Q I'd love to have an old Chinese canopy bed in my new home. How do I find out more?
WHAT THE EXPERT SAYS
'The earliest extant canopy beds are from the 16th and 17th centuries, but the form is much earlier,' says Sarah Handler, a Chinese-art historian and author. 'We see them depicted in eighth-century paintings in Dunhuang and in the late fifth-century or early sixth-century Admonitions hand scroll in the British Museum.'
Early canopy beds were luxuries of the wealthy elite, Handler says. 'Like all Chinese beds, they were used for day- time sitting as well as sleeping at night. In early times, the Chinese commonly sat on mats on the floor and there were low platforms. Elevated seating was a sign of power and high status.'
Sitting on a chair at a high table became the norm only in the Northern Song dynasty (960-1126). 'This led to the development of the furniture tradition and there began to be a great variety of forms and types, including the canopy bed, which is still used today,' she says.
ROOM WITHIN A ROOM