Brunk Auctions
Live Auction

Premier Auction - Session II

Sat, Mar 26, 2022 09:00AM EDT
Lot 859

Chinese Export Carved and Caned Sofa or Settee

Estimate: $800 - $1,200

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $25
$100 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $200
$3,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
$100,000 $10,000

1800-1815, frame with serpentine back and scrolled arms, molded tapered legs with casters, Colonial Williamsburg file notes record woods as cedar, chinaberry, thuja, Atlantic white cedar, and mahogany(?), 33-3/4 x 81 x 30-1/2 in.

Note: The specific origin of this sofa remains a question, as it contains both western and eastern woods. See CW file notes for more information.

Related caned sofas are in the collections of Winterthur and SPNEA. Also see Carl Crossman, The Decorative Arts of the China Trade, pg. 244-247.

Provenance: One of two sofas with a history with Misses Alice and Edith Minturu Smith of Bassett Hall, Williamsburg, Virginia, and Mrs. Smith's niece in Alexandria, Virginia. CW notes record the Smith sisters indicate they had an ancestor whose last name was Greene who had been a sea captain out of Charleston, South Carolina and traveled to the West Indies and China. Additional notes from the CW files accompany the lot; Property Deaccessioned by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Williamsburg, Virginia; all proceeds to benefit the Collections Acquisitions Fund

Condition

restorations and repairs, break with loss at one side rail, front legs ended out just above casters, patches and repairs to stretchers, bumps and abrasions at legs and front seat rail, other scattered wear and minor repairs, replaced caning pushed through at back of seat