Item: Vintage Thonet Bentwood Armchair

　　Manufacturer: Michael Thonet

　　Country of Origin: Germany

　　Date Produced: 1

　　Material: Wood, Cane

　　Size: 35"h x 22"w x 23"d

　　Description/Overall Condition: Beautiful, authentic, Thonet, bentwood armchair. I don't know the exact name/style of this particular chair, but it has all of the identifying marks of an authentic piece; the original factory tag is still attached and "Thonet" is burned into the wood on the bottom (see pictures). The best thing about this amazing chair is the wonderful condition that it's in! The wood work is so amazing and the caning is excellent shape. There are no dents or chips in the wood, and only very subtle scuff marks. It has a tiny wobble to it (as most well used bentwood chairs do), but if you have the patience and (more importantly) the correct tools, all it needs are the screws tightened and a little bit of TLC. Despite needing a "tune up", it is not unusable -- it was a highly used chair in our house. I hope this gem goes to a good home, where it will be love and appreciated for many years to come! This is one of my absolute favorite chairs, but my furniture collecting has become a bit crazy, and I have to part-ways with a few pieces. This chair is not only beautiful in its design, but is a true treasure. If you're not familiar with Michael Thonet, I've added a short bio below -- he is the "inventor" of the famous "Chair No. 14" or better known as the caf chair, now seen all over the world.

　　Additional Product/Artist Information: Michael Thonet (2 July 1796 -- 3 March 1871) was a German-Austrian cabinet maker. Thonet's essential breakthrough was his success in having light, strong wood bent into curved, graceful shapes by forming the wood in hot steam. This enabled him to design entirely novel, elegant, lightweight, durable and comfortable furniture, which appealed strongly to fashion - a complete departure from the heavy, carved designs of the past - and whose aesthetic and functional appeal remains to this day.

　　*1819 Thonet set himself up as an independent cabinetmaker.

　　*1830 Thonet began trying to make furniture out of glued and bent wooden slats.

　　*1839 His first success was the Boppard Layerwood Chair.

　　*1849 Thonet founded an establishment of his own, the Gebrder Thonet.

　　*1850 Thonet Produced his "Nr 1 Chair".

　　*1851 Thonet received the bronze medal at The World's Fair in London for his "Vienna Bentwood Chair". This was his international breakthrough.

　　*1855 Thonet receives the silver medal at the next World's Fair in Paris as he continued to improve his production methods.

　　*1859 Thonet creates "Chair Nr. 14" or "Konsumstuhl Nr. 14" or "Coffee Shop Chair No. 14" - is still called the "chair of chairs" with some 50 million produced up until 1930.

　　*1867 Thonet receives the gold medal for "Chair Nr. 14" at the Paris World's Fair.

　　Information paraphrased from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Thonet