Old-Style Wooden Office Chair

Old-style wooden office chairs possess unique material craftsmanship, diverse price ranges, and specific market conditions.

Material and Craftsmanship

Old-style wooden office chairs have distinct characteristics in terms of material and craftsmanship. Traditional Chinese wooden chairs place great emphasis on mortise-and-tenon joints, a structure that requires no nails and relies solely on the clever interlocking of wood pieces to ensure the chair's structural stability, allowing it to remain in good condition over time. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, hardwood chairs took this craftsmanship to its pinnacle, not only emphasizing structural stability but also pursuing a majestic and solemn appearance in design, showcasing the superb woodworking skills and unique aesthetic style of that era. In terms of materials, old-style rosewood chairs are representative. The prices of different rosewood materials vary greatly, with Hongmu (Dalbergia cochinchinensis) being the most expensive, while Huali (Ormosia henryi) and Jichi (Pterocarpus macarocarpus) are relatively cheaper, with price differences of up to tenfold depending on the material.

Price Range

The prices of old-style wooden office chairs vary depending on factors such as age, material, and style. A Qing dynasty Hongmu armchair can fetch 26,000 yuan, while a rocking chair from the Republic of China era costs around 15,000 yuan, and a swivel chair from the late Qing dynasty is priced at just over 5,000 yuan. If the old-style wooden office chairs come in a set, the price will be even higher. For example, the starting bid for six Qing dynasty chairs at an auction reaches 32,000 yuan. However, some old chairs from the Qing dynasty, due to their long history and the need for restoration, have highly volatile prices. There have been cases where someone spent 8 million yuan to buy four old Qing dynasty chairs from a friend, highlighting the uncertainty of their value.

Market Conditions

In the modern market environment, old-style wooden office chairs combine the inheritance of traditional craftsmanship with modern production innovations. Ningjin County, known as the "Hometown of Chinese Solid Wood Furniture," has local enterprises using CNC equipment to produce solid wood office chairs, achieving a daily production capacity of a thousand chairs. Their solid wood dining tables and chairs account for more than 50% of the market share north of the Yangtze River. At the same time, there is a wealth of price information available online for solid wood office chairs, with significant price differences among chairs of different styles, materials, and functions, ranging from tens of yuan to over a thousand yuan, meeting the needs of different consumers.