Idiosyncratic furniture

Cecil Higgins Art Gallery and Bedford Museum purchased a rare Zodiac settle designed by a 19th century Gothic Revivalist, William Burges. Designed for his personal residence, the Zodiac Settle (built around 1869) is an ornate canopied bench that combines an Italian Renaissance day bed with a castellated canopy.
The settle is made from painted, stenciled and gilded wood and decorated with rock crystal and vellum. The central panel features the sun on a throne surrounded by the dancing signs of the zodiac. The Settle’s other panels show the planets as musicians and female figures.
The art piece is extremely rare because it was an experiment and the design was never repeated.