The shelf bed is the largest type of Ming-style furniture, with a complex structure and involves various processes; the decorative patterns are rich and the themes are wide and diverse.
The Huanghuali shelf bed exhibited in the autumn of the previous year, 212 meters long, 147 wide and 147 high and 224.7 centimeters, was broken in the early Qing Dynasty, with dozens of large and small ornaments, and the style and matching are more distinctive.
The theme of the bed carving is dragon pattern, which has been briefly introduced above, and some new elements have been added to the bed top lintel.
The front of the hanging eaves is inlaid with nine tapestry ring plates, the diamond flower-shaped opening light starting line, the contours are not the same, and the carved double mantis holding the furnace pattern can be faintly recognized.
The two sides of the frieze are hung between the doorposts, and the double mantis curltails are offset, and the upward appearance of ruyi clouds is generated; the doorpost is equipped with corner teeth fixed, and the dragon looks back.
Looking through the doorpost, there are five pieces of the rear frieze, plus the first nine pieces, reflecting the connotation of the nine five in traditional culture. In addition, the ornamentation on both sides presents a different scenery, which is unified as a whole, and there are differences in the localities, and the spatial level becomes richer.
The four clusters of cloud-patterned crosses on the back frieze of the distant view are connected in the traditional production, which are mostly combined with the combination of the joint and the bucket cluster in the traditional production, which is used for the center of the door or the transgender, which is complex and fine, and is a fine craft derived from ancient architecture.
When I walked to the front, I found that the cloud pattern and cross were carved through, not a bucket craftsmanship, and it was clear to observe from the back. The difference between the two methods is that the former does not break because the wood grain is too short.
To add, the carving of this shelf bed is one-sided, and the same is true for the bed circumference part.
The friezes on each side are divided into three sections, and the ring plates are embedded in the Yumen Hole, and there is a square hole on the left and right, which is said to be used to wear ropes and hang accounts.
Six slender columns connect the intricately carved bed circumference and the top of the bed, which together form the rich and gorgeous upper part of the shelf bed.
Tomorrow you will see, below the columns, the part of the bed, with a high corset waist, cheeks, incisors and three-legged horseshoes.