By BAYERN TOURISMUS Marketing GmbH
German Basket Museum
People have made woven furniture since around 3000 B.C. The characteristics of weaving make it a practical method for making furniture. For instance, sitting on a wicker chair is much more comfortable than sitting on stone as the willow retains heat, and the natural raw materials, such as the rushes found in Egyptian furniture, were relatively easy to process.
Willow, which is the original woven material in the Upper Main region, has been used to make wicker seats since the end of the 18th century. In Germany, wicker seats could be bought from as early as the middle of the 19th century, as attested by a catalog from the Michelau-based business Konrad Gagel. However, these were still just individually-made items at this point.
The furniture industry has existed since the mid-19th century in the USA and the UK. Rattan in particular was used in the USA. Chicago became a center of the industry, with a large number of German immigrants bringing their expertise with them. However, in Germany the furniture industry also came into being towards the end of the century. This led to further developments in furniture. Great emphasis was placed on form and function, but particularly on appearance. The furniture changed with fashion. Renowned architects and designers began to design furniture.
The Coburg-based company Konrad Gagel had already been making puppets and children's furniture from rattan. After visiting Paris, London, and the 1896 world exhibition in Chicago, at which Gagel collected samples, the company began to manufacture rattan furniture, in particular armchairs. As a result, a number of wicker furniture companies sprung up in Coburg, numbering around 50 by 1928. Wicker furniture was also made in the district of Lichtenfels. Well-known names included the company founded by Paul Backert in 1904 in Michelau, and the "Flechtatelier" established by Kurt Schütz established in Seubelsdorf in 1972.
Furniture room at the German Basket Museum Michelau in Upper Franconia
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The German Basket Museum has an extensive furniture collection.
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