Antique Nelson Chair Identification

Can anyone advise on history of this antique chair? Belongs to my father in law and has been handed down through his family since he can remember, apparently built using wood from one of Admiral Nelson's ships.

Front legs carved cannons

Alexander London painted on the chair's back as seen in the photo

Im very curious about this piece

 

Welcome, Charl! That chair certainly must be interesting with that carving of ship and sea, but we are going to need more pictures so we get the whole thing - preferably outside of the car.

 

I'll get a few more photos this afternoon if possible

 

We'd LOVE to see the LEGS!!!!

 

OMG, I LOVE that BACK piece......I'd frame just that (so far!!) somehow!!!! With CARVED turnbuckles?!!!!!!! Nice!!

 

Whoa... Cool chair @Charl Cilliers

Wecome!

 

Beautiful! what a great chair!

 

just lovely !!

 

I LOVE IT!!

 

there was an "alexander" which was a large british merchant ship built in 1783 and in the first fleet taking convicts to australia apparently. there was even a mutiny on it. good stories make better money.

 

Good Morning,

Here are a few more photos for guidance on making a call about where this chair could have come from,

Still very curious

 

Styling suggests circa 1870. The ship, Alexander was recorded as lost in 1809 and Lord Nelson died several years before that. Consequently, the story of it being made from timbers of one of Nelson's ships doesn't necessarily ring true. Nelson was recorded as a passenger aboard the Alexander in 1800 but it was never in his command.

The Alexander is important to Australia since it was used to transport some of the first settler/convicts to the continent. Could see how this was made to commemorate the ship for that reason. From what country did your father in law's family get the chair?

There were also other ships named the Alexander but none seem important enough to have been commemorated. Also, few of them would be old enough to have been depicted in the manner seen on this chair.

 

Despite the amazing one-of-a-kind splat, I'm getting a bit later vibe from this. Maybe 1890? Not crucially important, but the carving style looks to me more Renaissance Revival 1890 than Renaissance Revival 1870.

 

Thanks for the insight so far, looking further into the possible link to the Alexander; was the ship perhaps named after Alexander the great? Possibly the reason for the grecian featured bust on the arm rests (Possibly Alexander the great).

 

I did a bit more research and came across the history of the HMS Alexander, named after alexander the great, and with which Admiral Nelson had a reasonable role. The ship was a war ship in the war of independence and captured by the French and later recaptured by the British. The ship was later retired and broken up from which the chair could have been built in commemoration? See link to some history of the ship:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Alexander_(1778)

https://hrgm.wordpress.com/research/hms-alexander-the-ship/

 

This is a different Alexander than the one I found. It may be a more likely candidate.

 

With the ship being dismantled/broken up in 1819, could it have been built earlier than the 1870 to 1890 date? Is there anyone that can guide me on its value given the historical context?