Pompeii No.24: Chairs for the Pompeii Room

The challenge of finding the right furniture for the Pompeii Room has been to find a set of chairs that are neoclassic — either klismos chairs or a style that was inspired by klismos chairs.

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, here, my friend Sandy and I have been visiting a monthly brocante in our town of St. Petersburg, Florida. When we saw these chairs several months ago, Sandy agreed with me that they would be perfect for the Pompeii Room, so much so that she insisted on gifting me with them!!

The chairs came with this mustard yellow paint rubbed on them, which I suppose was meant to make them attractive in a "shabby chic" sort of way. The gaudy color probably worked in my favor because I guess that a lot of people could not see past it to recognize the chairs' wonderful details.

Each chair has a rope twist decoration and a handsome brass medallion, and therein lies a story:

www.neptunepictues.com

In 1805, Admiral Lord Nelson won the Battle of Trafalgar, destroying 22 ships of the Franco-Spanish fleet, and without losing a single British ship. It was Britain's greatest naval victory, and one in which the great admiral lost his life.

The victory, plus Nelson's heroic death, inspired a British craze of all things naval, and that in turn impacted the neoclassic style that was sweeping both Britain and the Continent at the time.

1stdibs.com 

The rope twist decoration (usually seen with elements called buttons) is actually a reference to the Royal Navy and the Battle of Trafalgar!

click to enlarge  |  1stdibs.com  |  wakefieldscearce.com  |  1stdibs.com

Here are three Regency chairs of similar design, each with the rope twist decoration and buttons that are also featured on my chairs. You can click on the image to see the details.

I'm getting my Regency chairs refinished, and I'll be showing them off at a later date, as all the elements of the room come together.

And now, back to the mural . . .

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A Visit to St. Petersburg's Brocante

Yesterday, my friend Sandy and I visited St. Petersburg's Brocante, a new vintage market with dozens of vendors and "15,000 square feet of vintage bliss."

The brocante is the brainchild of Sean and Celesta Carter, and it's open the first full weekend of every month.

That the brocante is restricted to once per month is a large part of its evident success. The Carters — and the many vendors who have joined them — obviously take the better part of each month to be selective in what is included, and also take the time to present vintage items in ways that are visually stimulating.

For example, all these items were grouped to suggest Dad's shop, and one can immediately imagine sitting in that chair and tying a few fishing flies or working on a kit.

Likewise, these religious icons were resting on a very long and substantial church pew.

In an area of filing cabinets and lockers, I noticed this cool cabinet that once held college microscopes.

Globes have a huge retro appeal today, and for the person with a keen eye, the brocante held a ready-made collection.

If my dining room ceiling weren't quite so low, I might have snapped up these vintage lamps.

How's this for vintage — spats!

Years ago somebody bought a white cigarette holder, a sophisticated choice and the only one missing from this set.

Have you ever heard of a Dorking Rooster? (Is he x-rated?) I was instantly attracted to this handsome image because it was an original 1870's lithograph. It doubtlessly was 19th-century advertising .

I'm continually intrigued by these old team photographs. Have you ever noticed that the sports teams at the turn of the last century almost always included guys who wouldn't rise above bat boy today?

With its enameled metal top, this old cabinet could be a fun piece of outdoor furniture.

You'll never guess what this is, so I'll just tell you — it a detail from a vintage lampshade.

My purchase for the day was this lithographed tin, a perfect companion piece to my Lucky Strike tin of the same era. It probably dates to around the 1880s and is in virtually mint condition — a great find!

St. Petersburg's Brocante is very well thought out, efficiently organized, fun to visit and a great addition to the area. If you're in St. Petersburg, here's what you need to know:

2200 2nd Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33712

www.brocantemarket.com

facebook.com/brocantemarket

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