Antique pair of figural heavily carved walnut sgabello chairs. Winged figures and baroque designs. The sgabello is a type of chair or stool with carved and often elaborately ornamented wood legs and back. The form originated in Renaissance Italy, and its popularity spread throughout Europe in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Extravagantly carved chairs like these were particularly associated with Venice but became popular all over Europe. They have long been known as sgabelli, ultimately derived from the word scabellum (Latin for ‘stool’). In Venice they often stood in sets along the walls of the portego . This was a long room, bright with reflected natural light or candlelight that was used for family celebrations, display and hospitality. Here the chairs could be moved around, and seat-cushions added as occasion demanded.