M. Markley Antiques
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Antique Chairs - Item 3202
8 Italian Dining Chairs

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Item 3202	8 Italian Dining Chairs
Dimensions	Width 23, Height 45, Depth 16 (in inches)
Wood	Walnut
Country	France or Italy
Date	Circa 1930
Description	These walnut dining chairs, match stylistically the Renaissance walnut dining table of the same number (3202).  They are made of solid walnut that has been carefully past-waxed in the French tradition to bring out the color and beauty of the wood. The four legs are connected by a decorative stretcher just below the seat on the front, including hand-carved vines and acanthus leaves.  The remaining two stretchers connect the front legs to the back at the same height.  Below the intersection of the stretchers are round, fluted legs which terminate in rectangular blocks with rounded bottoms.  Above the stretchers, the legs are shorter fluted columns crowned by rectangular blocks, giving the legs a pleasing, balanced look. Bordering the upholstery of the seat back is a unique decorative design of intricately carved and alternating flanges, resembling a blend of the traditional key pattern with dentile moulding.  This treatment also appears on the frieze of the matching table.  Crowning the back of the chair are intricately carved extensions of verticals where one might expect to find detachable finials.  These reinforce the overall Renaissance feel of the chairs, being in the shape of that all-purpose vegetation memorialized by Renaissance craftsman, the acanthus leaf. The back of the chairs, in keeping with tradition since medieval times, is unadorned with the expectation that the chairs would have their backs up against a wall when not in use. Remarkable in an age when antique chairs are often wobbly and unstable, these came to us in excellent condition and remain stable and sturdy, their joints as strong now as when initially fabricated.  Since upholstery and springs do not typically fare as well, these chairs have new springs, foam and fabric for maximum comfort and versatility.  The current fabric is a poly-silk blend in a rich cream color with shaded gold and black stripes to set off the color and richness of the wood to best advantage.  (A swatch of the fabric is available upon request.)
Reference	Rousseau, Francis, Le Grand Livre des Meubles (Copyright Studio, Paris, 1999); Wilk, Christopher, Western Furniture 1350 to the Present Day (Cross River Press, New York, 1996)
Uses	It is difficult to find a set of 8 matching antique chairs for a large dining table and these would be ideal for collectors who entertain and still treasure the formal dining experience at home.