There are several Historical examples of this bench still in existence. St. Thomas guide provided several examples from the medieval period of a single person and multi-person benches. This bench derives most of its construction from the analysis provided by Master Dafydd ap Gwystl, whose paper is provided for documentation. This bench has been modified from MAster Gwystl description as there are no permanent screws or glued pegs. This bench is designed to completely break down for ease of transportation and storing. This desing also has the pegs that enter the seat at the top of the legs instead of in the rails.
I made the bench for my wife so I used her device and colors for the base design. She also likes Fleur de Lis as a decoration so this formed the basis of the design.
I used pine almost solely because of its price and my location. I am on a temporary assignment in Texas and not at my permanent residence where I have access to hardwoods and a larger selection of tools The original bench would have been made from oak, maple, or even walnut. The stains and paints I used are what I had access too. I could have used materials the would have been period to the bench, however, they would not have produced the look that I wanted, or are out of my price range. The tools of construct also are what I had available to me. so I used a modern band saw, chisels, rasps, and sandpaper.
The gross cuts for the pattern were done with a modern band saw. The peg holes in the set of the bench and the groves in the rail supports were created with chisels and rasps. The entire project was sanded with modern sandpaper. I used a modern dye stain for the blue color of the bench, modern enamel paints to simulate silver leaf, as well as a multipurpose acrylic white paint. Finally, I used a polyacrylic clear coat to seal the entire bench to protect the paint and stain and to increase the life of the bench.
The slipcase is made from a blue cotton fabric that I block printed with a block carved by Master Hassan al Tariq to my specifications. Block printing uses modern fabric paint. It is machine sewn because of the durability that machine sewing imparts.
The next benches I am going to make will be made from hardwoods. The designs will be carved and not painted because I will have access to those tools that I do not have at this time. Also, pine is too soft to hold detailed carving in the same way that oak or walnut does.
References
Medieval benches. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://thomasguild.blogspot.com/2018/03/medieval-benches.html?fbclid=I…
Gwystl, D. ap. (n.d.). A Simple Gothic Bench. The Oak, 6. Retrieved from https://www.greydragon.org/library/gothicbench.html
Included documentation by Master Hassan al Tariq ibn Yusuf ibn Askari al Ghassani al Jibayli