Chairs: A History |  | Author: Florence de Dampierre
Publisher: "Harry N. Abrams, Inc."
Category: Book
List Price: $65.00
Buy New: $19.95
as of 9/9/2010 04:05 CDT details
You Save: $45.05 (69%)
New (15) Used (22) from $17.93
Seller: afordusa
Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 548220
Media: Hardcover
Edition: First Edition
Pages: 432
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 3.9
Dimensions (in): 10.8 x 7.9 x 1.5
ISBN: 0810954842
Dewey Decimal Number: 749.3209
EAN: 9780810954847
ASIN: 0810954842
Publication Date: October 1, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Henry David Thoreau wrote, I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society. In Chairs: A History, furniture historian Florence de Dampierre presents a wonderfully readable and visually stunning exploration of chairs and their place in culture through the ages. Along with hundreds of gorgeous photographsmany taken specifically for this bookde Dampierre fills these pages with fascinating information and anecdotes, tracing the chairs emergence in ancient Egypt and examining various forms of seating from classical Greece, the Roman Empire, and the Renaissance era, to the classic designs of today.
From thrones to divans, straightbacked to overstuffed, Baroque to Bauhaus, this beautiful volume will delight anyone whos ever taken a seat and wondered where it came from.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
A Simply Fantastic Book! May 11, 2007
JWM (New York, NY)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
No one who has seen my home would expect me to have anything to do with a furniture book. But some perceptive friend gave me this book and now I get it! Under Ms. de Dampierre's tutelage, I have grown to understand how pieces of furniture are a reflection of the times in which they were created. This study of chairs is no less fascinating than any great work of art history and the author does an incredible job of detailing changes in social and political currents which impact the design and use of each chair in her exhaustive chronology. As importantly, the pictures are beautiful; the book is worth buying for them alone.
the ultimate book on chairs May 11, 2007
A.W.G. (New York, New York)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Florence de Dampierre has produced what will certainly be not only the definitive guide to the chair itself but also a witty and learned look at how modes of communication in differing cultures governed the kind of furniture people invented for themselves. The scope of the book is huge, ranging from the cradle of civilization in Mesopotamia and Africa to the chair as modern art. I recommend it highly, both for serious collectors as well as anyone who has ever thought twice about the provenance of the place they've just sat down in. The book is copiously and beautifully illustrated, so it makes a lovely gift.
Chairs; A History May 9, 2007
H. S. Mathis (nyc)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I have read Chairs; A History and find it to be fasinating from two view points. One is that it is more than a history of furniture, it is a social history of the people who sat in the chairs and their times and their culture. Secondly I will retain it for years as one of the most complete reference books on the cultural periods discussed. Finally it is beautifully illustrated and written and should be in everyone's library.
Interesting read, elegantly illustrated May 10, 2007
M. Messer
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
In this fascinating book, De Dampierre brings a fresh perspective to world history by describing it through one of the most ubiquitous items in our daily lives: chairs. In doing so, she has produced a highly enjoyable read for both the sophisticated antique collector and the general student of history.
LOVE OF CHAIRS August 1, 2009
Roxie L. Gamble (USA)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Lets face it some us are simply in love with furniture and for a great deal of us the true great love is chairs. I also love history and this book gives you both. This book has a permanent home on my living room coffee table and I never tire of looking through it and neither will you.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 6
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