Monthly Archives: November 2015

A William III Ash Chest-on-Stand – Part Three

Posted on 26th November 2015 by Jack Plane

The cabinetmaker’s insertion of the featherbanding in this chest would be considered – even by most of his contemporaries – as ‘wrong’. One can’t deny the proficiency of the man as a cabinetmaker constructing a basic chest, but it can’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Case Furniture, Furniture Making | Tagged , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Samuel Pepys Exhibition at the National Maritime Museum

Posted on 22nd November 2015 by Jack Plane

As a reliable and valuable late seventeenth-century resource, I have quoted or cited Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) many times on this blog. The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich is currently running an exhibition, Samuel Pepys: Plague, Fire, Revolution from the 20th … Continue reading →

Posted in 17th and 18th Century Culture, Exhibitions | Tagged , | 3 Comments

A William III Ash Chest-on-Stand – Part Two

Posted on 18th November 2015 by Jack Plane

I am never without something to occupy myself, but spring is a particularly active time of the year: Horses, foals (currently five, with another three due imminently), tree planting, tree watering, keeping the greens in order and a myriad of … Continue reading →

Posted in Case Furniture, Furniture Making, Furniture Timbers | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Picture This LXVI

Posted on 13th November 2015 by Jack Plane

Since Picture This LXV was so well received, here’s another item of early English furniture for the sleuths to elucidate. Fig. 1. Oak desk on cabriole legs. (Bonham’s) It’s no good saying “… it’s George IV”; I want hard dates … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiques, Picture This | Tagged , , | 24 Comments

UK’s Oldest Tree Undergoing Sex Change

Posted on 5th November 2015 by Jack Plane

I previously mentioned Scotland’s Fortingall Yew here. Well apparently there’s something queer going on with it: The UK’s oldest tree, thought to be up to 5,000 years old, is undergoing a “sex change”. Records have always noted the Fortingall Yew … Continue reading →

Posted in Furniture Timbers | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Picture This LXV

Posted on 4th November 2015 by Jack Plane

Just for a bit of fun this time; before I offer my assessment of this oak and yew chest-on-stand, would anyone else care to interpret the images and propose a date? Fig. 1. Oak and yew chest-on-stand. (Tooveys) Fig. 2. … Continue reading →

Posted in Picture This | Tagged , , , | 53 Comments

Today a Prince (of Orange)

Posted on 4th November 2015 by Jack Plane

William III, the sovereign Prince of Orange, was born at Binnenhof, The Hague, in the Dutch Republic on the 4th of November 1650. William ruled over England, Ireland, and Scotland from 1689 until his death in 1702 when he was … Continue reading →

Posted in Distractions | Tagged , | 3 Comments