The English Country House Explained by Trevor Yorke

Author:Trevor Yorke
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: The English Country House Explained
ISBN: 9781846743016
Publisher: Countryside Books
Published: 2012-06-19T16:00:00+00:00

FIG 6.10: Parquet flooring often laid in a herringbone pattern as in this example was frequently used in earlier houses and was revived by Arts and Crafts designers in the late 19th century.

Carpets first appeared in the 17th century as pieces laid in the centre of the room. Fully-fitted versions made by sewing sections together on site were used in some of the finest rooms from the mid Georgian period but smaller movable pieces which were easier to clean remained common until the 20th century. In the late 18th century as one person increasingly controlled the interior design scheme, an order would be placed for the carpet to be woven into a pattern to match the ceiling design.

In Victorian houses the wider range of architectural styles and greater specialisation of rooms results in a broad range of surfaces from contrasting stone or marble squares to medieval patterned floor tiles. New encaustic tiles with coloured patterns based on medieval designs were popular in Gothic houses, with plain unglazed ones in terracotta, black or buff used in service rooms and areas of heavy use.

Fireplaces

In the great medieval hall, the smoke from the central fire escaped usually through a louvre (French for opening) in the apex of the roof and was often left burning overnight with a pottery colander called a couvre-feu (French for a fire cover from which we get the word curfew) placed over it. The first improvements came with a screen which trapped the smoke from a hearth at one end of the room, or a large hood often made of timber and daub which hung over a fire along the wall, until finally the fireplace and chimney developed. In these early examples, the term ‘chimney’ (derived from the Greek word kaminor meaning ‘oven’) applied to the whole fireplace and stack together. The surround or chimney piece was typically a wide, flat-arched opening in Tudor houses, which was required to fit a large log-burning fire. During the 16th century coal from the north-east (shipped to London and hence known as sea coal) became available to the rich and later fireplaces became smaller as this new fuel could produce the same heat in a more compact lump. Unfortunately for the men who used to climb up the chimney to clean it, these new types were too small, so from this period on, young boys were used.

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