Antique Art Nouveau Bench in Bentwood from Jacob & Josef Kohn, 1899

Details

Description

A gorgeous and extremely rare three-seater antique art nouveau vienna secession bentwood j & j kohn bench in wonderful condition. … Read more A gorgeous and extremely rare three-seater antique art nouveau vienna secession bentwood j & j kohn bench in wonderful condition. Made by iconic austrian father and son bentwood furniture making duo jacob and josef kohn, most likely in the late 1890s / early 1900s, this fabulous bench will add beautiful colouring and an ornate-yet-understated bygone sophistication and splendour to any interior.

all-original and in remarkable condition for its age, the frame is made of steam-bent beech wood in the art nouveau bentwood furniture fashion, of which j & j kohn were one of the masters. The bench features a lovely golden honey colouring and has a beautifully carved top rail with engraved detailing, bentwood arms with lovely arm rests and gently curving, slightly splayed legs. It has wooden inserts to the seat and back with the latter being a darker hue, giving it a lovely two-tone aesthetic. It comes with a modern fitted floral piped seat cushion and matching piped bolster cushion.

vienna natives j & j kohn were household names for their art nouveau bentwood furniture and were part of the vienna secession, which was closely linked to the art nouveau movement around the turn of the 20th century. They were contemporaries of mundus and thonet, with whom the kohn company merged in 1914 and 1921. The original labels and stamp still in place to the underside show the remnants of 'j. & j. Kohn', 'jacob & josef kohn' and 'tesehen austria' marks. Tesehen is now the town of cieszyn in poland and was only a part of the austrian empire until the end ww1, making this bench definitely pre-ww1.

all in all this is a fabulous and extremely rare art nouveau bench by one of the leaders of vienna secession furniture. J & j kohn benches are hard to come by, even rarer are their three-seaters, and even more so in such remarkable condition as this impressive, smart and beautiful rare gem, which is sure to be a knockout in any setting.

condition
this is in very-good-to-excellent antique condition. Wonderfully constructed by master craftsmen and built to last, it is structurally sound and surprisingly comfortable. The cushions are in excellent condition and the only flaws are minor to-be-expected marks and knocks, some minor chips to the edges of the back inserts and historic cracks to the bentwood stretcher, but overall this is an extremely rare piece in wonderful and quite remarkable condition and if well looked after it should remain so for generations to come - please see the photos.

measurements
height - 104cm, width - 149cm, depth - 58cm, seat height without/with cushion - 47.5/55.5cm, seat width - 141cm, seat depth - 48.5cm, weight - 14kg.
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