A NEAR PAIR OF AUSTRIAN NEOCLASSICAL CARVED GILTWOOD ARMCHAIRS VIENNA, LATE 18TH CENTURY

By repute, the Residenz of Maria Leopoldine of Bavaria (d. 1848), second wife of the Palatine Elector Karl Theodor of Neuburg-Sulzbach (d.1799) (part of a larger set)
By repute, Rothschild Collection
One chair Christie's London, December 14, 1995, lot 318
Same chair John Reid; Christie's London, December 17, 1998, lot 217
Property from an Important Private Collection, Christie's New York, May 18, 2006, lot 823

In excellent condition with exquisite carving. Upholstery is in good condition. Some minor losses to later gilding and to gesso but overall in very good condition. Some minor chips to some of the carving especially at the legs. Usual light scratches and minor wear consistent with use and age. Minor variations to the carved decoration: one armchair without scrolls flanking the crest rail tablet but with a leaf-tip frieze along the top of the seat rails and masks on the rear seat rails. One of the armrests is slightly loose.
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.

These exquisitely carved armchairs are a rare example of late Viennese neoclassical furniture, created at a time when the Habsburg capital was one of the most important and innovative centers of European design outside of Paris and London. The high rectangular backs with central raised crest and sophisticated ornamental repertory of Apollo sunburst masks, gryphons, acanthus leaf and blind fretwork are typical of Austrian furniture of the late 18th century, as are the unusual eagle heads and scrolling female Egyptian caryatids that would soon become iconic motifs of the Viennese Empire style.  

 

An identical armchair is in the collection of the Austrian Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) in Vienna and illustrated in Christian Witt Dorring, 'Empire oder Hofisches Biedermeier', Kunst und Antiquitaten November 1991, p.19.  The overall form is similar to designs published in Viennese pattern books in the early 1800s, notably those of the architect Georg Pein (1775-1834).  Interestingly, the Museum of Applied Arts also has a pair of later giltwood armchairs conceived in a similar spirit from a larger set supplied by the royal cabinetmaker Josef Ulrich Danhauser (1780-1829) to the Archduke Karl's palace in Vienna (now the Albertina) in c.1820.  Although these have scrolled backs and rear sabre legs inspired by the French Empire designs of Jacob, they share many elements in common including the distinctive scrolling armrest supports headed by bold leaf carving, gadrooned and acanthus capital front legs and profusely decorated seat rails and uprights.  Another pair from this group was formerly with Carlton Hobbs, New York, who also previously had a single armchair of the present model.   Danhauser's prolific workshop was already in full operation by 1808, and it cannot be ruled out that he may have had a hand in designing these chairs or at the very least drew inspiration from them.

The single example now in the Vienna museum comes from a larger set of four armchairs, nine side chairs, two window seats and a sofa sold at the Dorotheum Vienna, 2 December 1966, lot 982, by repute from the collection the Austrian Foreign Minister Graf Leopold Berchtold (d.1809). That both this group, the offered lot and the Danhauser chairs all have Royal or aristocratic provenances indicates that this type of furniture was specifically aimed at an elite clientele, with its costly gilding and labour-intensive elaborate carving.   Maria Leopoldine of Bavaria, born Archduchess of Habsburg-Este in Milan in 1776, was the granddaughter of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.  At age 18 she married the 70-year-old Elector of the Palatinate and Bavaria Karl Theodor von Pfalz-Sulzbach, and following his death in 1799 resided primarily at Schloss Berg on the Starnberger See south of Munich and later Schloss Stepperg on the Danube.  Of fiercely independent spirit and libertine reputation, Maria Leopoldine possessed considerable business acumen and through investments and ownership of a brewery she managed to amass a considerable fortune by the time of her death in 1848.