Early 19th Century Ladders

We are delighted to offer for sale this absolutely exquisite circa 1810 George III elm & green leather library steps What a thing of beauty, nothing screams Georgian decadence li...

English mahogany bed steps, the three steps have tooled leather insets ( not original ) , the top step lifts up to reveal open storage, the middle step pulls out and originally had a...

Fine Georgian (Regency Era) hardwood and leather library steps (doubles as an end table) - exceptional bench made quality with warm aged patina - featuring a solid wood frame with on...

Typical form with green leather treads and turned tapered legs.

Early Victorian Library Steps on Turned Legs A great set of Early Victorian Library steps This set of steps is in good condition, the top ste...

19th century Swedish flower table from Skelleftea Vasterbotten, Northern Sweden. Untouched originalpaint. Small wood damage on one foot. Made in painted pine.    

Geo. III mahogany bed step commode with leather inset top. Purchased in England in the 1960's, and used as a sofa side table in an anglophile's home in ...

English mahogany three-tiered bed steps with tooled green leather, hinged fitted interior compartments, and terminating on turned bulbous ringed legs, Early 19th century.

American mahogany three-tiered upholstered library steps with serpentine rails, cross stretchers, and terminating on turned bulbous legs. Early 19th century.

With horizontal tablet crestrail with scrolled ends over down scrolled arms raised on saber legs, chair folds forward to form a ladder.

The rectangular padded seat covered in brown leather, opening to reveal a set of library steps, over a solid inlaid seat-rail and ring-turned tapering legs ending in castors. 18in. high, 34 1/2in. wide and 16 1/2in. deep. Opened, 36in. high and 49in. wide. Rooms organized during the Regency period as libraries often had floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. The upper shelves were difficult to reach, so movable library stairs were invaluable. Further, libraries were one of the most important rooms in a stately house, symbol of its owner's wealth, culture and status. As a consequence, designers, architects and cabinet or chair makers devoted much attention to its architecture and decoration. Hence, the emrgence of innovative ideas such as our bench. Enter the Regency era metamorphic library chair/bench (chairs are more common than benches)! The tables, chairs and stools containing library steps were patented in Great Britain by Robert Campbell in 1774 but this innovative chair-based design did not become immediately popular. Once the Regency was established, a neo-classical interpretation of Campbell’s Metamorphic Library Chair concept started to become popular in London. Any early attributions rely heavily on two contemporary sketches...