Cast Iron Furniture

Century. Designs previously reserved for the wealthy and massive

English estates were for the first time available to the middle

class. Many of the English cast garden furniture designs were

replicated and then newer American cast iron furniture designs

also became very sought after and are still popular today in the

Antique Garden Furniture collector's market.

One such example, shown here, from the Trade Catalogue of the

Coalbrookdale Company 1875, the Passion Flower

Design, is a good example of the level of detail and artistry

developed in the production pieces. It features a trailing

passion flower design, cabriole legs, and a tight hexagon

pattern on the seat.It is one of my personal favorites and also

a favorite among collectors.

Leaves, flowers, and motifs from nature were popular themes for

this period and were commonly expressed in the cast iron

furniture pieces of the time.

The fern was a particularly popular motif, not only in furniture

but also as a theme in printed fabric of the time.

possible by the skilled hands of a blacksmith could

now be produced with a reasonable likeness.

Because the iron was poured into a mold which

could be used multiple times, the time and skill

required to produce each piece was reduced

considerably and therefore the cost as well. Easily

welded while hot, and corrosion resistant as well,

cast iron garden furniture became very popular and

remained so until the 1930's.


The popularity of cast iron furniture began to

wain as other materials became available. Cast iron

pieces are extremely heavy making them difficult to

move from place to place. Cast Aluminum, 3 times

as light as cast iron, is used by many manufacturers

today for Cast Aluminum Garden Furniture to

achieve the same look with less weight.


Mild Steel casting, while less corrosion

resistant, also developed a following, and today is

the choice of many manufacturers and artisan

designers specializing in Steel Metal Garden

Furniture who want the versatility of the malleable

nature of steel with the added availability of cast

decorative elements welded artistically for added

ornamentation.


Cast Iron Garden Furniture manufactured

during the late 19th century and early 20th century

is still very much sought after by collector's for the

timeless beauty of a bygone era.

decorative elements are used extensively in the

fabrication of elaborate gates and fences. It is also

used as a component in the manufacture of many

traditional garden furniture styles requiring a

flourish of embellishment on bended steel frames as

floral and leaf designs and geometric decoration

from traditional motifs to contemporary adaptations

for an endless supply of imaginative results.



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