Chinese Cabinet Bookcase With Openwork Doors

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This cabinet was purchased from a furniture maker's shop near Guangzhou (formerly Canton) years ago. It looked like it was … Read more This cabinet was purchased from a furniture maker's shop near Guangzhou (formerly Canton) years ago. It looked like it was a custom order - a book cabinet with doors that were once window panels from Fujian. The open slats allowed air movement, a very important factor to keep books in good condition in the warm humid climate of South China. Darkness and humidity encourage the proliferation of book worms, a literal truth. The side panels inside the cabinet are specially designed so the height of the shelves can adjust easily. The cabinet is made of a hardwood. Since China has not experienced the ice age so there are hundreds species of trees. Not knowing what type of wood this is does not require an apology.

The window panels used as doors have good age. They came from Fujian Province in Southeast China. The window design is unique and indigenous to the region. Each panel is made of different joints fitted together and still intact after two hundred years. The use of joinery is well known and many wooden door and window panels are still made in this manner. However, the intricate ways and the myriads of small pieces, each shaped as a joint, were a unique art form created by Fujian craftsmen a few hundred years ago and can be considered as a lost art. To recreate this style of wood carving, even by machinery, the cost would still be astronomical today. Aerodynamics was also a consideration in crafting these panels. There is a subtle difference in the thickness of each vertical piece, thinner on top and wider at the base, to allow air drag to come inside and circulate in the house.

The cabinet is well made. It works well to store books, CDs and DVDs and small objects. See less