The French Renaissance

From Italy, the spirit of the Renaissance spread to France, but here the transitional period was of longer duration, due to the Gothic art being more firmly rooted in France than in the south. The ornamental woodwork of the French in the early years of the Renaissance differs strongly from the Italian work of the same period. It is lighter, more delicate, the carving more open, and the whole less dependent upon the antique models. In the cabinets the furniture makers seem to have reveled especially in use of their talent. The construction of this article gave opportunity for artistic shaping and decoration which was impossible in bed, chair, or table.

The great devotion of time and skill which the medieval workmen spent upon the chest was now lavished upon the cabinet of the Renaissance.

The Renaissance In Germany And Spain

In Germany, and the Low Countries, as in Spain also, the Renaissance developed on original lines. A simpler, sturdier form arose than that of France and Italy. Heads and grotesque masks were introduced with good effect into cabinet work. Marquetry was excelled in by the Dutch, and in Flanders a distinct type of chair arose with turned woodwork and cane seat and back. The Flemish style, more than any other, influenced the Spanish Renaissance. There are many chairs from that period, the woodwork much like those in Flanders, the back and seat of stamped or carved leather.

The English Renaissance

By the beginning of the sixteenth century the Renaissance had reached England, and a style arose there called the Tudor, which was a mingling of the Italian, French, and Flemish, the latter predominating. We Americans are especially interested in this style because the chairs which the first colonists brought over from England belong to this period, and the carved chairs made in this country in the early days show the Flemish-Tudor influence.

The Elizabethan Style

This style became more fixed and distinctly English after Elizabeth came to the throne. From that time on it was known as the Elizabethan, but there is really no distinction. A style of carving known as the linen fold and the strap work was used especially upon cabinets.

The Jacobean Style

The Jacobean style was an outgrowth of the Elizabethan, and was very similar, but of a lighter and more graceful construction. This style endured from the accession of James I until the end of the seventeenth century. The "thousand-legged table," in England called the "gate-leg table," is a product of this period as was also the wainscot chair, a combination chair and table in which the back of the seat formed the top of the table. The turned furniture legs of the Flemish naturally gave rise to the more graceful spiral leg. The finest type of spiral was carved by hand and was very beautiful. It was used for tables, chairs, and elevated cupboards. English oak was the chief material, but later in the seventeenth century a great change was made by the introduction of walnut. This did not lend itself to easy carving, so paneling and marquetry, with applied drops, spindles, and nail heads were used.