Massachusetts Martha Washington lolling chair (c. 1785)

Upholstered Martha Washington lolling chair with serpentine crest rail. The chair frame is mahogany with Northern White pine and maple secondary woods. The chair has been stripped of three layers of upholstery, including the removal of tacks. The tall upholstered chair back rises to a serpentine crest rail with toad back carved & shaped mahogany elbow rests projecting from midway down the upper side rails. The carved and molded elbow supports slope forward 3/4 from the back of the seat and is morticed into the side seat frame. The over rail upholstered seat is supported by square tapered & toad back carved mahogany front legs and raked rear legs joined by an "H" stretcher. The medium blue moire fabric is supported by the underlying horse hair with cotton batting.  The mahogany elements retain an old, possibly original finish. This uniquely American high back upholstered Federal chair was almost exclusively made in New England during a brief period at the end of the 18th to the