A captain's chair is a low-backed wooden armchair in which a continuous curved arm and back rail, often in a horseshoe shape, is supported on a row of turned spindles above a solid seat. It belongs to the broad Windsor family of stick-back chairs, and the name is also applied to swivelling desk chairs of similar outline.
The form is closely related to the English smoker's bow chair and to American firehouse and captain's chairs of the nineteenth century, and its low profile is often associated with ships' cabins and saloons, where a chair needed to be sturdy and stable. Traditional examples are made in elm, beech, ash, oak or mixed woods, with a saddle-shaped seat and turned legs joined by stretchers. Swivel versions on cast iron bases were widely used in offices, banks and libraries in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Collectors look for good proportions, a deep and comfortable seat, original or well-mellowed finish, and sound joints, since loose spindles are a common problem. Captain's chairs work well at a desk, around a farmhouse table or as comfortable chairs in a kitchen or bar.
