Turners used a lathe to produce great numbers of this type of banister-back chair over a long period of time in Deerfield, Massachusetts, and throughout New England. The banisters of this chair are split spindles rather than the simpler slats, and the four banister turnings match the rear posts of the chair. In this example, as in others made in Deerfield, the rounded portion of the spindle is set against the sitter’s back. Surviving inventories of chair makers reveal that for efficiency, the craftsman turned out numbers of posts, rails and split spindles before assembling the parts into seating furniture. Because different woods were used for the various parts, the chair was painted.