A Pair of Huanghuali Yokeback Armchairs, Guanmaoyi 17th/18th Century

each with rounded toprail and backward projecting ends supported on round slender stiles and extending down to the back legs, the S-curved backsplat framing three panels, the top with openwork beaded ruyi, the middle inset with greyish-white marble suggestive of swirling clouds and misty landscapes, and the bottom section with beaded opening, the curved arms projecting beyond the front posts set back from the corners of the rectangular frame enclosing the mat seat, all above plain beaded apron and spandrels to the front and side, the legs joined by stretchers and a footrest with apron

Purchased from Hei Hung-Lu, Hong Kong, late 1980s/early 1990s.

The pair of chairs are in good condition with the exception of a small repair to the openwork ruyi panels on both chairs, a repaired break across one marble panel, replaced hard matt seats, possibly replaced trimming strips, possibly replaced front spandrels to both, replaced apron to the footrail of both and minor surface scratches and wear commensurate with age.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Huanghuali yokeback armchairs of this type are striking for their simplicity and harmonious form. They are called guanmaoyi or ‘official hat-shaped chairs’, the name deriving from its resemblance to the winged hat that was part of the formal attire of Ming officials. They were regarded as high chairs and retained a connotation of status and authority associated with the elite gentry in Chinese society. The classical text Lu Ban jing [Classic of Lu Ban], a 15^th century carpenter’s manual, describes the joinery of these chairs as the embodiment of Chinese furniture construction.

Craig Clunas in Chinese Furniture, London, 1988, notes that armchairs of this type were made in pairs, suggesting a symmetry that was aimed for in the Chinese room arrangement (see p. 20). Ming (1368-1644) and Qing period woodblock illustrations characteristically show them used at dinner tables, in receptions halls for guests and at writing tables in the scholar’s studio. For example, see a woodblock print from the 1616 edition of the novel Jin Ping Mei [The plum in the golden vase], showing the main male character and his wife seated on guanmaoyi dining while his secondary wives and concubines are seated on stools (ibid., p. 20).

Chairs of this type inset with marble panels on the splat are unusual although a similar yoke-back armchair from the Tseng Riddell collection was included in the exhibition Splendor of Style. Classical Furniture from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, National Museum of History, Taipei, 1999, p. 83; a pair inset on the splat with two marble panels is illustrated in Robert Hatfield Ellsworth, One Hundred Examples from the Mimi and Raymond Hung Collection, New York, 1996, pl. 11; and two armchairs were sold in our New York rooms, the first, 16^th November 1991, lot 463, and the second, 3^rd June 1992, lot 340.