Paisley
Paisley is a teardrop-shaped decorative motif of Persian origin, popularised in Europe through Kashmir shawls and widely woven into textiles by Scottish mills in the town of Paisley from the 19th century.
Paisley is a teardrop-shaped decorative motif of Persian origin, popularised in Europe through Kashmir shawls and widely woven into textiles by Scottish mills in the town of Paisley from the 19th century.
Palladian Style is an architectural style based on the works of 16th-century Italian architect Andrea Palladio, characterised by strict classical symmetry and proportion, hugely influential on 18th-century English country house design.
A Palladian Window is a tripartite window with a taller, arched central section flanked by narrower flat-topped side sections, a defining motif of Palladian architecture widely used in Georgian buildings.
Papier-Mache is moulded, layered paper pulp, hardened and often lacquered and inlaid with mother-of-pearl, used from the 18th century for trays, boxes and even furniture, especially associated with Victorian Birmingham manufacturers such as Jennens & Bettridge.
A Parapet is a low protective wall running along the edge of a roof, terrace or bridge, often decoratively balustraded in classical and Georgian architecture.
Parian Ware is an unglazed white porcelain developed in the 1840s to resemble marble, widely used for reproducing classical and contemporary sculpture as affordable decorative figures for the Victorian home.
Parker Knoll is a British furniture manufacturer founded in the 1930s, best known for its comfortable, well-engineered mid-century armchairs that remain widely collected today.
A Parlour is a formal sitting room historically reserved for receiving guests, distinct from the more private family living areas, a standard room in Georgian and Victorian houses.
Parquetry is a decorative veneering technique using geometric shapes of contrasting wood to create repeating patterns, distinct from marquetry's pictorial designs, commonly used for tabletops and floors.
A Partner's Desk is a large pedestal desk designed to be used by two people seated on opposite sides, each with their own drawers and kneehole, a form associated with Georgian libraries and later banking houses.
A Patchwork Quilt is a bedcover made by piecing together small fabric shapes into a decorative pattern before quilting, a traditional domestic craft especially well documented in 18th and 19th-century Britain and America.
Pate-sur-Pate is a labour-intensive porcelain decorating technique in which layers of liquid clay slip are built up to create a low-relief design, perfected at Sevres and later Minton in the 19th century.
Patek Philippe is a Swiss watchmaker founded in 1839, universally regarded as among the finest makers of complicated timepieces, with antique examples commanding exceptional prices at auction.
Patina is the surface change that develops on wood, metal or other materials through age, handling and oxidation, prized by collectors as evidence of authenticity and history, and a quality careful restoration seeks to preserve rather than remove.
Paul Evans (1931-1987) was an American studio furniture designer known for sculptural, brutalist metal and resin furniture that has become highly sought after in the mid-century modern collecting market.
Paul Storr (1771-1844) was the most celebrated English silversmith of the Regency period, renowned for exceptionally fine and inventive silverware produced for royalty and the aristocracy.
A Pedestal Desk is a large writing desk supported on two drawer-fitted pedestals with a kneehole between them, becoming the standard form for grand studies and offices from the 18th century onward.
A Pediment is a triangular or curved decorative element crowning a doorway, window or piece of case furniture, derived from classical temple architecture and widely used atop bookcases, cabinets and clock cases.
Peking Glass is Chinese decorative glass, often carved in overlay layers of contrasting colour, developed under the Qing dynasty imperial workshops and prized for its rich colour and intricate relief carving.
A Pembroke Table is a small table with hinged drop leaves on either side, supported by folding brackets, popular from the mid-18th century as a versatile occasional table for tea, writing or dining.
A Pendant Light is a light fixture suspended from the ceiling by a cord, chain or rod, ranging from simple antique glass shades to elaborate leaded glass and brass fixtures of the Arts and Crafts and Art Deco periods.
A Pendulum Clock is a clock regulated by a swinging pendulum, a principle applied to clockmaking by Christiaan Huygens in 1656 that dramatically improved timekeeping accuracy and enabled the development of the longcase clock.
A Pergola is an open garden structure of upright posts supporting a lattice roof, traditionally used to support climbing plants, a popular feature of Edwardian and Arts and Crafts garden design.
A Peristyle is a continuous colonnade surrounding a building or courtyard, a classical architectural feature revived in Neoclassical country house and garden pavilion design.
A Persian Carpet is a hand-knotted carpet woven in Iran, celebrated for centuries for exceptional craftsmanship, intricate floral and medallion designs, and regional weaving traditions that remain highly collectable today.
Persian Style describes decorative influences drawn from Iranian art and design, particularly rich carpet patterns, tilework and metalwork motifs that shaped 19th-century Orientalist interiors in Europe.
Pewter is an alloy of tin with copper, antimony or lead, used since the medieval period for tableware and domestic vessels as a more affordable alternative to silver, identifiable by its soft grey sheen.
Photogravure is a photomechanical printing process producing richly detailed images with a tonal quality resembling a photograph, widely used for fine art reproduction and illustrated books from the late 19th century.
A Piano Lamp is a lamp designed with an adjustable arm or shade to direct light onto piano sheet music, a common Victorian and Edwardian parlour lighting form.
A Picture Frame is a decorative border surrounding a painting, print or mirror, ranging from simple moulded wood to elaborately carved and gilded compo or gesso frames characteristic of the 18th and 19th centuries.
A Picture Gallery is a long room designed for displaying a collection of paintings, a grand feature of major English country houses from the 17th century onward.
A Pie Crust Table is a small tripod table with a carved, scalloped edge resembling a fluted pastry crust, a highly decorative form associated with mid-18th-century Chippendale-period tripod tables.
A Pier Mirror is a tall, narrow mirror designed to hang above a pier table on the wall section between two windows, a formal pairing typical of grand Georgian and Regency reception rooms.
A Pier Table is a table designed to stand against the wall section, or pier, between two windows, typically paired with a matching pier mirror above, a formal feature of grand Georgian and Regency reception rooms.
Pierre Chareau (1883-1950) was a French architect and designer celebrated for elegant Art Deco and early Modernist furniture and for his landmark Maison de Verre building in Paris.
A Pilaster is a flattened, partial column projecting slightly from a wall or piece of furniture, decorative rather than structural, and a common classical detail on Georgian bookcases and fire surrounds.
Pilkington's Lancastrian was an English art pottery active from 1897, renowned for innovative iridescent and lustre glazes developed in collaboration with leading ceramic chemists and designers.
A Pineapple Finial is a decorative furniture or architectural ornament carved in the form of a pineapple, a motif that became a symbol of hospitality and welcome in 18th-century English and American decorative arts.
A Plate Basket is a pierced silver or silver-plated basket used to carry bread, cake or serving plates to the table, a decorative and practical dining accessory of the 19th century.
A Plinth is the base or platform on which a column, statue or piece of case furniture rests, providing a visual foundation and, in furniture, often a solid base replacing individual feet.
Plymouth Porcelain was the first true hard-paste porcelain factory in England, founded by William Cookworthy in 1768, short-lived but historically significant for pioneering English hard-paste production.
A Pocket Barometer is a small, portable barometer used by travellers and mountaineers to monitor atmospheric pressure and estimate altitude, popular from the 19th century.
A Pocket Watch is a portable timepiece carried in a pocket, typically attached by a chain, the dominant personal timekeeping form from the 17th century until wristwatches became fashionable in the early 20th century.
Poole Pottery is an English ceramics manufacturer founded in Dorset in 1873, celebrated for its distinctive Art Deco and mid-century hand-painted decorative wares.
Porcelain is a fine, vitrified, translucent ceramic fired at very high temperatures, first developed in China and later in Europe from the 18th century, prized above earthenware and stoneware for its strength, whiteness and delicacy.
A Porringer is a small, shallow bowl with one or two flat pierced handles, used from the 17th century for eating porridge or broth, made in silver, pewter or pottery.
A Portico is a porch with a roof supported by columns, typically marking a grand entrance, a defining feature of Georgian and Neoclassical country house architecture.
Portland Stone is a pale limestone quarried on the Isle of Portland, England, prized since the 17th century for its fine, even texture and used extensively for grand civic and country house architecture.
Portmeirion is a Welsh pottery firm founded in 1960 by Susan Williams-Ellis, best known for its Botanic Garden tableware pattern, one of the best-selling ceramic designs of the 20th century.
A Pot Pourri Vase is a lidded, pierced porcelain vessel designed to release the scent of dried fragrant petals while keeping them contained, a decorative table accessory especially popular in 18th-century French interiors.
Prattware is English earthenware decorated with a distinctive palette of high-temperature colours including ochre, blue and green, produced from the late 18th century for moulded jugs, pot lids and figures.
A Prayer Rug is a small rug woven with a directional niche design, or mihrab, used in Islamic prayer, and collected for the artistry and regional variation of its weave and pattern.
Pre-Raphaelite refers to a mid-19th-century English art movement rejecting academic convention in favour of vivid colour, medieval subject matter and close observation of nature, deeply influential on later Arts and Crafts design.
Presentation Silver refers to silverware, such as cups, salvers and trophies, commissioned or engraved to commemorate an achievement or mark an occasion, often bearing inscriptions of significant social or historical interest.
A Press Cupboard is an early form of cupboard with an upper enclosed section for storage and, often, an open or drawer-fitted lower section, a substantial oak furniture form of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Pressed Glass is glass shaped by mechanically pressing molten glass into a mould, a technique developed in the 1820s that made decorative glassware affordable and widely available for the first time.
A Prie-Dieu Chair is a chair with a low seat and tall, straight back designed for kneeling in prayer, resting the arms on the top rail, a form especially popular in Victorian Gothic Revival interiors.
A Punch Bowl is a large bowl used for mixing and serving punch, made in silver, pewter or porcelain, a centrepiece of 18th and 19th-century social entertaining, often paired with a ladle and matching cups.
A Purlin is a horizontal roof timber running the length of a building, supporting the rafters, a key structural element in traditional timber-framed roof construction.
Purpleheart Wood is a dense South American hardwood that darkens from brown to a striking deep purple with light exposure, used since the 18th century as a decorative veneer and inlay material.
