Minneapolis Institute of Art

Sofa

United States (New York)

Date

c. 1840

Medium

Mahogany and original horsehair upholstery

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

This sofa was high-tech for its day. Mass-produced, upholstered in horsehair (fabric woven from horse tails and cotton or silk), with newly invented coil-spring seating, such furniture was all the rage with the growing American middle class. Joseph Meeks and Sons, one of the most prolific furniture manufacturers in America, advertised a similar sofa for $80 (about $2, 000 in 2015 dollars) for sale in its New York and New Orleans showrooms. The sweeping curves and scrolls and the lion’s-paw feet are characteristic of the Greek Revival style. Popular in both Europe and America, it was inspired by archaeological finds of the mid-1700s. Such harking back to classical Greece appealed to Americans, who traced their democracy to ancient Athens. United States, Americas

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