The Chinese antique furniture

Furniture

Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...

 is one kinds of traditional Chinese furniture with oriental style. The Chinese antique furniture is different in classic Chinese furniture which is made in hardwood, The Chinese antique furniture is made in softwood and is an outstanding representative of the Chinese arts too.

History of Furniture

Following the Chinese lifestyle and cultural and economic changes, The development of Chinese antique furniture went from the simple to the intricate, from the mat level to become taller in height.

The basic types, structure, decoration and craftmanship of furniture were established during the Song dynasties.

The development of Chinese antique furniture peaked during the Ming dynasty

Ming Dynasty

The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...

, as Ming furniture features simple, smooth, and flowing lines, and plain and elegant ornamentation.

Softwood of Furniture

There are many types of softwood that can be used in making a piece of Chinese antique furniture, the followings are very popular.

• Elm
  Elm
  Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the genus Ulmus in the plant family Ulmaceae. The dozens of species are found in temperate and tropical-montane regions of North America and Eurasia, ranging southward into Indonesia. Elms are components of many kinds of natural forests...
  
  , it is also called Yumu (Pinyin).
• Camphor, it is also called Zhangmu (Pinyin).
• Beech
  Beech
  Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
  
  , it is also called Jumu (Pinyin).
• Fir
  Fir
  Firs are a genus of 48–55 species of evergreen conifers in the family Pinaceae. They are found through much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, occurring in mountains over most of the range...
  
  , it is also called Shanmu (Pinyin).
• Cypress
  Cypress
  Cypress is the name applied to many plants in the cypress family Cupressaceae, which is a conifer of northern temperate regions. Most cypress species are trees, while a few are shrubs...
  
  , it is also called Baimu (Pinyin).
• Walnut
  Walnut
  Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
  
  , it is also called Hetaomu (Pinyin).
• Pine
  Pine
  Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
  
  , it is also called Songmu (Pinyin).
• Oak
  Oak
  An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
  
  , it is also called Xiangmu (Pinyin).

Joints of Furniture

It is the most important feature for a piece of Chinese antique furniture, the most joints were developed well in Song dynasty

Song Dynasty

The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...

, such as miter, mortise-and-tenon as well as dovetail.

Types of Furniture

By Ming dynasty, there were a full range of furniture types and designs:

• Beds
• Cabinets and bookshelves
• Chinese Room Divider
• Chairs
• Stools and Benchs
• Desk and Table
• Doors, Windows and Screens
• Household accessories

Regional Differences

There were the following famous regional style furniture:

• Beijing
  Beijing
  Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
  
   style
• Suzhou
  Suzhou
  Suzhou , previously transliterated as Su-chou, Suchow, and Soochow, is a major city located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province in Eastern China, located adjacent to Shanghai Municipality. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Taihu Lake and is a part...
  
   style or Jiangsu style
• Canton
  Guangzhou
  Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
  
   style or Guangzhou style
• Sahnxi style or Jin style