A RARE HUANGHUALI HORSESHOEBACK ARMCHAIR (QUANYI) MING DYNASTY, 17TH CENTURY

a three-segment curved armrail with overlapping hidden tenoned scarf joints with pressure pin wedges, the recessed arms with sinuous, bracketed posts tenoned to the frame, terminating in outscrolled handgrips carved with leaf motifs, the bowed backsplat comprised of three sections, the upper panel with archaistic confronting kui dragons in low relief, the framed central blind panel of superb wood-grain whorls, above a delicately arched low apron, the molded soft seat frame with its original bowed transverse stretcher, the legs outlined with long beaded flange brackets and joined by stretchers of oval section

Nicholas Grindley Ltd., London, 1997.

The chair has a patch repair to one foot and there is a missing section to the interior of one of the side stretchers where there had been some sapwood. The joins have been consolidated.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Horseshoeback armchairs with a crestrail comprised of three sections are rare. Most armchairs of this form feature crestrails of five segments. Three requires a much more extravagant use of the exotic and expensive hardwood and a very skilled craftsmen to first choose the wood with sufficient grain in the right direction and then to join the sections together in a lasting manner.  It is also unusual to find this form with tripartite backsplats; a feature more frequently associated with Yokeback chairs.  A pair with of similar form and design was sold in these rooms 2nd June 1993, lot 483.