Large Dogon scale. Circa 1930s-40s.

210cm high (mounted on steel plate base)

A superb example of an African Dogon tribal ladder/scale. This example is believed to have been made in Mali from the early to mid-twentieth century.
Traditionally the African Dogon ladder was used by the Dogon people to access the upper levels of granaries, climb onto the flat roofs of houses, and bridge clefts in cliffs.

Its repeated forms give it the aesthetic quality of a modernist sculpture.

Price: 2.400 euro

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com

Berkovich tables

Elmar Berkovich (Hungarian /Netherlands 1897-1968)

Pair of rare ‘Beek’ side tables for ‘t Spectrum. Designed in 1956 and manufactured for only two years.

Price: 2.650 euro

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com

Pine benches & table

Gilbert Marklund (Sweden mid-c.20th)

Furusnickarn AB, Sweden, 1970s

Table: 130 x 78 x 74cm high Benches: 124 x 42 x 43cm high

Two long benches and table by renowned Swedish design Gilbert Marklund. The table is the rarer larger version of the design that can seat up to four people.

The desirable aspect of this set is that it is in unrestored condition with all its original patina. (The table has a few ring and burn marks to the top).

Price: Table: 1.320 euro

Benches: 1.425 euro (pair)

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com

Afra & Tobia Scarpa (Italy 1935- Now)

‘Soriana’ Lounge Chair & Ottoman. Cassina 1970s / early edition.

Early edition chair and ottoman. The chair does have a few issues with the upholstery (fading/ one small hole and minor staining) and would benefit from being reupholstered. The ottoman is in better condition with absolute minimal signs of age and use.

Price: Chair 2.900 euro / Ottoman 1.850 euro

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com

Pander stool

H. Pander & Zonen. (Netherlands 1855-1921)

Small circular modernist stool – completely original.
Dia.36 x 46cm high

Rare stool with original upholstery. It has its original makers label and is stamped ‘H.Pander & Zn’ to the underside alongside a model number.

Price: 760 euro

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com

Root wood /free-form low chair. Circa 1970s.

86.5 x 73 x 41cm high

A unique solid wood low seat (unknown type of wood). Possibly carved from the root or the trunk of a tree.

It has a very attractive, untouched time worn patina. The seat would look good in any modern interior as it is, or with a cushion inside.

Price: 1.880 euro

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com

Isokon No.1 Stool

Venesta plywood table/stool for Isokon. 1930s

Plywood No.1 table/stool with its accompanying circular tray. Manufactured by Luterma. Both stool and tray are stamped/labelled Venesta.

The British furniture entrepreneur Jack Pritchard managed Venesta the import company for Luterma in England who later formed the Isokon furniture company which most notably employed Marcel Breuer. These tables/stools were distributed in England post 1933 until 1939 exclusively by Isokon alongside designs by Marcel Breuer and Egon Riss.

Although the designer of the stool remains anonymous, in 2004 the art historian Alastair Grieve described a modification of the original Luterma stool (of which this stool is one) when he wrote that the original design was subsequently re-designed by the architect and founder of the Bauhaus Walter Gropius (hired as a consultant to Isokon). The very slight alterations Gropius made was to include sharper curves to the cut-out squares of the stool. Gropius’s drawings for the redesign can reportedly be found in the collection of the V&A Museum, London.

The separate tray placed on top of the stool is unusual and rare in that it is much thinner than all other trays we have seen. This has led to some minor warping over time (which may have been why it was produced later with a thicker rim?) The thinner rimmed tray may suggest that this was an early production or at the least a more limited production?

h.46.5cm x w.44cm x d.44cm

Literature:-

  • Kermik, Juri (2004) The Luther factory: Plywood and furniture 1877-1940
  • Daybelge & Englund, (2019); Isokon and the Bauhaus in Britain
  • Pritchard, Jack (1984); View from a Long Chair: The Memoirs of Jack Pritchard

Price: 3.650 euro

http://www.merzbaufurniture.com