Historical information

A gentleman's chair, gent's chair or grandfather chair is a term usually applied in Australia to a deep upholstered Victorian easy chair, often button-backed and with upholstered arms. The chair generally stood on short cabriole legs and had a 'spoon' or a wide balloon back. The 'show wood', that is, the polished frame, was usually mahogany or walnut, although many examples in Australian red cedar have survived.
There are Australian versions of the gentleman's chair, lady's chair and matching settees, usually made from cedar, and occasionally from blackwood. As cedar is a softer timber than walnut, mahogany and rosewood, from which the English versions were made, the carving is usually not as crisp as in the imported version. However, the Australian blackwood gentleman's chair is often difficult to distinguish from a good-quality English walnut example.

The Edwardian form of the gentleman's chair is much squarer in outline, with short turned legs and the arms are often supported by spindles. There was sometimes a row of spindles, like a gallery, beneath the top rail. The chairs were frequently upholstered in leather.

Significance

An item probably made in Australia during the latter half of the Victorian era and is significant as it was made in Australia at a time when furniture and many other household items were imported from either America or England.

Physical description

Armchair: gentleman's armchair of Cedar wood with brown leather upholstery, tacked and buttoned in a crocodile-skin-like effect. The wood is scalloped and carved with a Prince of Wales Feather on the back. The arms are scrolled and carved with an Acanthus leaf design, finished on tulip turned legs. All four legs have brass and porcelain castors. circa 1870, Australian-made.