ATTRIBUTED TO FERDINANDO POGLIANI, MILAN, LAST QUARTER 19TH CENTURY

Details

A PAIR OF ITALIAN EBONY, ETCHED IVORY AND CARVED LIMEWOOD ARMCHAIRS
ATTRIBUTED TO FERDINANDO POGLIANI, MILAN, LAST QUARTER 19TH CENTURY
The triangular pediment carved with blossoming flowers and pierced scrollwork, the back and seat upholstered in light brown velvet, above a similarly carved apron decorated with a nymph, raised on splayed feet with casters
64 in. (162.5 cm.) high (2)

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.

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Lot Essay

In 1878, Herter Brothers, the renowned American furniture-maker and retailer, was commissioned with the decoration of the Nob Hill mansion of Mrs. Mark Hopkins in San Francisco. These impressively-scaled chairs are identical to a suite of seating furniture said to be purchased by Herter Brothers for Mrs. Hopkin's bedroom, which had been previously outfitted with an extensive suite of bedroom furniture also by Ferdinando Pogliani. A portion of the Nob Hill furnishings were subsequently gifted to Hopkins's adopted son, Timothy Hopkins (d. 1936), whose personal collection was dispersed at auction by Butterfield and Butterfield 19-23 October 1942. Another example of this model is illustrated in Mrs. William H. Vanderbilt's boudoir at 640 Fifth Avenue, New York (see A. Lewis, et al., Opulent Interiors of the Gilded Age, New York, 1987, p. 121), which had also been designed by Herter Brothers upon the completion of the mansion in January 1882.

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