Antique Painted Uyghur Xinjiang Silk Road Sideboard or Cabinet

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Antique painted sideboard in pine wood, traditional Uyghur furniture with polychrome tracery originating from Xinjiang and dated circa 1930. Originates … Read more Antique painted sideboard in pine wood, traditional Uyghur furniture with polychrome tracery originating from Xinjiang and dated circa 1930. Originates from Xinjiang, in the far north-west of China, from the early 20th century, where pine was worked using mortise-and-tenon joinery without nails and decorated with polychrome geometric tracery from the Central Asian Islamic tradition.In the traditional houses of Xinjiang in the early 20th century, long low sideboards were central pieces of the domestic trousseau of Uyghur families. They served simultaneously to hold utensils, textiles and tableware, and as a bench around which everyday life unfolded — a role close to that of the Chinese kang and the Central Asian takht. Their typology belongs to the Silk Road tradition, where Uyghur furniture dialogues with the decorative repertoire of Central Asia, Persia and Anatolia.Built in solid pine using traditional carpentry without nails. The front is organised in five carved drawers with wooden pulls, over a low body decorated across its entire surface with polychrome tracery. Block legs of large section anchor the length of the body. The carpentry follows the tradition of Uyghur Central Asian furniture.The decoration covers the entire front and sides with a geometric repertoire of Islamic origin, where the prohibition of figuration led to the development of an abstract vocabulary rich in symbolism. On a cream ground a chequerboard of four- and eight-petal star rosettes unfolds in pink, lilac, orange, green, yellow and pastel blue, a traditional symbol of fertility and generation in the Central Asian tradition. Bands of chevrons and braided ribbons frame the fields — the chevron evokes flowing water and abundance — and the drawers carry individual star rosettes on a yellow ground, a motif associated with the sun and protection. The faded pastel palette echoes the silk textiles and the Timurid tilework.The patina records the passage of time: the paint retains its original density with an even fading, and the wood of the top shows the warm tone of aged pine. The carved pulls retain their pigmentation. The structure remains solid.It fits naturally in eclectic interiors, houses with textile identity — kilim, suzani, ikat — or galleries of Central Asian furniture. It works as a long low sideboard, a storage bench or an anchor piece beneath a horizontal composition of hung artwork. Its length and polychrome decoration give it sculptural presence.

Dimensions: Length 251 cm – Width 44 cm – Height 65 cmStyle: Traditional Uyghur furniture, Central Asian traditionMaterials and techniques: Solid pine, pastel polychrome paint, carved wooden pulls; mortise-and-tenon joinery without nails, five front drawers, integral geometric decorationPlace of origin: Xinjiang, ChinaPeriod: Late Qing dynasty / Early Republic of China (circa 1930)Date of manufacture: Circa 1930Condition / Notes: Sound structure. Original patina and paint. Wear consistent with age and use. See less