. Handbook of ornament; a grammar of art, industrial and architectural designing in all its branches, for practical as well as theoretical use. (Plate 249.) The Bench is an elongated seat, usually intended for several per-sons. In its simplest form, as a board with four legs, it was alreadyknown in Antiquity. In the Middle Ages and the Renascence, it wasin general use; and was employed not only as a seat, but as a table,as is shown by such terms as work-bench, &c. The Bench-seatwas afterwards furnished with a back and arms, the back being fre-quently formed like the canopy over stalls (fig. 7)
. Handbook of ornament; a grammar of art, industrial and architectural designing in all its branches, for practical as well as theoretical use. (Plate 249.) The Bench is an elongated seat, usually intended for several per-sons. In its simplest form, as a board with four legs, it was alreadyknown in Antiquity. In the Middle Ages and the Renascence, it wasin general use; and was employed not only as a seat, but as a table,as is shown by such terms as work-bench, &c. The Bench-seatwas afterwards furnished with a back and arms, the back being fre-quently formed like the canopy over stalls (fig. 7). It was uphol-stered with cushions and draped with textiles. The material is gene-rally wood; but in public buildings there are also Benches made of latter material and iron, frequently combined with wood, arethe most suitable for benches in the open air. A further variety isformed by the Double-bench, with a back in the middle; this back ismoveable, as shown in the example (fig. 3). As the Bench, in most cases, is intended for every-day use, it isgenerally undecorated. Those of the Middle Ages are more the FURNITURE. 437. The Bench. Plate 249. 438 The Bench. — The Sofa, and the Couch. work of the carpenter than that of the cabinet-maker, but the Re-nascence, especially in Italy, has created some finely-decorated examples. Plate 249. The Bench. 1,2, 4 and 5. Middle ages, (Viollet-le-Duc). 8. Mediaeval, double with moveable back, for use in front of the fireplace, (Viollet-le-Duc). 6. Renascence, with arms, (Ducerceau). 7. Renascence, with canopied back, church at Flavigny,French, (Viollet-le-Duc). 8—9. Renascence, with podium, Italian, (Teirich). The Sofa, and the Couch. (Plate 250.) The Sofa and the Couch are among upholstered furniture whatthe bench is among wooden furniture. By the side of forms whichare nothing more than elongated Chairs, occur others which have morethe character of the Bed. The intention of these pieces of furnitureis therefore to be found
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