Page 103 - Christies March 16, 2017 The Varata Collection NYC

Fig. 1. A zhazhemu ‘southern oficial’s hat’ armchair. Chinese chairs fall into three distinct categories: armchair (guanmaoyi), horseshoe-
Photo courtesy of Zhang Jinhua back armchairs (quanyi), and rose-chairs (meiguiyi). Within these three categories,
there exist several sub-sections, such as continuous armchairs, also called “Southern
（圖1）柞榛木方材南官帽椅 Oficial’s Hat” armchairs (nanguanmaoyi) and continuous horseshoe-back armchairs.
However, newly published furniture references, notably the recently completed
圖片提供：張金華 multi-volume work by the Palace Museum, Beijing, suggest an unlimited variation
of forms within these three basic categories. The ‘Ecke’ chairs are an example of a
variation of the standard armchair.

The ‘Ecke’ chairs are constructed entirely of square section members. The only
decorative relief from this rigor is the incised line to each edge of each square
member, which has been gently worn at the front and sides of the seat frame, the
arms, and the foot rest. The closest example to the present pair is a chair published
by Zhang Jinhua in The Classical Chinese Furniture of Weiyang, Literati Culture
and Craftmanship in the Yangzhou Region During the Ming and Qing Dynasties,
2016, pp. 82-85 (fg. 1), which is of comparable form and displays a similar and
unconventional arrangement of the front apron. As noted by the author, the common
arrangement has the vertical strut set above a humpback or straight lower stretcher,
and directly tenons into the underside of the seat frame, rather than the design
shown in the illustrated example, which shows a single panel with an upper and
lower horizontal member and vertical struts. Zhang argues that this design is an
identifying characteristic of Weiyang furniture.

The very unusual, and perhaps unique, arrangement of platform-style plain aprons
and spandrels on the sides and back of the chair is another strong indicator that the
“Ecke chairs” would have originated from an area east of Yangzhou. This design, a
derivation of the platform bed construction with a scalloped edge opening (fg. 2), is
one of the earliest forms found in Classical Chinese furniture, frst seen in paintings
as early as the 4th century. This form of construction, seen on the ‘Ecke’ chairs is
typical of Weiyang Ming-style furniture. See, also, a jichimu and nanmu platform,
dating to the 17th century, similarly constructed in this box-form style, sold Christie’s
New York, Important Chinese Furniture Formerly the Museum of Classical Chinese
Furniture Collection, 19 September 1996, lot 13 (fg. 3). In his discussion of platform
beds, Zhang states that “the frequency with which platform-style furniture appears
in early Chinese paintings not only suggests that they were a symbol of elite social
status, but also refects a standard of taste”.

Fig. 2 Yuan dynasty. Portrait of Ni Zan. Colophon by Zhang Yu
© The Collection of National Palace Museum

（圖2）元 張雨題倪瓚像
圖片版權所有：國立故宮博物院

THE MARIE THERESA L. V I R ATA C O L L E C T I O N OF ASIAN ART: A FAMILY LEGACY 101