Room Screens in 17th-Century England and Europe

Portable folding screens made of gilded and painted leather were a fashionable feature of 17th-century European interiors. They combined practical function with rich decoration, reflecting both local craftsmanship and international influences. In grand aristocratic homes and the aspirational parlors of the gentry, these screens embodied contemporary ideas of privacy and luxury.

Origins and Materials

Leather folding screens first gained popularity in Europe during the mid to late 1600s. The concept arrived via Asian imports—particularly Chinese lacquered screens—which were considered highly desirable novelties in early 17th-century Europe. European artisans soon developed their own interpretations. In Spain, a longstanding tradition of Cuir de Cordoue (Cordovan leather) provided the foundation for local production: richly embossed, painted, and gilded panels made from calf or goat hide. These leather panels were often stretched over wooden frames and finished with decorative brass studs or hobnails, resulting in durable and visually opulent objects. Flemish and Dutch workshops followed suit, producing folding screens that typically ranged from four to eight leaves.

While gilded and painted leather remained the primary medium for such screens, a parallel tradition emerged using painted canvas, particularly in Northern Europe. These canvas screens allowed for more elaborate narrative scenes and painterly detail, making them especially popular in Anglo-Dutch interiors. A striking example is a six-fold screen dating to circa 1680–1710, depicting a scene from Don Quixote. In this composition, the errant knight is ceremonially “dubbed” by his loyal companion Sancho Panza, surrounded by figures in an Italianate setting. The painted canvas medium allows for nuanced light effects and storytelling that would have been more difficult to achieve on embossed leather.

Decorative Style and Influences

Seventeenth-century screens drew from the rich visual languages of Baroque Europe, as well as from Islamic and East Asian decorative traditions. Spanish Baroque screens typically featured repeating floral or arabesque patterns with Moorish influence, rendered in tooled gold on dark leather grounds. This legacy of guadamecí—luxuriously tooled and painted leather—had been prized throughout Europe since the Renaissance.

By the late 17th century, screens in the Netherlands and England increasingly adopted chinoiserie motifs. Makers, including many Huguenot craftsmen trained in Flemish and Dutch cities, introduced vivid scenes of birds, flowers, pagodas, and figures in Oriental dress, often painted onto gilded leather grounds. At the same time, classical European architectural motifs—such as Ionic columns, arches, and putti—were incorporated to frame and elevate these designs. The screen at Belton House, for example, merges Chinese garden imagery with neoclassical structures, a visual expression of the cosmopolitan tastes of the period.

Painted canvas screens, like the Don Quixote example, often took on more theatrical and narrative roles, transforming the screen into a kind of stage. Framed with scrolling acanthus leaves and masks, these works blur the line between furniture and painting, creating immersive visual stories within the domestic interior.

Function: Privacy, Luxury, and Display

Beyond decoration, folding screens served a critical functional purpose in 17th-century interiors. In large, drafty rooms, screens offered a flexible way to manage space and warmth, creating private nooks for conversation or dressing. They were essentially portable walls, giving structure and intimacy to rooms in an age before corridors and closets were widespread.

Screens were also potent symbols of wealth and taste. The expense of materials—especially gilded leather—and the quality of craftsmanship meant that only the well-to-do could afford such objects. A painted leather or canvas screen was often displayed as a conversation piece, akin to a fine fan, porcelain vase, or tapestry. Their imagery, whether allegorical, exotic, or heraldic, conveyed the owner’s education, worldliness, and aesthetic sensibility.

That they appear frequently in estate inventories from the late 17th century attests to their popularity and status. Even in gentrifying homes, older screens were treasured and passed down. The National Trust’s collection includes screens repurposed from salvaged 17th-century Spanish leather panels—testament to how valued these decorative objects remained well into later centuries.

Conclusion

In the language of Baroque furniture, the folding screen—whether made of leather or canvas—was a statement of elegance, intellect, and practical refinement. It reflected the hybrid visual culture of early modern Europe, where East met West, and function blended seamlessly with spectacle. Whether depicting abstract scrollwork or the imagined knighthood of Don Quixote, these screens were movable monuments to storytelling, artistry, and the evolving structure of domestic life.

Sources: Folding screen history (history of the folding screen | Country Life) (history of the folding screen | Country Life); leather screen craftsmanship (Leather wallpaper – Wikipedia) (The Art of the Fold: A History of Decorative Screens in the Interior | The Source); Spanish gilt leather tradition (A SPANISH POLYCHROME-PAINTED LEATHER FOUR-LEAF FOLDING SCREEN, 17TH CENTURY, THE LEATHER REMOUNTED LATE 19TH CENTURY | Christie’s) (Explore the house at Greyfriars | National Trust); chinoiserie and English screens (The Art of the Fold: A History of Decorative Screens in the Interior | The Source) (Image details | National Trust Images); social context (Layout 1) (history of the folding screen | Country Life).