A personalised back
As we saw in the beginning of the story, the back of the chair is decorated with Van Braam Houckgeest’s initials, VBH. This suggests that Van Braam Houckgeest placed a special order for the chair. However, the chair’s rough edges and rough design suggests that it was part of a line produced on a large scale.
Chairs like this were often made for the English in India. The Chinese products were more desirable than the Indian ones: this was due to the relatively low price of the Chinese goods, the possibility to produce on demand, and the fact that they were made to suit the English style.
Van Braam Houckgeest’s personalized back was thus likely a simple adjustment for the Chinese manufacturer and was crafted by one or several Chinese craftsmen.