The wrought iron gate piers in St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, with their architectural treatment of open panelling, cresting, and massive buttresses, in filed, bolted and riveted, are splendid examples of Flemish workmanship, and are probably by Quintin Matsys (1450-1529).
FURNITURE.
The adaptability and universality of wood for domestic and public purposes, its susceptibility to carving and enrichment, its beautiful texture, grain and colour, have made it one of the most useful of materials in the constructive and decorative arts.
The many chairs, tables and chests of ancient times, and the beautiful choir stalls, cabinets and screens of the middle ages are a tribute to the vitality, inventiveness and artistic perception of the old craftsman.
The universality of the chair has tended to preserve the form through many centuries. The chair has undergone various modifications, from the ornate Egyptian one to the Assyrian example with the supports of fir-cones. In the Greek example, the beauty and simplicity of profile is remarkable, while the Chair of St. Peter, 1st century A.D., is purely architectonic with enrichments of gold and ivory.
The Coronation Chair in Westminster Abbey, of the time of Edward I., is one of the earliest in England, offering a strong contrast to the chairs of the 18th century by Chippendale and Sheraton.
A Venetian chair of the 16th century shows a skilful but inappropriate treatment.