The chair below comes from the middle of the Victorian era and is typical of many pieces made at that time. Albert, the Queen's beloved husband, had just died and Victoria had gone into mourning - and the country with her. Black was the new white as designers styled furniture, porcelain and jewellery in this austere manner. Incidentally, this chair is not made of wood but was constructed of papier mache. The decoration is painted on and embellished with mother of pearl inlay. This type of furniture was made just up the road in Birmingham by firms such as Clay & Jennens & Betteridge. They also produced small caddies and boxes with their name stamped into the base.