A suite of Italian polychrome-painted seat furniture attributed to Giovacchino Paoli or Carlo Toussaint circa 1800, Florence

comprising two settees and six armchairs.

Decoration refreshed. Minor worm.
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.

The distinctive carvings and shield-shaped backrests of this suite bear great similarity to two sets of chairs made for the Palazzo Pitti in 1797.  A set of twelve was made by Giovacchino Paoli and described in his invoice dated Frebruary of that year as "al modello della lira con i dolfini e ghirlanda e con diverse suonate ai mezzo..." , illustrated in Enrico Colle, Il mobile di Palazzo Pitti: il primo periodo lorenese, Florence, 1992, p. 184, no. 125. Paoli's patrons included among others the Court of Hapsburg-Lorraine from 1791 to 1799.

The second set of eighteen chairs was made by Toussaint and delivered for the Granda Sala della Musica in the same year, Colle, op. cit., pp. 185-186, no. 127. Toussaint  who was almost certainly of Parisian origin, was one of Florence's most distinguished joiners of his time supplying both the Palazzo Pitti and the Villa Poggio Imperiale from 1787 to 1799.