These unusual side chairs are essentially Late Baroque in contour; however, the conventional solid banister has been replaced by a Rococo strapwork one. The juxtaposition of these diverse elements, in all likelihood, reflects a client’s preference. Chairs incorporating elements of two, and sometimes even three styles are considered a composite rather than transitional—although in this instance both may be accurate estimations. 

Technical notes: Mahogany; mahogany (slip seat front and outer, rounded sides—the frame cutouts), southern yellow pine (slip seat interior sides and back). The seat rails are tenoned through the stiles. The rear brackets are attached to the seat rails. The banister is set into the shoe, which is deeper than the rear seat rail. The inside rear seat rail of B.69.76.1 is incised VII, its slip seat, VII. The inside seat rail of B.69.76.2 is incised I, its slip seat, VIII.

Related examples: Other chairs from this set are published in Antiques 37 (January 1940), inside front cover; Downs 1952, no. 117; Hornor 1977, p. 204, pl. 81; Zimmerman 1981, pp. 305–6. Similar chairs include Hornor 1977, pi. 72; Sack 1969–92, vol. 6, p. 1545, no. P4480; Heckscher 1985, pp. 89–90, 92, nos. 44, 46.

Book excerpt: David B. Warren, Michael K. Brown, Elizabeth Ann Coleman, and Emily Ballew Neff. American Decorative Arts and Paintings in the Bayou Bend Collection. Houston: Princeton Univ. Press, 1988.