Thonet Industries INC., USA, mid 50ies wood and steel Mystery Chair.
From time to time readers ask me for help identifying a chair. Alas I’m just an amateur, a chair lover, but not so much a chair expert. Sometimes I post the photos and ask my readership for help and sometimes they do give great help.
The Label, or tag, under this mystery chair is interesting
It reads:
Do not remove this tag under penalty of Law
All New Material Consisting of
Foam Rubber
REG No. PA. 3373This article is made in compliance with in act of Dist. of Col approved July 3, 1926; Kansas approved March 1923; Minn approved April 24, 1929; New Jersey revised statutes 26; 10-6 to 18
Certification is made by the manufacture that the materials in this article are described in accordance with the law
Sold by(blank)
Date of Delivery(blank)
Distributed by: Thonet Industries, INC.
One Park – Avenue New York 16, N.Y.
Factory: York PA
Thonet Industries, INC
I vaguely knew that there has been a large Thonet factory in the USA. I remember reading somewhere about the demolition of the leftovers of such factory. I’m glad the reader sent me this photo, because until now I had thought the US factory was located near New York City. Not true, they had a posh showroom at 1 Park Lane in New York City, NY. The factory was in York, PA, USA.
Via a blog post of the York Blog I’ve now learned that the factory burned down in 1993:
This 1995 photograph shows the burned out Thonet Industries complex two years after the fire, one of the largest in the past two decades in York County.
After the aside:
It is not clear to me whether Thonet Industries only sold its own product or third parties product as well. It would not surprise me if a lot of history of the US Thonet saga has been lost with the burning down of the factory
Anybody an idea about the chair?
Update:
As per our kind comment below:
Not really a mystery. This modular lounge group #4390 first appears in the Thonet USA catalogues in 1959 and continues until 1972. Available in many configurations, with and w/o arms and table inserts it has wood rails and natural or gold anodized aluminum legs. Your photo is of model #4391 and appears to have the gold anodized legs.
Update 2:
One mistery chair leading to another mistery chair: The one bought by commenter Brian.
photo by Ania Wawrzkowicz
