CHINA, 17TH-18TH CENTURY

The fluid and pronounced S-curved spindles contrast elegantly with the straight lines of the back and the arms. Within this frame, the S-curved spindles activate this space with energy and movement and creates a rippling, wave-like effect. The subtle design is defined by a balance of positive and negative space. The flattened S-form spindles, rather than rounded spindles, heightens this dramatic effect. A late Ming period woodblock print from The Romance of the Western Chamber (Xixiang ji) features a four-poster bed with this distinct and rare wave-like spindle design on the side panels.

A huanghuali with similar delicate S-shaped spindles and wraparound stretchers joining the legs was sold in The Flacks Family Collection, Part II: Curtain Call; Christie’s London, 12 May 2026, lot 17. The mate to the Flacks Family chair is illustrated by Zhang Jinhua in The Classical Chinese Furniture of Weiyang: Representative Examples, vol, 2, London, 2016, p. 56-59. A pair of slightly larger huanghuali rose chairs with similarly carved wave-like spindles, and shaped aprons and spandrels, formerly from the Mimi Wong collection was sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 2 May 2025, lot 958.