Metamorphic library steps

Cabinet-makers working in London based their designs on those of their French counterparts and a number of interesting mechanical furniture devices started to emerge.

British officers keen to maintain their ‘home comforts’ transported chairs, sofas, dining tables and even four-poster beds into battle.

Tables, chairs and stools containing Library Steps were patented in Great Britain by Robert Campbell in 1774 but the chair-based design did not become popular until the second decade of the 19th century.

Despite the appeal of the Regency period Metamorphic Library Chair, there is limited information available on the development of the design or the firms that made them.

The lack of detail in these sketches and the scarcity of research relating to mechanical furniture design of this period, have led to many inaccurate claims.