Splats and Spindles: Six English Regional Chairs

This display is made possible with funding from the Regional Furniture Society and The Bernard and Geraldine Cotton Fund.

Did you know that country chairs have their own language?

For centuries, across the different regions of England, people made chairs for everyday use based on local traditions, using timber and other materials readily available in the area. The craftmanship and design that informed regional chairmaking was passed from generation to generation, and distinct features formed unique chairmaking dialects associated with each region.

Visitors will get up close with six chairs from the Bernard and Geraldine Cotton Chair Collection and Archive, most of which have not been on display for 20 years. Each chair links to a different region, where you will learn the stories of both celebrated and lesser-known makers, discover how everyday furniture can reflect local history and gain insight into Bernard and Geraldine Cotton’s work.

This display will be installed in our Home Galleries, in the Undercroft. Plan your visit and navigate the museum with our free digital guide on Bloomberg Connects.

Splats and Spindles displays six chairs from The Bernard and Geraldine Cotton Chair Collection and Archive – a collection representing Dr Cotton’s life-long project of deciphering and linking chair characteristics to specific regions, trades and traditions. This is the first display in over two decades to focus on the collection.

This display will coincide with the final stages of the full digitisation of the collection and archive, which includes over 400 physical chairs, including documents, photographs, drawings, clippings and oral histories. Once complete, the resource will soon be available to view in our online Collections Library, offering a significant resource for researchers and furniture enthusiasts alike.