Gothic Beds, the Antiques Trade, and Reproduction

The Henry VII and Elizabeth of York marriage bed exists within a complex and shifting history of style and fashion. Despite Gothic being the style in which to build and furnish institutional and domestic structures for most of the Middle Ages—the marriage bed being a product of this Gothic tradition—by the turn of the sixteenth century, Gothic had lost its currency and it was replaced by Classical forms.¹ But, as explored here, interest in ‘the Gothic’—expressed through architecture, furniture, and also literature—enjoyed a revival in the eighteenth century and Gothic-style furniture again became integral to interiors,