Maison Ottomane Collections
The Ottoman gets it name from its exotic -- to Europeans -- origins. The low seats or hassocks were imported from Turkey during the 1700s when the area was part of the Ottoman Empire, according to the "Encyclopedia Britannica," and caught on in European salons. The term covers a wide range of styles, the most familiar being a footstool or padded bench, used with a chair or as a makeshift coffee table that doubles as seating. Ottomans, throughout design history, have assumed a multitude of shapes and functions.