AboutFred Taylor Expertise I will attempt to answer questions about American antique furniture, including construction details, style, period, manufacturers, care, repair and storage. I do not have any background in appliances, musical instruments, sewing machines, lighting and clocks and will not respond to quesions about those items.
Experience I ran an antique furniture restoration business for twenty years. I am a nationally syndicated columnist on the subject of antique furniture for such publications as Antique Week and New England Antiques Journal. I have produced one video on the subject of furniture identification and my book "HOW TO BE A FURNITURE DETECTIVE" is now available.I have also published articles in Antique Trader, Chicago Art Deco Society, Northeast Magazine, Victorian Decorating and Lifestyles, Professional Refinishing, Antiques and Art Around Florida and Antique Shoppe. You can visit my website at www.furnituredetective.com
Education/Credentials BSBA Finance, University of Florida, MBA Finance, University of Florida
I have a parlor sofa- It has 5 Carved legs with hairy hoof feet. I can't find a sofa with thi kind of foot in any antique book I have seen. The fabric is a pale floral design. It has a Down filled one-piece seat cushion. There is a brass round marker on the bottom which says Royal Furniture made by Robert W. Irwin Co. It is 59” wide x 32” deep 34”high. Is this design unusual? Is it valuable? Can the seat be made not to squish when sat upon?
Answer Lydia - The hairy paw foot was used in early Empire furniture (a chair by Duncan Phyfe at the Daytona Museum comes to mind) and in the Chippendale style of the late 18th century as interpreted in Philadelphia.
However, the style of your sofa is neither of those. The legs of your sofa are Rococo style with the shell above floral carving. The cushion does not appear to be down filled. A down cushion is soft and loose, almost sloppy looking like this one -
Your cushion appears to be tight and stiff. A real down cushion is made to squish. It has very little resistance.
Robert W. Irwin Co was a combination of Royal Furniture Co, Phoenix Furniture Co and Robert W. Irwin Co formed in 1919. Royal continued to use its own name until 1931. That means your sofa was made between 1919 and 1931. It is not an especially rare design.
Your sofa is a 20th century, mass produced, factory made piece that would sell at auction in the $300-$500 range.
)