Chair (Teacher’s office)

The Didaskaleion of Crete in Heraklion had in its possession a number of visual aiding teaching materials (visual material and school equipment) that were used during its educational function. These materials constituted an important part of the movable property of the institution, as it can be seen from the official correspondence of the Didaskaleion. This material and equipment are divided into the following categories: a. School pictures. b. School maps. c. Embroidery of the Didaskaleion. d. School furniture. e. Various items of collections and school equipment. f. Photographs of students and teaching staff. f. Aiding material for natural science courses. g. Stationery. One of the basic pieces of furniture that existed in every classroom of the Didaskaleion of Crete and the Standard Primary Schools of the Didaskaleion was the school chair. The chair was placed on a pedestal on the side where the teaching board was. Usually, the teacher delivered the lesson in front of the chair. In this way he could supervise the students more effectively. The seat also had a functional use, as the teachers left their teaching materials and/or personal belongings. Three school seats have been recorded in the archive of portable objects of the Didaskaleion. This particular school seat was used in the Didaskaleion of Crete. It is a wooden piece of furniture with a rectangular parallelepiped surface. The legs of the chair are decorated with swirling ring motifs and spherical ornaments. The seat has a central drawer. To the right and left of the drawer are four smaller drawers, two on each side.