A quiet word from the List Mistress - ‘Lancashire’ dining chairs

Three Carved oak ‘Lancashire’ dining chairs (from an unmatched set of 11), England, late 17^th century

Carrick Hill house is actually quite modest in size and visitors are often very surprised when they walk into the house to be confronted by the vision of a grand oak staircase, dark oak panelled walls and rooms filled with old English and European carved oak furniture.   This becomes even more remarkable when you hear the story of how in 1935 the Hayward’s, then on their honeymoon in England, purchased interior fittings and furniture from the  extensive demolition auction of a mid-16th century Staffordshire mansion named Beau Desert hall. 

It was around these purchases that the Haywoods  had shipped back to South Australia, that the local Adelaide architectural firm of Woods Bagot Laybourne -Smith and Irwin designed and had constructed the house they would then live in for the rest of their lives.  To complement the oak panelling in the west facing dining room the Haywards acquired a collection of so called ‘Lancashire’ carved oak chairs that date from the period 1680-1700.  There are eleven of these heavy and impressive chairs (six forming a set plus another five to complement)- they are also referred to in the furniture trade by the term ‘joined back-stool’.  Their distinctive style and carving make it possible to locate their construction specifically to the Lancashire district in England and to date them to the late 17^th century although similar chairs were made at the same time in the neighbouring area of Yorkshire.

Although each chair looks similar each has its own individual carved back panel which features a decorative design of bold stylized oak leaves with motifs such as acorns, thistles or the simple 4-5 petalled Tudor rose.  Two larger carved carver style armchairs make up the suite of chairs that surround the large, simple, oak refectory table.     

Photo: Mick Bradley

References:

Carrick Hill: A Portrait edited by Richard Heathcote, pub. Wakefield Press, Adelaide 2011

Oak Furniture; The British Tradition by Victor Chinnery, pub. Antique Collectors Club Ltd, 1986

A quiet word from the List Mistress - SURPRISE!

The Carrick Hill ceramics collection has many unexpected objects in it but this group of English mid-19^th century Frog mugs is definitely one of the more eccentric.   We don’t really know much about how this collection was assembled or even who collected them – were they just quirky items that Bill and Ursula Hayward found and brought back from their many trips to England or were they inherited from a parent or grandparent?

Frog mugs were also known as ‘Surprise’ or 'Toad’ mugs and they were originally designed as a rustic practical joke as the interior of the mug contains a full-size pottery frog or toad which is revealed to the drinker as the liquid is consumed.  The earliest examples of mugs containing frogs date from about 1775 but they continued to be produced throughout most of the 19^th century.  An unsuspecting guest would be startled as he drank from the mug to see a frog emerging from the beverage as it was consumed and the frog would appear to spit at the drinker through the hole in its mouth as the mug was tilted.

Frog mugs often feature transfer-printed designs with pictorial images and moralistic verses, sayings or patriotic inscriptions and some are inscribed with individual names, an indicator that the cup may have been given as a gift to mark a wedding or special event.  Some of these mugs feature hand-painted relief moulded designs, some have patriotic verses commemorating the Crimean War and the English and French victory over the Emperor Napoleon. Several of the larger cups were made in the style of a ‘loving cup’ with two or even three handles and two of the more unusual mugs are modelled with satyr face masks.  Some mugs contain more than one frog nestled at the base while a couple even include a lizard!

Frog mugs can be found in many museum collections in Australia and around the world.

http://www.stokemuseums.org.uk/collections/browse_collections/ceramics