拍賣筆記 vol.118 紐約佳士得：嘉木堂，黃花梨四出頭大官帽椅，325.65萬美元售出 - Grace Wu, A Magnificent And Extremely Rare Huanghuali 'Official's Hat' Armchair

競爭十分激烈，最後兩個電話sophia、tina兩個電話爭奪，1804號碼牌買下，人民幣2378萬元。

明式摩登：顯赫家族中國古典家具集珍

十七世紀 黃花梨四出頭大官帽椅

17TH CENTURY

成交價

美元 3,256,500（人民幣2378萬元）

估價

美元 800,000 – 美元 1,200,000

47 ¾ in. (121.3 cm.) high, 29 in. (73.7 cm.) wide, 23 ¾ in. (60.3 cm.) deep

來源

中國古典家具博物館珍藏專拍；紐約佳士得，1996年9月19日，拍品編號53

嘉木堂， 倫敦，1996年

出版

莎拉·韓蕙， 〈A Yokeback Chair for Sitting Tall〉，《Journal of the Classical Chinese Furniture Society》， 春季刊，1993年，頁18，圖24及封面

王世襄及柯惕思，《Masterpieces from the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture》，1995年，頁50，編號23

展覽

舊金山， 太平洋傳統博物館，「Masterpieces from the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture」，1995年6月7日-1996年3月31日

Ming/Modern: Classical Chinese Furniture from a Distinguished Family Collection

A MAGNIFICENT AND EXTREMELY RARE HUANGHUALI 'OFFICIAL'S HAT' ARMCHAIR

17TH CENTURY

Price realised

USD 3,256,500

Estimate

USD 800,000 – USD 1,200,000

A MAGNIFICENT AND EXTREMELY RARE HUANGHUALI 'OFFICIAL'S HAT' ARMCHAIR

17TH CENTURY

47 ¾ in. (121.3 cm.) high, 29 in. (73.7 cm.) wide, 23 ¾ in. (60.3 cm.) deep

PROVENANCE

Important Chinese Furniture, Formerly the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture Collection; Christie's New York, 19 September 1996, lot 53. 

Grace Wu Bruce, London, 1996.

LITERATURE

Handler, S., "A Yokeback Chair for Sitting Tall," Journal of the Classical Chinese Furniture Society, Spring, 1993, p. 18, fig. 24 and cover.

Wang Shixiang and C. Evarts, Masterpieces from the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture, 1995, p. 50, no. 23.

EXHIBITED

San Francisco, Pacific Heritage Museum, Masterpieces from the Museum of Classical Chinese Furniture, 7 June 1995 - 31 March 1996.

Imposing, throne-like chairs such as the present example may have been singular commissions and not part of a larger set. The large scale, powerful upturned ends of the crest rail, and sleek curving arms emphasize the elevated status of the sitter.

The rarer square members accentuate the strong, architectural lines and when paired with the broad, curved back splat amplifies its sense of grandeur. The chair is a Ming-period masterpiece embodying the sophisticated construction techniques and innovative design of a master furniture maker.

Left: Present lot illustrated.Right: A woodblock print from Shengyu Xiangjie (Explanatory Images of the Imperial Edicts), Kangxi period (1662-1722), illustrating a scholar seated on a similar armchair.

The elegant simplicity of this impressive chair is derived from its pure form and balanced proportions and defines the restrained yet sophisticated aesthetic of Ming furniture. The present chair is distinguished by its impressive height, measuring just over 121 cm. high, and by the use of square members rather than the standard round members. This deviation to square members alters the construction techniques and subtly changes the overall visual effect. Visible miter joints are used for square member construction, highlighting carpentry techniques, and become integral to the overall design. Round member chairs use pipe joints which are hidden within the internal structure of the chair, thus creating a more fluid, effortless design. Miter joints are stronger than pipe joints and encourage bolder designs and more robust, muscular chairs.

Present lot illustrated (detail).

Of the few remaining square member chairs, the present chair is arguably the best extant example. A slightly smaller waisted, square-member chair (109 cm. high) with inward-curving legs terminating in scroll-form feet is illustrated in N. Berliner, Beyond the Screen, Chinese Furniture of the 16th and 17th Centuries, Boston, 1996, p. 106, fig. 9. A variation of this waisted type, fitted with a tripartite stone-inset splat set and raised on tall square-member legs was sold at Rich Golden Hues and Graceful Forms – Classical Chinese Furniture from the Tseng Collection; Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 November 2022, lot 2811. A related shorter (104 cm. high) pair of huanghuali square-member chairs is in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, and illustrated by C. Clunas, Chinese Furniture, London, 1998, p. 18, no. 3. See, also, a square-member chair with more flared ends on the crestrail and elegantly turned side posts illustrated by Grace Wu in Three Decades of Ming Furniture, Beijing, 2024, p. 109.