18th-century palanquin offered on eBay for £9,500, known in England as a sedan chair

eBay delights us with an authentic eighteenth-century sedan chair for £9,500. It is perhaps the closest historical analogue to Uber Black. In England such conveyances became popular from the 1630s and were called sedans, after the French town of Sedan, which specialised in the manufacture of covered litters. Why Uber? In London, Edinburgh and other large cities special stands were laid out for the bearers, where they waited for passengers. To summon this means of transport, one had to send a servant to the sedan stand or shout in the street: chair! chair! Naturally, the most fastidious and well-to-do had their own sedan chairs with salaried bearers on the household staff. As cities and distances grew, sedans gradually fell out of use. If you are thinking of buying, have a look