen's House, Greenwich 40, 61, 536
New Castle, Delaware 124 Paris, 1925 Exhibition 416-17 67 Ryder & Yates 489
New England 106, 109, 111, 126, Paris Ceramics 48 5 Quennell, C.H.B. 316
510, 51'1, 513,515,519 Parker and Unwin 355, 536 s
New Farm, Great Dunmow 467 parquetry 59, 92, 152, 186,218,251, R Saarinen, Eliel416
New Home, The (1903) 375 252, 287,287, 288, 345, 368, 368, radiators 300,379, 412, 447,447 StAnn's Hill, Chertsey 463
New Orleans 229,277,519 399, 399,400, 430,431 railings 71, 104, 105,133,161, 167, Saint-Gaudens, Aug-3stus 385,404
New Practical Builder(1825) 175, 179, Parsons (Thomas) and Sons 359, 363, 168, 194,200,230, 268,269,270, Sakier, George 444
193 367 302, 303,333, 353, 382, 414,414, Salmon, William 75, 107, 109
New Practical Builder and Workman's paterae 76 468 saltbox houses 107
Gwde, The (1823) 170, 170, 171 Patrick Duncan House, Charleston rainwater hopper/leader heads 39, Sam Brown House, Oregon 204
New Practical Wi11dow Gardener, The 204, 204, 205, 206, 223 69, 102,102, 131, 165, 165, 196, Sanitas washbasins 412
(1877)245 Patton Residence, Illinois 324 227,266,331,351,379,444,446 sanitation 39, 69, 102, 131, 165, 196,
Newby Hall, Yorkshire 140,145, 153 Pavilion, The, Little Horkesley, Essex Ramsden, 0. 325 227, 234, 264, 354, 378,412
Newman, Alfred A. 333 473 Randolph and Clowes (Connecticut) sash windows 50, 51, 52, 81, 82, 83,
Nicholas L. Anderson House, Paycockes, Coggershall, Essex 14, 27 412 84,112, 112,113,114,137, 143,
Washington DC 408 Peabody and Sterns 408 ranges, kitchen see stoves, cooking 144, 148, 167, 178, 180, 242, 211,
Nicholls and Clarke 359,374 Peacock, Thomas Love 232 Rathbone Fireplace Manu:acturing 211, 242,243, 244,245,280,281,
Nicholson, Peter 170, 170,171, 175, Persian styles 398,410,413 Company (Michigan) 325 282, 312,360, 361, 362, 393,422,
179, 186, 188, 193,535 Petworth House, Sussex 53 Rathbone, Sard and Company 425, 478, 504
Northrop, H.S. 398 Philadelphia 272 (Albany, New York) 331 anatomy of 10, 51, 82
Phoenix Iron Works (Cal.) 303 Rauch, John 473 saunas 518
0 photobolic screen 454 Rawlins, john 217 scagliola 93, 186
Oak Park, Illinois 337, 340, 344, 347, picture windows 454 Rebecca, Biagio 149 Scandinavian influences 467
353 Pierce, Edward 55 Red House, Bexleyheath 306, 308, in the United States 512
O'Brien Thomas and Company 374 Pietz, Paul F. 478 318, 323,326, 329 Scarpa, Tobia 4 97
octagonal houses 304 Pilkington Company 346, 484 refrigerators 441 Schindler, Rudolph 450, 451,456,
Olana, Hudson River Valley 310, Pitshanger Manor, Ealing 151 Regency 170-203, 204,204 457,459,460,462,464,467,469,
314,315,328,335 plasterwork 24, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, Regency Revival385, 403,406 537 '
Old Merchant's House, New York 30, 57, 57, 58, 73, 85, 86, 88, 88, register grates 93, 156, 158, 187, 253, Schutz, Philip Trammel472-3
209, 224, 229 90,107,115,118,118,119,147, 255,256,257 sconces70, 70,132,132,166, 196
OpArt486 149, 149, 150, 184,216, 216,217, Reid, john 178 Scott, Sir Walter 197,232
open-string staircases 66, 98, 192 285,285,286, 364,394, 397,397, Renaissance Revival278, 290,291, Scottish Baronial (Victorian) 232
Orders, Classical13, 41, 42, 45, 76, 456, 505, 506 321, 384, 387, 390,391, 395,397, Scottish vernacular 336
81, 85, 175 fibrous 249, 366 398, 401 , 401' 402, 403,407,408, sculpture galleries 13 7
oriel windows 20, 21, 22, 312 and carpets 152 413 Sears, Roebuck and Company
Oriental influences 82, 96, 99, 142, Plater-Zybeck, Elizabeth 473 Repository ofArts, Literature, Fashions (Chicago) 293,400,405
168, 174,318,319,335,409,415 Plaw, john 136,202 Etc. 171, 189 Seaside, Florida 474
Orleans House, Twickenham 83, 87, plywood 452, 456 Repton, Humphry 202, 536 Seaton Delaval Hall,
95 Pompeiandecoration 138,141,155, Revere, Pau1125 Northumberland 43
"Ornament and Crime" (1908) 448 156,181 Reynolds-Stephens, W. 325 Second Empire styles 274,280,281,
Ornamental Decoration (1909) 359, porches 16, 38, 108, 109, 167, 169, Ricardo, Halsey 323 302,303
367 174, 199,200,230, 236,237,269, Richardson, Sir Albert 473 Selden, john 55
Ornamental/ron Work (c.1795) 161 271' 277, 278, 304, 334, 339, 382, Richardson, Henry Hobson 275, 306, Selden and Son 245
Ornamental Timber Gables of the 16th 383,415,415,416,418,419 408,536 septic tanks 412
Century (1831) 271 potticoes 207,231 Richardsonian Romanesque 272, serliana 50, 53, 83, 145, 393
Osborne Lodge, Cheltenham 194 Post-Modernism 473-4 275, 277, 296, 388, 408 Serlio, Sebastiana 61, 77
Osram (GEC) Ltd 498 Poundbury 473 rinceaux 86, 199 settles 38, 38, 297, 307, 329
Our Homes and How to Make the Best Powers, Alan 480 Robert R. Blacker House, Pasadena shades 352, 391, 478
of Them (1909) 355 Practical Builder (1822) 186, 188 327 Shaker style 47 4, 512, 514, 516, 517,
Outram, john 473, 474, 475,476, Practical Builder, The (1772) 204, 208, Roberts (E.L.) and Company 304, 518
479,480,484,486,487, 492 217,220 341,388,393, 398 Shanks (Bristol) 443, 496
Ovenden, Graham479' Practical Builder's Perpetual Price Book Robie House, Chicago 339,340, 347, Shaw, Henry 193
overdoors 141,239 (1825) 171 348 Shaw, Richard Norman 232, 250,
overmantels 31, 33, 60, 60, 63, 96, Practical Decorator and Omamenralisl, Robson, Robert 24 9, 252 254,259,274,306,312,321,332,
123,222, 253,255,290,291,292, The (1892) 274,250, 284, 286 Rococo 86, 88, 89, 96, 97, 98, 114, 334,537
323, 324, 401, 402, 521 Practical House Carpenter(1766) 204, 141, 156, 157 Shawms, Cambridge (England) 469
overthrows 166 215,226,231 neo-Rococo 190,283,284,285, Shiells, R. Thornton 233
ovalo mouldings 10 Practical Masonry 233 289,291,293, 301, 413,413,476 Shingle style 272, 273,275, 277, 279,
Owen (William) Foundry 256 Practice ofArchitecture (1833) 230 Southern (United States) 277 280,282,284, 289,294,295,296,
Prairie School336, 337, 340, 344, Rogers, Richard 491 297, 298, 304, 305, 334, 385, 392,
p 346, 350, 485 Roman cement 137, 170 393, 406, 415, 415
Pain, William 147,204,208,210, Price, Bruce 306 Roman styles 47, 49, 56, 86, 147, Shirley Plantation, Virginia 125
215,217,220, 223, 225,226 Pri11ciples of Decorative Design (1879) 150, 151, 174, 181, 183, 186,205, Shope Reno Wharton 487, 491, 493,
palisading 269, 271 246 2'12, 292, 388 499
Palladianism 72, 74, 79, 81, 82, 86, privies 39, 69, 102, 131, 165, 196, 227 Romanesque see Richardsonian showers 264,299,351,351,378,379,
88, 89, 94, 136, 145,149, 157,479 Pryke and Palmer 241,245,251,252, Romanesque 442, 443, 466, 495
American110, 112,113,114,115, 256 Romantic Movement 171, 171 Shrub's Wood, Chalfont St Giles
126, 134,204, 211,212,213, 393 PuginA.W.N. 232,241,247,271,536 roofs, timber-framed 28 463,465
Palladian windows see Venetian Purism 448 room dividers 481,493,494 shutters 52, 81, 84, 112, 113, 114,
windows roses, ceiling 149, 184,216,217,249, 145, 178, 179, 280,281,362,425,
Palladia, Andrea 45, 72, 535 Q 250, 285, 286, 366 504,514
Palladia Lo11domensis (1734) 75, 109 quarries 20 Rossi, Domenico de 47 Silver Studio 342
panelling 24, 25, 26, 48, 54, 54, 55, Quarto uplighter 497 Rotch and Tilden 415 Simpson, john 491, 494
568 INDEX
sinks 196,227,265,444 Strawberry Hill, Twickenham 80, 87, Treatise ofArchitecture, A (1724) 82 Walton, Allan 417
Skidmore, M. and G. 191 90, 95, 97, 99, 100, 257 trelliswork203, 271,383,383 Walton, George 341, 348, 348
Sleter, Francesco 88 Street, G.E. 232, 326, 537 trompe l'oeil effects 26, 88, 92, 194, Ward, Dr Nathaniel245
Sloan, Samuel304 Strickland, William 205, 206, 537 426,456 Wardian cases 245
Smith, George Washington 428 Strom, Holger 498 - Trough ton & Young 498 wardrobes 377,439
Smith, Harold 325 stucco 73, 85, 137, 146, 170 Tudor 12-39, 397 Ware, Isaac 76
Smith and Founder's Director, The Swdio, The307, 309,311,316,323, neo-Tudor styles 106,250,355, Waring and Gillow 369
(1824) 184, 197, 198,201,381 325, 327, 335,337, 353 366,370,370, 371,383,385-6, Warners wallpapers 481
Smith's Right Hand, The (1756) 99 Studiod'Architettura Civile (1702) 47 387, 389, 391, 394,396, 399,402, Warren, Fuller and Company 315
Snowdon, Lord 452 Studio Yearbook of Decorative An, The 403, 406, 409,409, 415, 447, 476 wash basins 265,300,379, 411, 412,
Soane, Sir John 149, 151, 154,157, (1924) 322 Tudorbethan styles 363, 417,420, 412,441,442,444,496
170, 171,173,176,180,182,183, Sullivan, Louis H. 307,309,313,316, 422,424, 428,429,432,437,437, Washington, George 205,217, l25,
187", 188, 190, 192,193,195,473, 319,325, 327,328, 335, 448,537 446,447 231
483, 537 summer piece 404 Turkey carpets 91, 185 washstands 264, 300
sofa-beds +40 "Suntrap" windows 422, 422 Turkish corners see cozy comers washtubs 300
sofas 410 Sure Guide to Builders, A (1729) 79, 89 Turkish styles 172, 181,410 water closets 39, 264,264,266, 299,
Somerset House, London 59 Sutton Place, Guildford 21 T urnerelli, Peter 188 299,300,379,411,411,412,412,
"sound walls" 493 Swan, Abraham 72, 98, 124,538 Turre /'Opere d'Architerrura (1584) 77 442, 443, 466, 496
Spanish styles 318, 385,397,399, "swing" casements 243 Tuttle and Bailey 446 water supplies 69, 165, 196
401, 413,414, 446, 514, 519 Swiss chalet styles 272 Tuxedo Park, New York 306 weatherboarding 502
Colonial Reviva1326, 386, 399, Syon House, London 152, 168 twigwork 202 weather vanes 71, 133, 133, 270,
416, 418, 420,424, 428,428,429, Tynecastle Company 363, 363, 366 302, 303, 353, 353, 382, 446, 446
430,434, 437,437,479 T Webb, John 56, 64
Sparrow, Walter Shaw 355 Talbert, Bruce 285 u Webb, Philip 306, 308, 319, 323,326,
Specimens ofAncient Decoration from Taliesin West, Arizona 469 Una Idea Architects 491 539
Pompeii (1825) 182, 186 tapestries 54,315, 394 Urban, joseph 416,440 Webber, Kern 416
Spence, Basil468, 491 taps 265, 300, 351, 379, 411, 412, Wlestern Architect, The (1914) 327
Spencer and Powers 327 444, 466, 466, 495 v Wharton, Edith 355
spice cupboards 68, 509 Tarbuck, E.L. 247 Vardy, John 96 Whistler, james Abbott McNeill315
spindle screens 335,395, 406,408, Taylor and Green453, 455,460,462 Various Kinds ofFloor Decorations Whistler, Rex 417
415 Taylor, I. and j. 161 Represented Both in Plan and White, james 186
spiral staircases 35, 260, 462, 462, Tecton 453,454 Perspective (1739) 92 White O.P.) and Company 383, 383
508 Templar, E.A. 347 Vassal!-Longfellow House, White, Stanford 307, 386
Spitalfields, London 73, 77, 78, 80, tenement houses 284 Massachusetts 134 wickets 18
85, 101, 105 Tennyson, Alfred Lord 232 Vedder, Elihu 333 Wickham Hall, Kent 262
"Spook Style" 336 terraced/row houses 72-3, 73, 136, Velux roo flight 479 Williamsburg, Virginia 122
spotlights 445, 497, 497 136, 170, 232-3,233,238,272,356 Venesta Company 452 Willmott, Ernest 355
stained glass 241, 280,282, 308, 310, terra cotta 233, 242, 399 Venetian windows 50, 53, 83, 112, Wilton-on-the-james, Virginia 107
312,360, 389, 393, 418,423,424 terrazzo 399, 430 113,145,244,393 Wimpole Hall, Cambridgeshire 157
stair rods 259, 259 Terry, Quinlan 473,474,479,499 ventilation23, 234,266,270, 312, wine cellars 195
Starn, Mart 448 Tesella Uniforma mosaic 369 314,370, 390, 454 Winslow Hall, Buckinghamshire 42,
Standard Gas Equipment Thematic House, The, London 472 Venturi, Robert 473,473, 538 52
Corporation 436 Theodore M. Irwin House, Pasadena Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates Wolvesey Palace, Winchester 45
Stanmore Hall, Middlesex 32 7 312 475, 476, 478, 486,487, 492, 499 Wood, john 75
Starr, Fellows and Company (New Thompson-Tappan Company 488 verandas 167, 199,200, 268,303, Woodward Grosvenor and
York) 301 Thomson, Alexander 233 304, 304, 305, 334 Company 186
steel ceilings 366,367,398 Thornton, William 47 vernacular building Woodward's National Architect (1869)
stencil patterns 54, 120,215,218, Thorpe Hall, Notthamptonshire 42, American510-19 277,279, 290, 295, 301
247,248,250,261, 285,285, 315, 47, 54, 57, 60, 65, 67 British 22, 500-9 Wormersley, Peter 472, 494
315,318,343,344,363,515 Tiffany, Louis Comfort 385, 347, 538 Vers Une Architecture 448 Wren, Sir Christopher 42, 52, 64,
Stephenson Somerville Bell499 Tiffany Studios 309, 310, 332, 336, vice stairs 35 104, 306, 539
Stereo-Relief Decorative Company 340,341,352,352,497 Victorian Wright, Frank Lloyd 307, 316,319,
(New York) 398 Tijou,j. 71 American 272-305 322,327, 335,336,336, 337, 339,
Stem, Robert 474,482 Tiles British 232-71 340, 340, 344, 344, 346, 347, 348,
Steven Brothers and Company 266 fireplace 125, 156, 253,254,256, Victorian Cottage Residences (1842) 277 350,352, 353, 416,440, 448, 449,
Stewart (T.B.) and Company (New 291,321,325,346,370,371,373, Vienna Secession style 493 449,450, 451,451, 456, 459,460,
York) 290 432 Vignola, Giacomo Barozzio da 42 469, 469, 470, 539
Stick style 272, 27 4, 279, 290, 304, floors 30, 59, 251,252,287,288, Villa Montezuma, San Diego 275, Wright, Russell460
304,476 331,345, 351,368, 369,400, 419, 282
Stickley, Gustav 307, 320, 324, 325 430,485 Vitruvius Britannicus (1717) 86 y
"Stockbroker Tudor" 417 walls 248, 338, 343, 365, 396, Voysey, C.F.A. 307,308,309,311, Yaffle House, Poole, Dorset 453, 454,
stone construction methods 502 427, 480, 481 312, 322, 326,343, 345, 348, 538 455,458,460
Stones of Venice, The (1851) 232, 242, Delft 125, 156 Vyne, The, Hampshire 40 York Wallpaper Company 342
243 Minton290 Yorkshire sliders 504
stoops 303 rubber stud 484, 486 w Young, john 491
stoves William de Morgan 310, 317, wainscot 24, 25, 54, 55,68 Young, William 232
cooking 93, 191, 196,219,258, 321, 324, 331 wallpapers 54, 73, 85, 115, 117, 146, Yaung Carpenter's Assistant, The
258, 293, 293, 37 4, 374, 405,405, timber-framed houses 13, 14, 15, 148,214,214,246,247,283,283, (1805) 206
436,436,461,461,488,488-9 22, 28, 500,501,502, 505, 509 284,315, 316,317,342, 343, 363, Young and Marten 357, 359, 371,
heating 131, 165, 165, 227, 300, toilets see water closets 365,395,417,426,427,428,456, 379, 380, 382
331, 331,495,496, 518 Tomorrow's House 451 480, 481' 482 Young Swveyor's Preceptor, The 178
stovewood walls 514 towel rails 443, 466, 466 see also papers, ceiling
Strachey, j. St Loe 355 Town, Ithiel206, 209,538 Walpole, Horace 80, 97, 99, 100, z
strapwork 13, 14, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, Town and Country Mansions (1879) 538-9 Zapata, Carlos 491
37, 44, 46, 55, 66,270, 394,402 232 Walter, Thomas U. 206, 539 Zucker (Alfred) and Company 398
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