17TH CENTURY

Details

A HUANGHUALI 'OFFICIAL'S HAT' ARMCHAIR
17TH CENTURY
The curved crestrail terminating in elegant rounded ends is supported on a wide C-form backsplat above the gracefully curving arms. The mat seat is set in a rectangular frame above cusped apron, and is raised on round-section legs joined by a footrest at front and stepped stretchers at the sides and back.
42 1⁄4 in. (107.3 cm.) high, 24 3⁄4 in. (62.8 cm.) wide, 23 1⁄4 in. (59.1 cm.) deep

Provenance

Grace Wu Bruce, Hong Kong, 22 September 1988.

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Rufus Chen (陳嘉安) Head of Sale, AVP, Specialist

asianartny@christies.com +1 212 636 2180

Lot Essay

The ‘official’s hat’ or yokeback armchair, particularly the ‘four corners-exposed’ type of the present example, is among the most powerful and monumental forms of classical Chinese furniture. The tall and supportive curved splat and elongated S-shaped arms encourage the sitter to sit in an upright regal posture, and the protruding curved crestrail with rounded ends behind the sitter’s head also adds an imposing effect.

A similar armchair dated to the seventeenth century, and also with arm rails supported on single curved tapering vertical posts, is illustrated by Wang and Evarts, Masterpieces From the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture, Chicago and San Francisco, 1995, p. 48. A taller example, also with set back curved front posts, was sold at Christie’s New York, 25 September 2020, lot 1645.

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