This American chair, dated 1680–1700 and probably made in Boston, Massachusetts, retains the original wool Turkey-work across both its seat and back. That surviving covering is the source of the chair’s great rarity.
The chair is made of maple and oak and measures 40 3/4 by 21 by 17 inches (103.5 by 53.3 by 43.2 cm). Its plain frame belongs to a type that was also often covered in leather or unpatterned wool fabric.
Wool pile for seat and back
Turkey-work was a woven textile with a wool pile formed by knots and then cut. Made in England as an imitation of Turkish carpets, it covered this chair’s seat and back rather than only one of those surfaces.
The material was used not only on chairs but also for cushions and table coverings. England exported it in coordinated groups intended for chairs.
A line of nails runs around the seat and back. Fringe formerly concealed that row of nails.