The back and seat of this armchair are square. Carved wooden floral finials stand on each end of the top rail. The back of the chair is upholstered in a red formal floral brocade, studded on the sides, and decorated at the top and bottom with red tasseled fringe. Straight arms rest on carved supports. The seat is upholstered with the same red brocade, studded at the apron, and decorated with tasseled fringe. The straight legs are slightly curved at the bottom. A carved stretcher with a central, blank cartouche flanked by two floral motifs appears in the front; a decorative piece of the scrolled carving to our right, below the stretcher, has broken off.
Italian, Northern Italy
Armchair (Poltrona da parata),
17th century
Upholstered walnut
,
127.4 x 60.7 x 54.3 cm (50 3/16 x 23 7/8 x 21 3/8 in.)
Object details
Accession number
F30e9
Primary Creator
Italian, Northern Italy
Full title
Armchair (Poltrona da parata)
Creation Date
17th century
Provenance
Entered Isabella Stewart Gardner's collection at an unknown date.
Dimensions
127.4 x 60.7 x 54.3 cm (50 3/16 x 23 7/8 x 21 3/8 in.)
Display Media
Upholstered walnut
Web Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.
Permanent Gallery Location
Gothic Room
Bibliography
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston: 1935), p. 262.
Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston: 2011), p. 310, no. 158. (17th century with elements of the 19th century)
Rights and reproductions
The use of images, text, and all other media found on this website is limited. Please review Rights and Reproductions for details.
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.