Shaker Community Rocking Chair – SOLD
Second Family, New Lebanon, NY | c. 1850
Maple and figured maple with cotton tape
45 ¼” h. x 22 ½” w. x 26” d.; seat: 15” h.
The iconic design of the Shaker slat-back chair originated in New Lebanon, New York, which was the center of Shaker governance, overseeing all earthly and spiritual matters—including design. The earliest Shaker chairs were made at the turn of the 19th century when Shaker communities were being built from the ground up. These chairs were made for use by the Shakers and, often, they were bespoke, made to accommodate a specific Brother or Sister conducting a specific task.
Throughout the 19th century, the Shakers of New Lebanon finetuned the rocking chair form and streamlined production. The chairs became lighter, more refined, and balanced in their proportions. Over time, technology changed as well—new tools and techniques such as water-powered lathes, steam-bending, and the advent of the circular saw allowed the Shakers to create more ergonomic chairs with greater efficiency and a reduction in handwork.
Made for Shaker use, this Community Rocking Chair represents the classical era of Shaker chair design. Chairs made between the 1820s and 1850s express the Shaker ideology of simplicity, utility, and beauty—they become lighter, more visually balanced, and exceptionally crafted by hand. This particularly elegant Rocking Chair has non-graduated back slats, front posts with a concave taper from seat to arm, and classic side scroll arms—rounded on the inside, beveled on the outside—that taper gracefully and tenon into the rear posts. It has a newly retaped cotton seat and is in an old stain and varnish surface.
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