First manufactured in 1876, model no. 18 with the striking “hairpin” in its backrest returns to the Thonet portfolio with clear and reduced aesthetics as 218. Along with the chairs no. 14 and no. 56, chair no. 18 was one of the bestselling models of the Thonet production. Known as the "export chair" of Gebrüder Thonet, it was often sold for use in restaurants and cafés – especially in South America. Disassembled into its individual parts, 36 chairs fit into a sea chest, allowing large quantities of the chairs to be easily be sent on long journeys.