Kritliyya Chair

The original version of our Kritliyya Chair was made from the wood of a mashrabiya once adorning the spectacle in latticework that is Bait Alkritliyya. Popular on either side of the Red Sea, mashrabiyas have long served important functions both social and environmental. Likewise, our Kritliyya chair is both aesthetically pleasing and functional. Transformed from the original chestnut to a roughened cream, our artisans also added tiny window panes of toughened glass; a nod, along with the humble hexagonal base, to the average everyman.⁠⁠
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But the history of its source, Bait Alkritliyya, is anything but average. The early 20th century Arabist, quasi-turncoat and possibly only Irish “Pasha'' known to man, Major Gayer-Anderson planted his roots in the soil of Cairo’s Sayyeda Zainab District, and the rest, as they say, was history. ⁠⁠
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His then-home (now art-museum) is believed to have been built on the remnants of Gebel Yashkur where a great number of miracles took place; from Noah's Ark coming to rest after the deluge to God speaking to Moses. It is also less than a stone’s throw away from the Ibn Tulun Mosque noted as the oldest mosque in Egypt and all of Africa. And while all of these can be contested, depending on your faith and appetite for mysticism, one fact upon which no two can disagree is that the home and its design is a harrowing celebration of Middle Eastern Architecture and old-timey pizzaz, just like our Kritliyya chair.⁠⁠

Please note: Because of its size and the care required in preparing it for travel, this item will be shipped independently of our standard fulfillment center. Please allow extra time (5- 10 working days) for processing. ⁠⁠
—Kritliyya Chair :: مقعد الكريتلية