ANYBODY KNOW WHAT THIS IS ???? Prayer bench???

[talesofthesevenseas]

Oops sorry for the dead image link, here's a direct link:
http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/photo/1183287888037834568ciidxX

[mariok54]

Well found, Tales, looks good.

[sapphire]

Here you go tales.....

" 46 x 7 1/2 x 8 (to the floor); acquired in Scotland in 1978; believed to be from 1850s."

[talesofthesevenseas]

Thanks Sapphire!

[mart]

Wisconsinites do not have accents (at least that is what we think).  When I travel, people that do have accents know I am from Wisconsin because of my accent.  Imagine that!  I have no clue what they are talking about!   

LOL  Have you ever been to Texas ??  We have an entirely different language or so we are told !!

[KC]

This was an old prayer/kneeling bench that the upholstery/stuffing has long since been gone.

Bet it was meant to be referring to the parish (territory and property of the church).

[hosman321]

I love it, great find! Doesn't really look like much right now, but with a proper reupholstery job and good quality stuffing, it would be really cool. It has square head nails, so it's probably pre-1890. I gotta know, how much did you pay?

[jabiloxi]

I only paid $10 for it, the owner didn't even know what it was and I saw it in his garage at the yard sale he was having.  I asked him about it and he told me it was really old and had no idea though where it came from or what it was meant for.  It had just been in the family for a long time I guess.  Anyways i offered him $10 and he was pretty happy with it.  There was a lot of old stuff in his sale though so i am thinking he was maybe selling off items from a deceased family member??  You never know, but I have been really learning more about antiques on this site so when I saw the legs and the nails on the edges i figured it had to have some age.  What would something like this sell for if I got it reupholstered, or just how it is?  I am going to visit an antique consignment shop and i was thinking about bringing this with me too.

[hosman321]

Darn good for $10, I'd say. A reupholstery job and stuffing will probably be somewhat expensive, depending on your choice of fabric etc. Maybe around $150? Cheaper if you are handy and do it yourself. Once it looks nice, I could see someone paying $250 for it. Maybe a bit more or less than that but I'd pay about that much. If it has too much of a slope then there isn't much a collector could do with it. Except collect it and have it look cool.

[sapphire]

I can picture that sitting in front of a sofa across from a roaring fireplace........fe et up, hot cocoa in hand. Actually, that's what I thought it might have been......but didn't know if they actually existed or what it would have even been called. Any prayer benches I've had the pleasure of 'meeting' have never been angled or padded enough that I wanted to extend the acquaintance. 

[Oceans64]

There are two different nails on the edges.  I had a chair that confused me once and this group set me straight so I thought I'd share.  The ones on the sides look like upholstery nails and you can't date by those.  They look the same today for the most part.  There is one that I see on the top edge that may be datable however.  (see pic below)  Hoseman posted a good link before in the special threads forum. I cant find it but I think this is it: http://www.journalofantiques.com/aug02/businessaug02.htm

I would reupholster myself if you are going to sell. Should be an easy job. The biggest expense will be in the padding.  I have some thoughts on what I'd do but I wont bore you in case you already know how - happy to share if you want and others here have done it so you can get lots of help. 

One suggestion would be is for the fabric.  If I were selling, I might use an inexpensive muslin (off white).  This allows for the new owner to cover the muslin in the fabric of their choice.  You could pin a note saying something like "Ready to be covered in the fabric of your choice" and give some brief instructions on how to staple the fabric over the muslin and cover the staples with trim... 

It's hard to sell imagination but I think most folks are picky about fabric colors in their home.  I could be wrong on that.

[talesofthesevenseas]

Definitely a good score for $10! Maybe consider reupholstering/padding it and put it up in the Projects section? It would make a wonderful footstool.

[sapphire]

Finally found what I was looking for.......just referred to as 'long stools'

http://www.sellingantiques.co.uk/antique-stools/antique-foot-stools/

[talesofthesevenseas]

Interesting! Did a long stool go in front of a couch?

[Oceans64]

It would look great at the end of the bed as well.