The folding horseshoe-back armchair was a highly coveted piece of furniture among the elite in Chinese society during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was a symbol of status and rank and was used by the Imperial family, wealthy individuals, and those in positions of power. The folding chair was often referred to as the “first folding chair” (di yi ba jiaoyi), emphasizing its importance as the most honored seat in a public room.
One woodblock print from the Ming-dynasty carpenter’s manual, Lu Ban Jing, shows an official seated on a folding horseshoe-back chair in the front of a room. The chair was accompanied by a side chair and a ‘Southern Official’s Hat’ armchair (nanguanmaoyi) arranged to his right and left, respectively. These vacant seats were intended for men of lesser rank, and so distinguished the host.
Folding horseshoe-back chairs were constructed in a variety of materials, including lacquer and exotic woods such as huanghuali. They were versatile and could be used as portable thrones for imperial use. They were also frequently seen in Ming and Qing period imperial paintings as the seat for both emperors and empresses.
Despite their prevalence in prints and paintings, there are only a limited number of surviving examples of folding horseshoe-back armchairs dating back to the 17th century. Of the furniture that remains from the Ming period, the folding horseshoe-back armchair is the rarest. Most of the surviving examples from the Ming dynasty are found in prominent museum collections, while a few remain in private hands.
One of the surviving examples is a huanghuali folding horseshoe-back armchair dated to the Ming dynasty, featuring a C-curved splat and ruyi medallion. This chair has more elaborate metalwork on the arms and footrest and is part of the Palace Museum collections. Another almost identical pair of huanghuali folding armchairs is in the WuWei Museum in Gansu Province, which used to belong to Niu Jian, a teacher to the Daoguang and Xiangfeng Emperors. Like the present folding chair, the pair features the same thick members, dramatic sweeping three-part crestrail, and tripartite splat.
In summary, the folding horseshoe-back armchair was a highly sought-after piece of furniture among the Chinese elite during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was a symbol of status and rank and could be used for various purposes, including as a portable throne for imperial use. Although rare, surviving examples of the folding horseshoe-back armchair can be found in both prominent museum collections and in private hands.
