Continental Church Furniture

Richard Hayman is an architectural historian and archaeologist who has been studying and photographing churches over many years. He has compiled many of the statutory lists of buildings of special architectural interest for Wales, and has also written a book on wrought iron for Shire.

"This great wealth of works of art is scattered all over the country, adding enormously to the beauty and interest of our churches. This book alerts readers to their existence and invites them to go and admire them." - The Tablet "Now that it has been published and is available for review it must be mentioned again as a quite outstanding contribution to ecclesiological studies" - Ancient Monument Society

ALAN C. VEDDER, because of his interest in architectural and artistic fields and despite only general formal education in those areas, had a fascination for New Mexican culture. These interests were expanded and intensified when he began working with the E. Boyd in the newly-established Spanish Colonial Department of the Museum of New Mexico. He worked closely with her for almost twenty years and together they explored, empirically, the Spanish cultural background of New Mexico. Mr. Vedder specialized in conservation of New Mexican Spanish Colonial objects, having conserved the famous Santiago bulto at El Santuario de Chimayo and the altar screens at Rosario Chapel in Santa Fe and at Santa Cruz Church in Española. He acted as a consultant to various museums including the American Museum in Britain at Bath, England, for which he collected, designed and installed their permanent exhibit of New Mexican rooms. Dedicated to all aspects of New Mexico's Spanish Colonial culture, Mr. Vedder's primary goal was to further the appreciation of traditional New Mexican furniture.

Those wishing to create furniture very few living people have seen the like of need look no further than this book. The furniture described in it is based on one-of-a-kind museum pieces 400 years old and older. Many of the originals haven't met the test of time very well, it is true, and Diehl and Donnelly fudge the measurements a tad, if only to make things come out reasonably square and true. Those who dive into this book and its predecessor, Constructing Medieval Furniture (1997), should possess considerable woodworking skills and able carving and metalworking hands. These projects aren't for beginners, and the pieces themselves aren't what one would see in a typical modern home. It also helps not to forget that, for example, the church pew herein was originally built when you got 10-foot boards 2 inches thick and 18 inches wide by heading out to the forest and harvesting them. Very much on an offbeat subject, this book is simply wonderful because of that. Jon Kartman

A fascinating and thorough account hereA valuable resource for researchers and laypersons. alike (Choice) REVIEW: A comprehensive resource for historians, dealers, interior designers/decorators and vintage enthusiasts. Above all, it's a treasure trove of scholarship. (New England Antiques Journal, Judy Penz Sheluk)

A comprehensive resource for historians, dealers, interior designers/decorators and vintage enthusiasts. Above all, it's a treasure trove of scholarship.

A completely revised edition, covering every period and development to the present, the designers and makers, the woods and other materials, the architecture and decoration. 2,000 photographs. Glossary. Bibliography. Index.

Many appreciate the clean, simple lines of traditional Shaker furniture, yet few know the people behind the designs or the spiritual beliefs that play such an integral part in both their work and daily lives. In his book, The Shaker Legacy: Perspectives on an Enduring Furniture Style, author Christian Becksvoort, a contributing editor of Fine Woodworking Magazine and an experienced custom furniture maker and restorer who's worked for the last remaining Shaker community at Sabbathday Lake, Maine, examines the Shakers' faith in relation to their furniture. Becksvoort believes that "understanding Shaker furniture requires understanding the faith of the people who created it." Their religious practices--the constant striving for spiritual perfection in everything they did, the desire to emulate Christ and to live practically, "purely, free of vanity, greed, and pride"--permeate Becksvoort's insightful discussions of the Shaker culture, their recognized inventiveness (inventions include the circular saw, apple peeler, wash mill, and chimney cap), their influence on other furniture styles, and finally the furniture itself, which is the focal point of the book. Highly perfected, free of vain ornamentation, and utterly utilitarian, the furniture is indeed the Shaker faith in physical form. In addition to covering the classics--including the ladder-back chair, trestle table, and the built-in--Becksvoort points out subtle variations in design that existed from community to community: the curved, cutout base of a case of drawers was typical for the communities in Ohio, while bevel-edged drawer lips and straight, tapered feet on a blanket box point to the Mount Lebanon community. Becksvoort's intelligent account of the Shakers and their furniture, combined with hundreds of full-color photographs, taken on location at various communities and pulled from archives, make The Shaker Legacy a beautiful tribute to these talented craftsmen and their enduring design. --Stefanie Hargreaves