History of Chinese Furniture

Including types of wood commonly used in ancient andbeing due to its feather-like pattern which resembles
Modern China and a brief account of ancient Chinesethat of birds. Zitan mu is an extremely hard rosewood.
furniture.This type of wood is just so hard and dense that it
In ancient China , people used to sit or kneel on strawsinks in water. It is commonly found in America , Africa
mats on the floor. Starting from around 471-221B.C.,, India , Vietnam and Burma . It is said that it is very
beds and mats came into being. Then people starteddifficult for it to grow bigger than for a diameter of 7
to move their daily living from the floor to somewhereinches. That is why it is very difficult to get big trunks
of raised heights. From then on, straw mats werefrom this tree. It has a tree trunk of yellow color. But
used mostly on beds and couches.with enough exposure in the air, the yellow will change
Not only chairs and stools, various designs of furnitureto dark red. It gives off fragrant smell and it is one of
has arrived its summit in the Ming and Ching dynasties.China 's medicinal herbs. With a chair made of Zitan,
In the Ming dynasty, smooth, flowing lines and elegantpeople will receive good medicinal treatment by sitting
ornamentation were the motifs at the time. In the Chingon it.
dynasty, furniture design turned to richer ornamentationFor a long time, ancient Chinese furniture has been
together with more coordinated engraved details. Andtreasure of furniture aficionados. However, not much
in more modern days, most Chinese furniture designsof what was produced in the ancient China was kept
are heavily influenced by the above two periods inbecause a piece of good work was not rated
history.valuably. It was not until the Ming and Ching dynasties
Since furniture has come in being, wood has been thethat good pieces of furniture were valued and
major material used. With China 's rich foresttreasured by people. Even in the two periods, most
resources, it is nothing surprising. There are two mainfurniture was either destroyed locally or looted by
materials being used, lacquered and hardwood.invaders from the West. In fact, similar situation lasted
Besides, bamboo and rattan furniture are alsountil recent China during the Communist revolution
common in areas of warmer and sunnier weather.when communal chaos destroyed cabinets, chest and
The most frequently used woods in high qualitychairs for fuel and any possession of quality would be
furniture are huganhuali mu (yellow flower pear wood),considered against the government at the time.
jichi mu (phoenix tail or chicken wing wood) and zitanAs a result, apart from the few items which managed
mu(dark-purple sandlewood).to escape with their expatriate or diplomatic families to
Huanghuali mu was often used in both the Ming andplaces like Hong Kong or to the West, a limited
Ching dynasties. Huanghuali mu is one of the world'scollection can be found in museums such as the
most precious woods. It can reach up to 36 meters tallVictoria and Albert Museum in London , the Palace
with a diameter of 1 meter. This wood is commonlyMuseum in Beijing .
found in Thailand , Burma and Vietnam . In ancientIn fact, with ancient Chinese furniture gaining more
China , Huanghuali mu and Zitan were as precious andworldly attention and international status to its high
costly as gold and gem. Jichi mu is a kind of very hardquality and worth, prices of a true piece can command
wood. It is often found in Burma , Thailand , India andup to as much as one is willing to pay.
Vietnam . This type of wood is of even more rarityWith increasing worldwide attention and appreciation,
than both Huganhuali and Zitan. Its name came intoChinese furniture is gaining its international position.