Pair of Neo-Byzantine Inlaid Chairs, 19th Century

Did oriental influence ever leave Venice? Here is reason to doubt it! From the scrolled shapes to the bone marquetry, including the straight backs and the silver applications which cut out motifs of Italian characters, everything recalls the capital role played by Venice in European trade since medieval times. The lion heads on the base, a direct reference to the Renaissance, anchor these two chairs in the codes of European furniture, while the marquetry is a striking reference to that of mother-of-pearl appreciated by the Byzantine Empire. The sculpture is in very good condition.