17TH/18TH CENTURY

The combination of three varieties of wood in a chair of this form is unusual, although the result is a very pleasing aesthetic. The form of the present armchair is influenced by wrapped bamboo construction, and is alternatively referred to as tushou shubeiyi, or spindle-back armchair, in reference to the tall posts set between the back and arm rails. For a further discussion of chairs of this form, see Robert D. Jacobsen and Nicholas Grindley, Classical Chinese Furniture in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minneapolis, 1999, pp. 68-9, no. 16, where the authors also illustrate a closely related pair in huanghuali.