Decorate and protect your chairs and sofas with this beautiful and timeless antimacassar, just as they did in days of old.  Starting in the Victorian period, these were used extensively on the backs and arms of chairs and sofas to protect the upholstery from dirt, dust and oil, and in many cases, the ladies who crocheted them created pure works of art, as this particular antimacassar is testament to. Bring a touch of Victorian decorative art into your living room and protect your furniture all in one go! 
 
This pattern is a rework of the crochet pattern for the antimacassar illustrated in The  Crochet Book, No. 6, published in 1877, which is a public domain work. I have translated this pattern into American crochet terminology (the original used UK terminology), and I rewrote it during the process of thorough testing, using modern crochet instructions and pattern formatting, as well as correcting errors and omissions, providing clarifications and making adjustments as necessary. All of this in order to make the pattern easier for modern crocheters to understand, so that they may create this exquisite vintage antimacassar themselves and help ensure that this pattern lives on.