Set of Three Vintage Elephant & Castle Restaurant Chairs

A wonderfully characterful set of three vintage dining chairs believed to have come from an Elephant & Castle restaurant in the UK.

The chairs retain their distinctive woven red upholstery, incorporating repeating elephant motifs and the letters “E&C” into the pattern. One chair also retains a brass “Sit With Ease!” label identifying the furniture supplier at Mill Street, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey.

Built for commercial use, the chairs feature dark wood frames with turned front legs, substantial stretchers and upholstered seats and backs finished with decorative nailhead trim. Their British pub character, unusual branded fabric and restaurant provenance make them an interesting set for a dining space, restaurant or pub interior, or as period furniture for film, television and set design.

The chairs are offered as found and show considerable evidence of their previous life and use. One chair retains a complete run of decorative tacks, while another has some missing. The third chair has been modified at some point, with a hardwood seat structure replacing the original coil-sprung seat and darker upholstery tacks added. There is also a cigarette burn to the upholstery of the modified chair. Please review photographs carefully for condition.

Not perfect—and all the more interesting for it.

Details

• Set of three vintage restaurant dining chairs

• Believed to be from a UK Elephant & Castle restaurant

• Woven upholstery featuring elephants and repeating E&C motif

• One chair labelled “Sit With Ease!” — Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey

• Dark wood frames

• Turned front legs and stretcher bases

• Decorative nailhead trim

• One chair with later hardwood seat modification

• Cigarette burn to upholstery on modified chair

• Variations and losses to decorative tacks

• Offered and sold as found

• Price is for the set of three