that
one sees the true spirit of the Renaissance. Two men who had great
influence on the style of furniture of the time were Androuet du Cerceau
and Hugues Sambin. They published books of plates that were eagerly
copied in all parts of France. Sambin's influence can be traced in the
later style of Louis XIV.

[Illustration: Louis XIII chair now in the Cluny Museum showing the
Flemish influence.]

[Illustration: A typical Louis XIII chair, many of which were covered
with velvet or tapestry.]

[Illustration: _By courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art_

This Gothic chair of the 16th century shows the beautiful linen-fold
design in the carving on the lower panels, and also the keyhole which
made the chest safe when traveling.]

The marriage of Henry II and Catherine de Medici naturally continued the
strong Italian influence. The portion of the Renaissance called after
Henry II lasted about seventy-five years, and corresponds with the
Elizabethan period in England.

During the regency of Marie de Medici, Flemish influence became very
strong, as she invited Rubens to Paris to decorate the Luxembourg. There
were also many Italians called to do the work, and as Rubens had studied
in Italy, Italian influence was not lacking.

Degeneracy began during the reign of Henry IV, as ornament became
meaningless and consistency of decoration was lost in a maze of
superfluous design.

It was in the reign of Louis XIII that furniture for the first time
became really comfortable, and if one examines the engravings of Abraham
Bosse one will see that the rooms have an air of homelikeness as well as
richness. The characteristic chair of the period was short in the back
and square in shape--it was usually covered with leather or tapestry,
fastened to the chair with large brass nails, and the back and seat
often had a fringe. A set of chairs usually consisted of arm-chairs,
plain chairs, folding stools and a _lit-de-repos_. Many of the
arm-chairs were entirely covered with velvet or tapestry, or, if the
woodwork showed, it was stained to harmonize with the covering on the
seat and back.

The twisted columns used in chairs, bedposts, etc., were borrowed from
Italy and were very popular. Another shape often used for chair legs was
the X that shows Flemish influence. The _lit-de-repos_, or
_chaise-longue_, was a seat about six feet long, sometimes with arms and
sometimes not, and with a mattress and bolster. The beds were very
elabo