It is unusual to find a pair of matching Louis XIV style chairs in such fine condition in terms of sturdiness and stability, and even rarer to find them made of walnut rather than beech or other cheaper hardwoods. The walnut is solid, well-carved and with a nice patina.
While at first we were tempted to re-cover these chairs in something more contemporary, the more we admired them, the more we found the verdure tapestry pattern a pleasing choice. The fabric reflects a style that was all the rage in the Renaissance and named after the French word “vert” or green. We like to think that this style, based on foliage and depicting complex combinations of tree branches and plants without figures or a story, evokes some sort of fantasy or escape into a different world for the inhabitants of 16th century Paris. Lush and dense, the verdure seems an end in itself. As such, the tapestry pattern on these chairs is a basic green with the addition of some color, as the fringe tapestry reflects. We do not believe that this fabric is the original covering as the chairs are over a century old, but it harmonizes perfectly within the theme of vegetation reflected in the carved acanthus leaves of the chairs’ armrests.
Reference
Quette, Anne-Marie, Le Mobilier Français Louis XIII et Louis XIV (Editions Massin, Paris, 1996); Rousseau, Francis, Le Grand Livre des Meubles (Copyright Studio, Paris, 1999)
Uses
As with all our chairs, these are sturdy and comfortable with many years of additional life in them.
