Q 01/05

The oldest surviving furniture, stone dressers and beds from around 3000 BCE, was found where?

A) Skara Brae in Orkney

B) Stonehenge in Wiltshire

C) Çatalhöyük in Anatolia

D) Newgrange in County Meath

Answer · why

A) Skara Brae in Orkney

Skara Brae's stone-built houses, with almost no timber available on Orkney, each had a dresser facing the door and box beds against the walls.

Q 02/05

The French and German words for furniture come from a Latin word meaning what?

A) Wooden things

B) Moveable goods

C) Household items

D) Comfort and rest

Answer · why

B) Moveable goods

Meubles and Möbel descend from Latin mobilis, 'moveable', so furniture is literally the moveable goods of a house, as opposed to fixed property (immeu...

Q 03/05

The klismos, an elegant chair with a curved backrest and splayed legs, originated in which civilisation?

A) Ancient Egypt

B) Ancient Persia

C) Ancient Rome

D) Ancient Greece

Answer · why

D) Ancient Greece

The klismos belongs to Ancient Greece, appearing on 5th-century BCE painted vases and grave stelae; Rome copied it and neoclassical designers revived ...

Q 04/05

Furniture of the European Middle Ages was typically made of which wood?

A) Oak

B) Pine

C) Walnut

D) Mahogany

Answer · why

A) Oak

Oak, abundant across northern Europe, was the standard medieval furniture wood for heavy carved chests and settles; comparatively little survives from...

Q 05/05

What was Thomas Chippendale's 1754 pattern book, the first comprehensive furniture catalogue, called?

A) The Cabinet Dictionary and Companion

B) The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director

C) The Upholsterer's and Joiner's Guide

D) The Universal System of Household Furniture

Answer · why

B) The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director

The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director, issued in 1754 with further editions in 1755 and 1762, made 'Chippendale' shorthand for his rococo, gothic...