Imperial Carved Office Chair
The imperial carved office chair generally refers to a seat with imperial-style features, carved decorations, and is suitable for office settings. Common types include the imperial throne chair, mahogany imperial throne chair, Forbidden City-style carved imperial chair, and Qing purple sandalwood carved throne.
The imperial throne chair originated during the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty to meet the needs of imperial court furnishings. Its overall shape is round on the top and square at the bottom, with an outer round and inner square design, subtly reflecting the traditional concept of the round heaven and square earth. The chair's armrests form a crescent shape, with the ends often carved with scroll patterns. The backrest is mostly S-shaped and features a three-section frame design. The craftsmanship is rigorous, entirely using mortise-and-tenon joints, with exquisite carvings and comfort. In ancient times, it was exclusively used by the emperor, primarily featuring carvings of dragons and phoenixes. Later, it entered civilian life, with a wider range of carving themes, often made from precious woods such as rosewood.
The mahogany imperial throne chair features carvings on the backrest, armrests, and toe tips. The scroll patterns originate from the imperial court, symbolizing endless vitality and vigor. The legs adopt a drum-leg and bulging-tooth design.
The Forbidden City-style carved imperial chair is made of Burmese rosewood (Pterocarpus macrocarpus), with a single-panel top and double-sided carvings. It inherits the essence of the literati's round-back chair, showcasing its elegance and splendor in the imperial court with its luxurious shape and ornate decorations.
The Qing purple sandalwood carved throne is a mid-Qing Dynasty imperial armchair made of purple sandalwood. Its form adopts a three-panel screen-style seat surround structure, composed of a backrest and two side armrests, with a frame inlaid with nanmu wood heart and carved with a swastika pattern on a brocade ground. The seat surface is a woven mat softๅฑ, with a narrow waist and apron below, all formed from a single piece of wood. The legs are designed in a three-curve style, with a supporting base at the bottom to enhance stability. This throne blends Chinese and Western decorative elements, featuring relief carvings of Western-style scroll patterns on the seat surround's brocade ground, as well as on the apron and legs, demonstrating the influence of Rococo art on Qing Dynasty imperial furniture.
