Friday 20 January 2017

Why the Ottoman Goes Beyond Being Just a Footstool

Osman, who laid the foundations of the grand Ottoman empire spanning the continents, would not have dreamt that the term Ottoman would apply to a mere piece of furniture that would find favour in places as far away as Britain and the US. Osman has departed long since and the Ottoman Empire has vanished, but the Ottoman name lives on in the furniture that the empire inspired. Ottomans are alive and thriving in a different avatar.

To call an ottoman a footstool might be construed as a grave insult. The battle weary man of the house (or lady of the house) who has been on his (or her) toes all day long comes back and finds soul satisfying comfort in resting his feet on the nicely proportioned ottoman. It serves a vital function of recharging the feet of the lord (or lady) of the house and bringing about calm. When it is not engaged in this all important duty, the ottoman footstool will deign to serve as a temporary coffee table or even something you can stand on to reach for something. 


Some say the footstool gained a veneer of polish and evolved into the ottoman as we know it today, possibly because the shape resembles bales of cotton that weavers stood on during the Turkish Empire. Others trace the genes of modern day ottomans to furniture used during the 17th century Turkey as a coffee table or to seat guests. Some say the original ottoman was larger in size and could conveniently seat entire families before it reduced in size as it evolved and its corners became rounded as well.

A black ottoman need not be a footstool; it can be rather generous in proportion to accommodate two or three persons. It can be a bench but would not appreciate being called one. The term Ottoman will do nicely, thank you. They are even called pouffes  by some but that does sound a bit pejorative. You may invite an honoured guest to sit on an Ottoman but not on a pouffe though they may both be the same thing. Ottoman does sound royal. And, like royalty, the ottoman is discreet. He is there when you need him but retires grandly and discreetly to a corner but never sulks. Put your foot on him or rest your head on him and he will always welcome you. Is it any wonder it is a favourite of families?

A well made ottoman footstool can even hope to become a family heirloom.

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