Cane Back Chair
These cane back chairs offer intricate woven panels paired with robust timber frames, bringing classic texture and structure into any room.
Cane Back Chair
When you search for a cane back chair, you encounter seating featuring woven natural material panels set within wooden frames. The selections span dining chairs, armchairs, library armchairs, and rocking chairs.
The pieces on this page originate from diverse eras, ranging from early examples through the 18th century, Regency period, and 19th century into Edwardian and early 20th century revivals.
You will frequently meet revival styles such as Carolean, Jacobean, and Regency, alongside French bergere designs and Edwardian painted pieces, reflecting historic tastes adapted for later homes.
How they were made
The construction relies on solid timber frames shaped from oak, mahogany, walnut, satinwood, and rosewood, often joined with traditional woodworking techniques.
Caning involves handweaving plant-based material through pierced frames to create a resilient, open mesh backrest or seat.
Master makers enhance frames with carved ornamentation, painted finishes, giltwood, or upholstery in leather, velvet, and various fabrics.
Cane Back Chair Retail Price Guide 2026
Typical asking prices for cane back chair among the pieces listed under this phrase on Sellingantiques today, from the lower quarter to the upper quarter. They describe what is for sale here now, not the wider market.
Rocking chairs with bobbin-turned frames bring an unexpectedly playful bounce to formal 19th-century seating.
What varies in quality
The standard of timber selection and the precision of the frame joinery set individual pieces apart, with dense hardwoods and crisp hand-carving marking out superior examples.
The tightness, regularity, and tension of the handwoven cane panels dictate the overall durability and tactile refinement of the seating.
Sophisticated surface treatments, whether detailed lacquer work, restrained gilding, or carefully executed painted decoration, elevate the character of finer pieces.
James Shoolbred·Dryad of Leicester
The Cane Back Chair Glossary
- Bergere
- An enclosed upholstered armchair featuring a solid wooden frame and cane sides or back. These French-inspired seats often incorporate loose squab cushions.
- Caning
- A traditional technique of weaving plant fibres to create a porous, supportive panel. This method provides flexible yet durable backing for seating.
- Carolean
- A 17th-century style associated with the reign of Charles II, distinguished by rich carving, scrolling foliage, and turned wooden supports.
- Bergere Suite
- A matched set of seating comprising armchairs and sometimes a matching settee. They share uniform frames and woven cane components.
- Sheraton Revival
- A late 19th or early 20th-century design movement inspired by the neoclassical furniture of George Sheraton. It utilises painted motifs, satinwood, and delicate proportions.
Cane Back Chair: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I care for cane back chairs?
Keep woven cane panels supple by occasionally wiping them with a damp cloth to prevent the natural material from drying out and snapping.
Position these chairs away from direct heat sources and intense sunlight to protect both the timber frames and the delicate woven mesh.
Were these chairs used for dining?
Dining chairs featuring woven panels appear frequently in sets, designed to accompany large tables during formal meals in past centuries.
Armchairs and rocking variants served different purposes, functioning as library seats, bedroom chairs, or comfortable additions to living spaces.
What is a bergere chair?
A bergere is a closed-arm French style chair featuring solid wooden frames paired with woven cane panels on the back and sides.
These seats typically include a padded seat cushion, offering a deep and supportive sit compared to standard upright dining chairs.
How do I identify revival styles?
Revival pieces emulate earlier historic eras, such as 17th-century Carolean or Jacobean designs, through characteristic heavy turning and intricate scrollwork.
Examining the timber ageing, construction methods, and hardware helps distinguish original period furniture from later 19th and 20th-century interpretations.