The History of

furniture

Roșca Cristian
DI-14
1. Sofa
The sofa is surely one of our favorite pieces of furniture. And this is no surprise, because much of our
home time is spent sitting or lying in comfort on a nice sofa.
 Sofa
According to legend, we owe all this “couch comfort” we enjoy today to the ancient sultans of the
Arab countries, who were the first to make use of this kind of furniture as a throne. But unlike the
conventional chairs of the day, cushions and fabrics were added to make them much more comfortable.

There is also a theory that the ancient Egyptians used something similar to our modern-day sofa, but
it was not quite as comfortable and effective for rest and relaxation as the ones used later by the Arabs.

3
 Sofa
However, in more modern times, it was the Romans who introduced new uses for the sofa. In ancient
Rome, the sofa was known as the triclinium, and it was placed in dining rooms of Roman villas, and
was used as the place where only the nobles could lie down to eat, talk or receive their guests. Neither
women, children nor slaves could enjoy those privileges at that time. Luckily, all this has changed
today!

4
 Sofa
But for ages, the sofa was a luxury product used only by the rich and fortunate. With the industrial
revolution, this piece of furniture was widely popularized and became part of the homes of the newly-
developing middle classes in the West.

Since then, sofas have become essential for just about everybody, occupying a privileged place within
our homes, and not just in living rooms, but also in bedrooms, on terraces and in gardens. In fact, sofas
have become the centrepoints for many scenes in films and TV series, with the plot sometimes being
developed around the ubiquitous couch!

5
2. Wall Unit
The concept is not new, the earliest examples being wall benches, settles, and aumbries that date back to
the Middle Ages, all originally built as architectural features, but which subsequently developed into
stand-alone pieces of furniture.
 Wall unit

Wall units were first used in Italy during the late Renaissance. In many parts of Europe, they became
the most sumptuous pieces of furniture. They were popular for storing collections of china, coins, shells,
and curiosities.

The concept is not new, the earliest examples being wall benches, settles, and aumbries that date back to
the Middle Ages, all originally built as architectural features, but which subsequently developed into
stand-alone pieces of furniture.

Examples of contemporary furniture that may be usefully designed as built-in furniture include various
shelving, beds, benches, bookcases, cabinets, mirrors, and entertainment centers. Firaplace mantels can
also be categorized as built-in furniture, in the sense that these can be constructed with the same joinery
and tool techniques as a free-standing piece of furniture.

7
Mid Century Contemporary

8
 3. Armchair
Chairs are known from Ancient Egypt and have been widespread in the Western world from the Greeks
and Romans onwards. They were in common use in China from the twelfth century, and were used by the
Aztecs.
Surviving examples of chairs from medieval Europe are often ornate works associated with royalty and
nobility. During the Renaissance, chairs came into more common use, their design reflecting the changing
costumes and furnishings of the period. Distinctive designs developed in France and England. In modern
times the range of chair designs and materials has increased enormously.
 Armchair
Egyptian chairs appear to have been of great richness and splendour. Fashioned of ebony and ivory, or
of carved and gilded wood and metal, they were covered with costly materials and supported upon
representations of the legs of beasts or the figures of captives.

Egyptians believed that the chairs need to represent natural forms to avoid creating chaos in the
universe, by creating an artificial object. This tendency is seen all over Egyptian art and manufacture.
An arm-chair in fine preservation found in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings is astonishingly similar,
even in small details, to that "Empire style" which followed Napoleon's campaign in Egypt.

The earliest known form of Greek chair dates back to six or seven centuries BCE. On the frieze of the
Parthenon, Zeus occupies a square seat with a bar-back and thick turned legs; it is ornamented with
winged sphinxes and the feet of beasts. The characteristic Roman chairs were of marble, also adorned
with sphinxes. The curule chair was originally very similar in form to the modern folding chair, but
eventually received a good deal of ornament.

10
Egyptian chairs Greco-Roman Chairs

11
 Armchair
Passing from these historic examples we find the chair monopolized by the ruler, lay or ecclesiastical, to
a comparatively late date. As the seat of authority it stood at the head of the lord's table, on his dais, by
the side of his bed. The seigneurial chair, more common in France and the Netherlands than in England,
is a very interesting type, approximating in many respects to the episcopal or abbatial throne or stall. It
early acquired a very high back and sometimes had a canopy. Arms were invariable, and the lower part
was closed in with panelled or carved front and sides—the seat, indeed, was often hinged and
sometimes closed with a key.

12
 Armchair
In the late 1760s in Paris the first Parisian neoclassical chairs were made, even before the accession of
Louis XVI, whose name is attached to the first phases of the style.

The 18th century was indeed the golden age of the chair, especially in France and England (including
Colonial America), between which there was considerable give and take of ideas.

13
 Armchair
The 20th century saw an increasing use of technology in chair construction with such things as all-metal
folding chairs, metal-legged chairs, the Slumber Chair, moulded plastic chairs and ergonomic chairs,
recliner chairs (easy chair), butterfly chair, beanbag chairs, the egg or pod chair, plywood and laminate
wood chairs, and massage chairs.Architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Eero Saarinen also
designed chairs to match the design of their buildings.

14
Thanks!