The Big Chair in southeast DC stands at 19 and 1/2 feet tall. Originally constructed from 4,600 pounds of African mahogany by Basset Furniture for the Curtis Bros Furniture Company, its seat is as wide as two double-sized beds. The style was created by 18th-century furniture maker Duncan Phyfe, whose furniture also rests in the White House. Big chairs are all over the country and all over the District but this big chair has a culture built around it, including a coffee shop, chess club and an as-yet unreleased beer.  The Curtis Bros used the big chair to advertise, hiring a 19-year old model in 1960 to live in a glass house on the seat of the chair. She “watched TV, read books and talked on the telephone” in the air-conditioned cubicle while meals were delivered to her (typical 19 year-old). She came back to earth in six weeks. The big chair is actually a replica of another big chair inThomasville, NC. Both had to be rebuilt due to weather damage. DC’s replacement is made out of 2500 pounds of aluminum, right down (or up) to its striped seat.