A fire screen or fireguard began as a form of

furniture Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fu ...

that acted as a shield between the occupants of a room and the

fireplace A fireplace or hearth is a structure made of brick, stone or metal designed to contain a fire. Fireplaces are used for the relaxing ambiance they create and for heating a room. Modern fireplaces vary in heat efficiency, depending on the design. ...

, and its primary function was to reduce the discomfort of excessive heat from a log fire. Early firescreens were generally shaped as flat panels standing on attached feet, or as adjustable shield-shaped panels mounted on tripod table legs. Firescreens in the modern home have become decorative shields of

sheet metal Sheet metal is metal formed into thin, flat pieces, usually by an industrial process. Sheet metal is one of the fundamental forms used in metalworking, and it can be cut and bent into a variety of shapes. Thicknesses can vary significantly; ex ...

glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling (quenching) of ...

, or

wire mesh Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm A wire is a flexible strand of metal. Wire is co ...

that can be placed in front of a

opening to protect the room from open flames and flying embers that may be emitted by the fire. Fire screens were used to cover the fireplace when nothing was burning inside it, and make it look more decorative.

Types of fire screen

The ''three-panel'' fire screen, which covers the fireplace almost completely, has two side panels angled away from the central panel. It is an effective way of providing decoration in a room. The ''horse screen'', or ''cheval screen'' (cheval is the French word for horse) was in common use from the 18th century. It is a wide screen having two feet on each side, the arrangement of the feet giving the screen its name. Placed in front of the unused fireplace, the decorated screen improves the appearance of a room. Screens are decorated with

embroidery Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen ...

papier maché Papier may refer to : *paper in French, Dutch, Afrikaans, Polish or German, word that can be found in the following expressions: **Papier-mâché, a construction material made of pieces of paper stuck together using a wet paste **Papier collé, a p ...

, painted wood or perhaps

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

; the frame and feet might be carved. The ''pole screen'' also began to appear in the 18th century. It is a smaller screen placed on a vertical pole which is mounted on a tripod; placed between a lit fire and an occupant of the room, the screen can be adjusted up or down to shield the person's face from the heat. The screen might be rectangular or a more decorous shape, and is decorated perhaps with embroidery, lacquer or paint. The ''banner'' screen is similar to a pole screen; instead of a solid screen there is a loose piece of silk or embroidery, weighted with tassels on the lower edge; like a banner, it is supported from the top edge by a crossbar connected to a pole.

Some antique fire screens

File:Jean-Baptiste-Claude_Sené_(1748-1803),_écran_à_feu_(1787),_Museum_of_Fine_Arts,_Boston.jpg, French fire screen, 1787 File:Fire_Screen_LACMA_M.2006.51.14.jpg, Pole fire screen, Massachusetts, about 1780 File:Firescreen, about 1878-1880, Herter Brothers, New York, gilded wood, brocaded silk, embossed paper - Cleveland Museum of Art - DSC08947.JPG, Fire screen of about 1880, with

brocaded Brocade is a class of richly decorative shuttle-woven fabrics, often made in colored silks and sometimes with gold and silver threads. The name, related to the same root as the word "broccoli", comes from Italian ''broccato'' meaning "embos ...

silk and gilded wood

Notes

{{Authority control Fireplaces Furnishings