You may say the invention of the sofa was inevitable mankind's predisposition towards warm, squashy snug things and their sociability coupled with their frequent want to sit down has naturally resulted in the manufacture of giant cushiony chairs. But couches, divans, or settees - whatever you chose to call them - didn't come about that simply.
From leather sofas to appreciate seats, they are element of a proud tradition. Having evolved from humble recliners, they've been modified, redesigned and enhanced at the whim of time and cultural inclination - taking a lot of types prior to settling into the comfy living area furniture we know and adore currently.
So without having additional ado, why don't you settle down in your favourite niche and get pleasure from the brief history of the sofa?
900BC - 400AD: Egypt, Italy and Greece all create their own sofa prototypes - in the latter two nations, their use is restricted to the males. In Greece, males would relax, eat and nap on the soft benches and Roman men would forgo the upright dining chairs that women put to use for chaise lounges-esque affairs.
1500s: It takes a thousand years for the fashion to catch on in the colder West, but as the insulation of palaces and castles improves in the medieval period fabric tends to make its way off the walls and onto furnishing. Upholstery becomes a lot more widespread in Europe: in the UK, cushions are filled with squishy dried moss and horse hair tends to make its 1st look on the continent as a sofa-stuffer.
The 1800 s had been the century in which these loungers took the most significant actions towards what we look at sofas today. The fashion for all factors Arabian turned a 'couch' (from the French 'coucher', to lie) into 'sofa' (from the word 'suffah', Arabic for 'long reclining bench') - and edged individuals towards the notion that rather of becoming implemented as a place for private rest and reflection, it could be utilized to seat social gatherings.
But, 'sofas' had been nevertheless made use of in formal settings - they had been either applied by ladies following dinner or to receive guests. They undoubtedly weren't for curling up on with the household.
1857: A seminal year for the sofa. Sewing machines go into mass production and the coil spring is invented, top to much more durable, comfortable couches that will not turn into misshapen more than time. The middle classes blossom with the Industrial Revolution - they acquire sofas in emulation of the gentry but put them in the substantial, social rooms of their house rather than the much more intimate greeting rooms.
1920: Dunlop invents rubber foam - soft, modern furnishings are filled with the squashy substance for ultimate comfort and shape-retention.
1928: The launch of a reclining porch chair by Edward Knabusch and Edwin Shoemaker. The chair only becomes well-known immediately after the cousins upholster it for use indoors - one particular naming contest later and America had its to begin with Lay-Z-Boy.
1950s: War has decimated Europe - a lot of people are looking to refurnish their homes and 'new sofa' is the top rated of a great number of lists. After a break in broadcasting in the UK for the last few years of the war, televisions begin to be developed once more.
1966: The Football World Cup draws 32 million viewers - many will be sitting on family sofas. Getting moved from dining space to bedroom, sofas have found a new natural dwelling: in front of the Tv.
1970s: Modular furniture, which includes sofas that can be rearranged for custom shapes, comes into fashion as people's lives turn out to be much more flexible and living spaces become smaller.
1992: The pilot episode of 'Friends' is aired - in the opening scene, we see Joey, Monica, Chandler and Phoebe sitting on the now-iconic sofa of the Central Perk café. The evolution of the sofa is total for now: it is the great casual seating for any circumstance, be it social or intimate, private or public.