History of Chinese Furniture

Including types of wood commonly used in ancientcame into being due to its feather-like pattern
and Modern China and a brief account of ancientwhich resembles that of birds. Zitan mu is an
Chinese furniture.extremely hard rosewood. This type of wood is
In ancient China , people used to sit or kneel onjust so hard and dense that it sinks in water. It is
straw mats on the floor. Starting from aroundcommonly found in America , Africa , India ,
471-221B.C., beds and mats came into being. ThenVietnam and Burma . It is said that it is very
people started to move their daily living from thedifficult for it to grow bigger than for a diameter
floor to somewhere of raised heights. From thenof 7 inches. That is why it is very difficult to get
on, straw mats were used mostly on beds andbig trunks from this tree. It has a tree trunk of
couches.yellow color. But with enough exposure in the air,
Not only chairs and stools, various designs ofthe yellow will change to dark red. It gives off
furniture has arrived its summit in the Ming andfragrant smell and it is one of China 's medicinal
Ching dynasties. In the Ming dynasty, smooth,herbs. With a chair made of Zitan, people will
flowing lines and elegant ornamentation were thereceive good medicinal treatment by sitting on it.
motifs at the time. In the Ching dynasty, furnitureFor a long time, ancient Chinese furniture has
design turned to richer ornamentation togetherbeen treasure of furniture aficionados. However,
with more coordinated engraved details. And innot much of what was produced in the ancient
more modern days, most Chinese furnitureChina was kept because a piece of good work
designs are heavily influenced by the above twowas not rated valuably. It was not until the Ming
periods in history.and Ching dynasties that good pieces of furniture
Since furniture has come in being, wood has beenwere valued and treasured by people. Even in the
the major material used. With China 's rich foresttwo periods, most furniture was either destroyed
resources, it is nothing surprising. There are twolocally or looted by invaders from the West. In
main materials being used, lacquered andfact, similar situation lasted until recent China
hardwood. Besides, bamboo and rattan furnitureduring the Communist revolution when communal
are also common in areas of warmer and sunnierchaos destroyed cabinets, chest and chairs for
weather.fuel and any possession of quality would be
The most frequently used woods in high qualityconsidered against the government at the time.
furniture are huganhuali mu (yellow flower pearAs a result, apart from the few items which
wood), jichi mu (phoenix tail or chicken wingmanaged to escape with their expatriate or
wood) and zitan mu(dark-purple sandlewood).diplomatic families to places like Hong Kong or to
Huanghuali mu was often used in both the Mingthe West, a limited collection can be found in
and Ching dynasties. Huanghuali mu is one of themuseums such as the Victoria and Albert Museum
world's most precious woods. It can reach up toin London , the Palace Museum in Beijing .
36 meters tall with a diameter of 1 meter. ThisIn fact, with ancient Chinese furniture gaining
wood is commonly found in Thailand , Burma andmore worldly attention and international status to
Vietnam . In ancient China , Huanghuali mu andits high quality and worth, prices of a true piece
Zitan were as precious and costly as gold andcan command up to as much as one is willing to
gem. Jichi mu is a kind of very hard wood. It ispay.
often found in Burma , Thailand , India andWith increasing worldwide attention and
Vietnam . This type of wood is of even moreappreciation, Chinese furniture is gaining its
rarity than both Huganhuali and Zitan. Its nameinternational position.