Chaise longue: a very feminine furniture
Yesterday while I was reading this book I came across a curious paragraph, which has led me to read more about this and I found interesting to make an entry on the subject. I quote the paragraph:
“…In the 18th century, as you know, the woman was acquiring a progressive role in French society (remember to Madame de Pompadour, and the decisive influence exercised by his strong personality). As well, during the reign of Louis XV, we see how wide skirts fashion gave rise to an extension of the seats and arms of the seats retranqueamiento to accommodate a new female attire; as for greater freedom of customs and social attitudes, which, among other things, led women to more relaxed posture in the intimacy, the rise of the chaise-longue occurred in all their ranges: is no coincidence that this typology (arose during the previous reign, but which was then generalized) allowed to stretch your legs and give a mischievous”, emerging vision of the ankle…” (Ordonez, and Ordonez, C. l.: “the Cabinet: conservation and restoration”.) P. 23. Editorial Nerea. (1997).
It’s strange, but the truth is that the Chaise-longue had always been a piece of furniture that called my attention, perhaps one of my favorites in all its versions over time and I guess that this also happens to more than one woman, because it is not the first time that I hear a friend say, Oh I love this furniture! And of course, how us will not like it if it was intended for us, to relax and to show our female charms.
However, if we go back to Roman times, we see how the Romans already took this position lying on the banquet for dinner in the company, in fact when we think about them, comes to head the image of the Roman lying with the grapes in the hand and its around a selection of slaves, each with a particular function (read more). But I fixed that in Isidore, XX, 11 9 can read that although men began to lie to eat, the women continued making it sitting:
“Among the ancient Romans there the habit of going to bed to eat.” “Later, men began to lie to eat, while women continued doing it sitting because it was considered outrageous that women lie down”.
If… it was too beautiful to be true, a piece of furniture designed for us.
This unit falls into oblivion for hundreds of years and is not until 1625 that appears in France for the first time, designed for the female nursing (now if). The upper classes seeking comfort in furniture and the beauty seems to be that women need a broad armchair and coquettish to stretch legs and show off their skirts and clothing with lace and embroidery typical of the era.
But despite the changes that this piece of furniture has suffered throughout the history, it seems that the most sought after by collectors are of the era of Louis XV, which we mentioned at the beginning of the entry.
If you want to read more about its history I recommend this (pdf) article by the journalist Gala Díaz Curiel, which I found by the network and is well illustrated.
