Cadira de bova (rush chair) and bench — Traditional Mallorcan object

What is

The seats of the Mallorcan house: the wooden cadira (chair) with the cordat (woven) seat of bova (enea) or palm rope, and the family of backless or multi-seater seats: banc, banquet, escambell, tibulet, arquibanc.

Correction to the assignment: in Mallorca the cattail is called bova, not boga (DCVB: bova in Mall., Men., Eiv.). The slug remains.

How is

Cadira de bova: pine (sometimes olive) frame with four crossbars; twisted bova cord seat, in four triangles that meet in the center (see document).
Cadira de palma / de corda: the same frame with cordelli (thin cord of two palm brins, made with the eye of the palm) or corda with two caps, somewhat thicker (BOIB 101/2026).
Cadira de braços / de repòs: with arms.
Banc: long seat for several people; banc respatler, with backup.
Banquet: small bench; in Mallorca, low footstool to put your feet on (DCVB).
Escambell: small seat without arms or backrest (DCVB, also Mall.).
Tibulet: stool, also cordat (BOIB 101/2026).
Arquibanc: long bench with one or more chests under the seat, which acts as a cover (DCVB).

How is fa

Frame: the cadirer or the fuster, often with turned parts (see eines-de-fuster , torners ).
Seat: the cordador de cadires: collect, dry and soak the bova, twist it into a continuous cord and pass it from corner to corner over the crossbars; fill between layers. With palm, the cordelli already twisted.
The most common repair: remember the worn seat without touching the wood.

Com s'usa

Low chairs next to the fire and at the front door (al fresco), table chairs, benches in the kitchen and entrance.
The low banquet for the feet, for working seated (cording, sewing, shelling) or for children.
The arquibanc stores clothes or grain and serves as a seat.

Vocabulary

cadira: chair.
bova: cattail (Typha); in Mallorca, the usual fashionable form.
cordar: knit the seat.
cordador de cadires: craftsman who strings chairs.
cordellí: fine cord of two palm brins.
corda de dos caps: palm cord for chairs.
banquet: stool; in Mallorca, footstool.
escambell: backless stool.
tibulet: stool.
arquibanc: chest-bank.
bova escabeiada: undone reed seat ("tres cadires unequals amb sa bova escabeiada", Mallorcan quote in the DCVB).
qui a bona cadira seu, bona ventura espera: saying (Mall.).

History

1307: "sis archas, un arquibanch" in an inventory cited by the DCVB.
1398: «j siti de boua dolent» (a worn bova seat), document cited by the DCVB.
1491: "vuyt cadires planadisses", escambells and a "cadireta de bóta" in a possession of Santa Margalida (BSAL 2017).
1652: "a bova estora" in a document from Sóller (DCVB).
19th-20th centuries: the palm rope is used for “cordat de cadires i tibulets” (BOIB 101/2026).
2025: honorary award from the Consell for the career of Pep Toni Ferrà Ferrà, cordador de cadires i llatrer (Establiments).
2026: “Llatra i cordat de cadires a la fresco” demonstration in Algaida (July 23).

On veure'n

Museu de Mallorca, Etnològica Section (Wall) : rooms furnished in the Mallorcan style.
Cadibra II by Jordi Ribas Ros (Colònia de Sant Pere) in Homo Faber: unites two models of Mallorcan chair, seat made of palm fiber and pine recovered from an 18th century building.
BaleArt Fair and demonstrations of the Consell's trades.

Why is it design

Replaceable seat: the wood lasts for decades; The seat is remembered when it is worn out.
Fiber from the wetland and the mountains: bova and palm, local materials without cultivation.
Geometry that is distributed: four triangles tension the seat equally.
Double furniture: the arquibench is a seat and storage.

For the project

Piece: reissue a Mallorcan chair with a bova or palma seat with a fuster and Pep Toni Ferrà; banquet series
Open workshop “corda la teva cadira” with old chairs from the public.
Trades: cadiraires-i-voga · work-of-palma-llata · fusteria-mallorca · ebenisteria-i-moble-mallorqui . Files: caixa-de-nuvia , calaixera , estora , arquibanc , cadira-de-repos , balanci-i-tibulet , canape , cadira-paridora .

Frequently asked questions

What is Cadira de bova (rush chair) and bench?

The seats of the Mallorcan house: the wooden cadira (chair) with the cordat (woven) seat of bova (enea) or palm rope, and the family of backless or…

What are the traditional words for Cadira de bova (rush chair) and bench?

Some words: arquibanc, banquet, bova, bova escabeiada, cadira, corda de dos caps, cordador de cadires, cordar.

Sources

Working text from the Disseny Indígena knowledge base, machine-translated from Spanish.

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