House & Garden 
An Italian side 
chair of the 
16th Century, 
with character¬ 
istic leather 
back and nail- 
heads, scrolled 
pierced under¬ 
bracing and 
acanthus leaf 
finial 
Armchair of the late 16tn 
Century, with metal lions 
as finials, intarsia decora¬ 
tions, and crimson velvet 
upholstery 
C har act eristic 
carved h o r i- 
zontal splats, 
acanthus leaf 
finials and a 
broad carved 
under bracing 
are found in 
this late 16th 
Century side 
chair 
FURNITURE of the 
ITALIAN RENAISSANCE 
MR. AND MRS. G. GLEN GOULD 
F EW phrases are so battered from mouth 
to ear with little comprehension of their 
meaning as The Italian Renaissance. 
Symond took five volumes to set it forth. With¬ 
out such continued effort we can get a general 
impression of what it means in furniture design 
by looking at these three chairs and at this 
superb carved walnut chest from The Metro¬ 
politan Museum of Art, New York. Here we 
can see the characteristics which mark this 
revival or re-birth, as the word Renaissance 
signifies, of the designs of Greece and Rome, 
which took place in Italy about 1400 and de¬ 
lighted the Italians for over two centuries. 
Two qualities distinguished its expression in 
furniture design: simplicity, which is achieved by 
precise and nicely balanced construction, illus¬ 
trated by these three chairs; secondly, beautiful 
and elaborately ornamented surfaces on a simply 
designed structural form, as in this chest. 
These are the principal characteristics of Italian 
Renaissance furniture: 
Construction: Architectural—a balancing of 
horizontal and vertical lines, as in a house; fine 
proportions. Underbracing low 
or on floor plain, flat, carved, \___ 
solid or pierced. The under- f ' ~ 
bracing on floor between front 1 
and back leg of chairs is charac¬ 
teristic. Wood is chiefly walnut. 
Ornament: Reproduction and 
adaptation of classic Greek and Profile of hori- 
Roman motifs and designs. The zontal arm 
acanthus leaf and scroll are the 
T limed and 
carved table leg 
A carved bed 
post of the 
period 
A gracefully 
turned chair leg 
most distinctive. Moldings, panels and columns. 
Festoons, rosettes, human figures, masks, mythical 
figures and animals. Carving, spirals, turning, 
inlay or intarsia; upholstery, nail-heads; few 
metal mounts. 
Tops: Chairs—straight, carved scroll, crested. 
Back: Low, medium or high according to the 
type of chair. Vertical or very slightly raked; 
flat. Side supports above top-rail with acanthus 
finials very characteristic. Horizontal splats, 
broad, upholstered or carved. 
Arm: Horizontal, flat and broad; curved 
slightly downward with scrolled or carved end. 
Seat: Rectangular, flat, upholstered; octagonal 
and scooped in Sgabello or stool chairs. 
Leg: Straight, reversed curves in curule or 
folding chairs, lion’s leg; rectangular, turned, 
spiral, ornamental. Ornamental, spiral, and com¬ 
bined square and turned leg is characteristic. Solid 
carved table end supports; center pedestals. 
Foot: Block, rectangular, bracket, paw, orna¬ 
mental ankle, ball and bun. 
Proper spacing is the first requirement in the 
use of Italian Renaissance furniture. As an 
advertiser will put a fine por¬ 
trait with a simple caption on 
a costly blank page of a maga¬ 
zine, confidently relying on the 
blank space to add value to the 
advertisement, so, without crowd¬ 
ing, must Italian Renaissance 
furniture be placed in rooms and 
halls, with considerate regard 
(Continued on page 162) 
A characteristic carved 
figure 
A carved foot 
scroll 
An acanthus 
corner 
A cassone or chest, dating from the mid-16th Century. Rectangular, 
simple construction, molding and elaborate carving on moldings and 
panels, acanthus leaf and scroll with griffins and carved lion’s paw 
feet are marks of the period 
