Know What You Hold: The Wassily Chair

As a personal property appraiser, I often encounter objects that are familiar in appearance but misunderstood in value. Marcel Breuer's Club Chair, Model B3, better known as the Wassily Chair, is one of them. It is among the most recognizable furniture designs of the twentieth century, appearing everywhere from fine art museum collections to design influencers' Instagram posts. Yet it has been produced by multiple manufacturers over several decades, with variations in materials, construction, and craftsmanship. From an appraisal standpoint, identifying which Wassily Chair you have is often far more important than simply recognizing the design.