Furniture & Furnishings

The Victorian Age saw the transition from the light, graceful, classical style of furniture made by skilled craftsmen, to a heavier, more ornamented type which was manufactured in factories with the aid of machines. The advances in technology meant that a wider variety of materials were available for both furniture and furnishings, and, with the developing trade with the Far East, came a growing taste for Japanese art. Evidence of all this is apparent in Gately House.

The Victorian commercial manufactures tended to use designs based on any number of historical styles and the resultant mixture was often ugly and over ornate by present-day standards. However, at best, Victorian furniture has solidly of construction, good wood was usually used, it was comfortable and fine attention was given to detail – all qualities which we can appreciate in our own age of often shoddy mass production. In Gately House almost every item of furniture is well constructed of beautiful woods such as mahogany, rosewood and walnut. Not all the furniture is Victorian however, as there are examples of Georgian and one Art Nouveau cabinet in the house.

In 1865 Japan, emerging from her isolation, established trade links with Britain and, with their strong trading interests, the Victorians succumbed to the spell of Japanese art. Lacquer-ware, porcelain, prints and even furniture made from bamboo became prized objects in the Victorian home. The Gately family were no exception and in Gately House there are many examples of ‘Chinoiserie’.

Decorative objects of all kinds were beloved of the Victorians and were placed on every available surface. Table tops, mantelpieces, dressing tables and sideboards were crowded with objets d’art, and the ‘whatnot’, a three to four tiered stand for ornaments, became an essential piece of furnituwere few middle-class Victorian homes that did not boast a glass dome or shade as it was called. The stuffed birds covered by a shade in the parlour and family living room were typical of this fashion.

East London Museum	Wandering Albatross displaying, Prince Edward Island	East London Museum	East London Museum