Mistress Anne's Bogchair

This chair was built by and for Mistress Anne Osgerby of the Barony of Thor's Mountain.  Mistress Anne initially commissioned a bog chair from Lord Sylvan of Thor's Mountain.  Sylvan delivered to specification and on time, but Anne discovered that the Mark III Bog Chair, out of structural 2" x 10" stock was just too heavy.  Her original concept was for seating that was portable.  In practice, her initial bog chair would be assembled at a site and then remain there for the duration of the event.

In response, Lord Sylvan crafted a bog chair for her roughly three feet tall.  He made it out of North American White oak, and planed it to roughly 7/8" thick.  It was substantially lighter than the initial effort, and she got three year's service out of it.  Then one night at Pennsic, she left it out by the fire.  The camp got a little rowdy, and when she got up the next morning, Anne discovered that it was destroyed.  There were severe splits all around the slot for the seat, and the seat itself was fractured along the grain line of the wood.  Herself was bummed.

Sylvan and I examined the fragments of the chair and hypothosized that someone who was at the weight limit of the chair, about 220 pounds, had someone of equal weight jump into his lap.  Double the weight limit plus the sudden impact was all she wrote.

Lord Sylvan, like so many talented people, decided to spent more time with his family, and isn't seen around the Barony any more, so Mistress Anne approached me for help.  Over time, I've found woodworking to be a lonely craft, so I held her up.  I wouldn't make her a replacement, but I she could come down to the shop, and I would help her with each stage of the process.  And we were successful.  Mistress Anne learned to use all the tools necessary to produce a Bog Chair Mark III, and the two of us turned out a very interesting piece.

This is the front view.  The decorative carving was designed by Etaine (pronounced Athana) of Clanne Preachain.  Anne and I executed the carving by placing the green background in relief using a router for the gross work and hand chisels for the detailing.  At the time of this photograph the chair had been in use for just a few months.  This picture was taken, if I recall correctly, at it's first Pennsic War.  Unfortunately, there is nothing in this picture to indicate scale, but this chair is roughly three feet tall and 10 inches wide. Photo by Teresa Wilson

This is a rear view of the same chair on the same date.  Note the rack for the seat when the chair is placed in storage mode.  We made the chair slightly thicker than Sylvan's original.  Photo by Teresa Wilson

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