Ming Antique Furniture

How to identify Ming Antique Furniture All rights reserved by antiquescn.com
Materials: The imitations often use less qualified wood. For Ming furniture, hard wood like rosewood, sandalwood, teak ect. are often used. The panel thickness of real one is at least 1.5cm and the fake is only 0.5cm or less. If you knock on them, the sound is different. The fake sounds more clear and harsh. Also for Ming furniture, a big piece of wood is often used to make a small part ignoring the cost of wood and work time. For imitations, to save cost, pieces of wood are often put together. Craft work: Ming furniture is made carefully with good craft work curve, flow and design. It's just not furniture but a piece of craft . Most of replicas can not have such spirit of old ones, just the shape of Ming furniture.


















Now let's look at a few pieces of imitations.

How to identify Huanghuali Furniture

Enjoy the room decorated by huanghuali furniture:

Background of Huanghuli wood:
The Chinese term huanghuali literally means "yellow flowering pear" wood. It is a member of the rosewood family and is botanically classified as Dalbergia odorifera. In pre-modern times the wood was known as huali or hualu. The modifier huang(yellowish-brown) was added in the early twentieth century to describe old huali wood whose surfaces had mellowed to a yellowish tone due to long exposure to light.

The most qualified huanghuli furniture was made during Mid Ming dynasty and late Qianlong Emperor of Qing dynasty. Since mid Qing dynast, the materials of huanghuali became less and less to almost dispear. So the furniture made of huanghuali was not produced any more. Till now few huanghuali furniture left. It's the most precious and expensive member of furniture family at present.

Huanghuali furniture can usually be classified as Beds; tables; chairs.
Beds: frame bed, babu bed, arhat bed
Tables: square table, strip table
Chairs: folder chair, cap chair, hanging chair, round chair.

Beds classified:
There are three kinds of beds: frame bed, bubu bed and arhat bed.
They can be sold at 20 to 40 hundred thousand USD or higher per piece in the internationl market.
Bubu Bed Arhat bed

Arhat bed Frame bed Frame bed
Tables classified: There are square tables and strip tables.
Square tables can be classified as
8 people square tables(bigger one) and 4 people square tables
( smaller one). Can be sold at 10 to 60 thousand USD in the internationl market.
8 people tabe 8 people table 4 people table

4 people table Strip table Strip table
Chairs classified: There are four types of chairs.
They are folder chairs, official cap chairs, hanging chairs and round chairs.
They can be sold at 10 to 40 hundred thousand USD or higher
in the interntional market.
Folder chair Folder chair Official cap chair

Hanging chair Hanging chair Round chair

How to identify Huanghuali furniture?
The materials looks fine and texture clear. There are often some dark speckles. The old Huali was usually used to make furniture during that periond. Also with long time use,we can see the evidence of that. There seems to be a thin sheet of film.The light and color are soft and natural.

The structure are usually simply and beautiful.

This piece is an imitation.
There is no natual old evidence nor a thin sheet of film. So we can know that it was made in late time or present replicas.

FY Chinese Antiques & Crafts
Mandarine Furniture & Housewares Manufacturing Inc.
http://www.antiquescn.com
http://www.orientantique.com
http://www.orientantiques.com
http://www.orient-curio.com

If this program can give you a little knowledge and help, I'll be glad to haven't wasted your time. And if you are kind enough, give me some comments, suggestions requirments or any feedback.

Thanks for your support.

Funlin Yong