National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-01-03
HOUSEHOLD FURHITURE THREE
THONNA Nh YEARH AGO.

1AVO0dNO xAABo A0Vs
The people who lived 1t this remote era Of
the worlds history would doubtless have been
very much surprised ct many Of the articles
found in the houses Of To-day. Helen Of Troy
would have been puzzled how to use . sewing
machine, and the matrons Of Thebes or Babylon
would have regarded . packet Of pins - &
priceless luxury. Luxurious furniture was not
unknown, and there are evidences still remain,
ing that at the time Chsops was building thu
great pyramids in E0ps, and King David lead
ing the Jewish warriors IN Israel, tho dainty
Assyrian danes reclined In scented boudoirs
the appointments Of which would not be de.
spsed by . modern belle. From the hero
glyphic-covered monuments Of the East It ID
shown that while the Israelites had not ad-
vanced beyond their coarse rug or skin, the In
habitants of Egypt had stools, chairs, ottomans,
couches, and tables; and It Is known, too, that
in the residences of the rich these pieces of fur
'niture were made of the rarest woods, with
costly carvings, and inlaid work Of gold and
ivory. Their apartments were hung with elab-
orately-wrought tapestries, and similar richly
woven and embroidered stufis covered the seats
and backs of chairs and scttees. Their
cOuches, we have reason to conclude, often
served by night as belsteads,. having cushions
then laid over them, which were sometimes piled
so high that bed steps were used to get upon
them. The head-rests, which with them often
served the purpose Of pillows, were short Pill.
sometimes of wood and sometimes of ivory OF
alabaster, with occasionally cushions fitted into
their holl0ws. The poorer folks slept In theiI
closks, with . stone for their pillows, az Jacob
did when on his journey to Padan-aEam. What
we know now as the camp chair, In which the
seat, Of cloth, carpetiny or leather, permits the
folding up of this piece Of furniture, 10 only q
revival Of the style which the ancient Egyptians
had in common use. Herodotus tells US that
those who lived in the marshes slept ct night
in the nets with which by day they fshed. Our
cane-seat chairs are an adaptation from the
time when strips Of leather were interlaced for
the same purpose. Long Jefore the days OF
the first Pharaoh the Egyptians had carved
couches, bedsteads of iron, and, It is believed,
Of bronze. Carpets were on the floors Of the
wealthy. They had metal mirrors, and Q great
profusion Of kitchen utensils, and dishes Of all
sorts for the table.
Nor were the Assyrians at an behind the
Egyptians in the profusion, convenience, orna-
mentation and elegance of their household fur
niture. Among the Assyrian sculptures we
find representations of double seats, some OF
which are very elegantly formed. The ordi-
nary fashion of the chair-legs was in imitation
VI ecihc VIII ahiuiai, usuaiy Aou, tHc AOOt
being raised and supported on o short pin, and
what is remarkable the skill of their cabinet
makers, even In the early era of Joseph, had
alreadydone away with the necessity of uniting
the legs with bars.
At Thebes was discovered an Egyptian chair,
in fine preservation, inlaid with ivory and ebony,
of very handsome form, and put together en-
tirely with wooden pegs. The Egyptian tables
were rousd, square or oblong. The former,
which was their dining table, consisted Of fat
slab, often supported by carved figure Of q
captive slave. Some were made with solid sides
and some were of stone or metal.
As rule, the Egyptian bedsteads or couchos
appear to have been made of wood, but some
were constructed of metal, the more costly
being decorated with gold and silver. Al
though there seems to have been considerable
diversity in the shape of their canopies and the
means by which they were dccked with hang
ings, and although they sometimes rcsembled
the modern four-poster, yet generally In form
thcy were very similar to our couch. They
manifested considerable amount of taste; one
end was raised and descended in o graceful
curve; the legs were sometimes straight, some
times curved, and their feet were often fash
Toned SO as to resemble the claws of animals.
Their fittings by day seem to have been differ
ent to those used at night. In the daytime
there were spread over them coverings, on the
gorgeous decoration of which those who were
able were lavish in their expenditure.
A learned English writer, describing the bou-
DOR of an Egyptian lady, says it was not de-
void of an air of luxury and refinement particu-
larry congcnial to our modern taste. ga stand
near the unglazcd window supported vases of
flowers, which filled the room with delicious
oslors; 4 soft carpet oversprcad the floor; two
or three richly carved chairs and an embroi-
dcred fuutcuil afforded easy and inviting seats,
and the lotus AMI papyrus were frcscoed on the
walls. Besides the brazen mirror, other ac-
cessoTies of the toilet were arranged on the
ebony table, and boxes and caskets grotcsquely
carved, some containing jewels, others fur
nishcd with oils and ointment, took their place
with quaintly-cut smelling bottles, wooden
combs, silver or bronze bolkins, and, lastly,
pins and needles, although the latter articles