The stool is solid wood — four turned legs splayed outward from a round seat, the legs joined at mid-height by a full set of cross-stretchers, each rail mortised into the next. Someone turned this on a lathe with intention: the bobbin details at the leg tops are deliberate, the proportions honest. At some point it was painted dark maroon-brown, and at some later point it was painted white over that. Both layers are going now — peeling in broad patches across the seat, the legs, the stretchers — leaving the bare warm-grained wood visible beneath. This is not a stool that was preserved. It is a stool that was used.
The cross-stretchers carry the marks of a working dog's teeth — worn and rounded in the manner of a dog who found the legs of this stool and made them his own. The stool came from a farmstead in Leonard, Michigan, the home of a man who raised and showed hunting dogs at competition. By the time it arrived here, the paint was already going, the legs already chewed. Both facts belong to the same life.
Condition: Paint surface in active patina throughout — peeling and chipped on the seat top, legs, and all four stretchers, revealing the dark maroon undercoat and bare wood beneath. Paint surface has been stabilized with matte consolidant. Chew damage present on at least one leg and stretcher junction: surface gouging consistent with dog chewing, structurally cosmetic. Joinery sound. A piece for someone who wants the whole story.
Hunter's Notes
Hunter's notes pending.
The Archive Record — JLM-250020
| Maker |
Unknown American country/farmhouse furniture maker; no maker's mark; solid hardwood, lathe-turned legs |
| Established |
Unknown |
| Object |
Round-seat farmhouse stool with four turned legs and full cross-stretcher system |
| Material |
Solid hardwood; white paint over maroon-brown undercoat |
| Construction |
Lathe-turned legs with bobbin detail; mortised cross-stretcher system; round seat |
| Era |
Early-to-mid 20th century | confidence: attributed |
| Country of Origin |
United States — attributed |
| Condition Tier |
As Found |
| Condition |
Paint actively peeling — white over maroon-brown undercoat. Paint stabilized with matte consolidant. Chew damage on at least one leg and stretcher junction — surface only, structurally cosmetic. Joinery sound throughout. Sold as found. |
| Hunt Provenance |
Estate sale, Leonard, Michigan — April 2025; from the home of a man who raised and showed hunting dogs |
| Authentication |
Style attribution — American country stool form, bobbin-turned legs, full mortised cross-stretcher system, layered farm paint consistent with early-to-mid 20th century production |
| Comparable Sold |
$45–$110 (eBay / Etsy — May 2026) |
| JLM Price |
$65 |
| Food Safe |
not applicable |
| Lead Risk |
yes — old paint layers; do not sand without precautions |
| Child Safe |
no |
| Gift Idea |
Farmhouse Decor, Primitive Collector, Plant Stand |
Product Specs
| Dimensions |
Not yet measured |
| Weight |
Not yet measured |
