Comments on: Robert Mitchell Furniture Co. Roman Arm Chair – 1904

By: Antique Attributions Murky Part I | Rare Victorian

Antique Attributions Murky Part I | Rare Victorian — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:41:26 +0000

[...] go one further and provide historical catalog images to confirm a particular maker, such as here, here, here, here, recently here, and many [...]

By: In The Showroom: Stickley-Brandt And Robert Mitchell Furniture – 1906 | Rare Victorian

Sun, 20 Sep 2009 14:48:03 +0000

[...] recognize a mix of manufacturers in this photo. The front-left chair is a Robert Mitchell “Roman Arm Chair” and the pair of chairs in the center are probably Stickley-Brandt. You can see the [...]

By: Ware

Ware — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 21:28:25 +0000

Also, for those interested in the Mitchell furniture ad above, it was printed in 1901 in Munsey’s Magazine. I do not know of other publications in which the ad appeared, but I do know that the Roman chair continud to appear in Mitchell’s catalogs at least until 1907. By 1909, Mitchell’s catalogs started to be printed in COLOR.

Hard to stop!

I love this topic! Thanks to the moderator for this site.

Best,
Ware

By: RareVictorian

RareVictorian — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 21:27:01 +0000

Glad to hear there will be a book out there to help clear some of this up. Welcome to the site and you can be sure I’ll send you an email at some point with a Mitchell/Horner related question.

By: Ware

Ware — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 21:22:24 +0000

Funny you raise this particular topic in June of this year. I have been researching the Mitchell firm and submitted a book on Mitchell ca.1895-1910 in March. It is currently being reviewed by the publisher.

The distinctions between Mitchell and Horner are many… and the whole Mitchell v. Horner issue has been a bee in my bonnet for two years now. While this subject is too complicated to rewrite here, I can confirm from my research (at Winterthur and the Met as well as the marketplace) that most of what has been named as a Horner piece of furniture without a label is highly suspect and I can site several examples that are illustrated in Mitchell’s catalogs (including “Dutch marquetrie” parlor tables. I should add that the lines between retailer and manufacturer become blurred for many furniture concerns ca. 1900. If you have a particular question, please let me know at staforlife@yahoo.com

ON A SIDE NOTE ABOUT HORNER… do any of you know about Princess Metternich’s salon furniture? The NY Times states that Horner reproduced her furniture and had it on display in his NYC wareroom. Metternich had residences in Vienna, London… unfortunately I cannot figure out WHICH pieces were reproduced.

Best,
Ware

By: woodwright

woodwright — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:05:08 +0000

Southampton Antiques has a Mitchell arm chair like this one for sale right now ($1,650) No attribution, mention of any maker. http://www.souhantq.com/os/os-1091.html woodwright

By: RareVictorian

RareVictorian — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 21:16:05 +0000

One random point about the chair – there is “634″ in white chalk on the seat back. Not exactly 66-1334, but maybe its some kind of shorthand for it.

By: RareVictorian

RareVictorian — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 21:14:22 +0000

Perfect, thanks misslilybart. Makes sense because if you’ve ever seen the “European Container” antiques, there’s a lot of that dark oak.

By: misslilybart

misslilybart — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 20:55:30 +0000

From the “Household Decoration” advice column in Harper’s Bazaar, January 1905:

“Fumed oak is the lightest and warmest in tone. It is similar to walnut, a rich nut brown. Weathered oak is a cold brown, darker in tone than the fumed oak, but lighter than the Flemish and Antwerp oak, both of which are very nearly black.”

By: Emeriol

Emeriol — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 19:37:29 +0000

Just be glad they didn’t throw in Hunzinger’s name as well. I can’t even tell you how many pieces read: Horner / Hunzinger chair. They will throw in Hunzinger’s name with anything, just to get the search hits.