What is a square table?

Square table is one of the traditional furniture in China. Refers to a square table with the same length on four sides and a wider table. The square table has four sides, each side can seat two people, and eight people sit around it (just like the Eight Immortals), so it is called the Eight Immortals Table in China.

The history of several cases of furniture can be traced back at least to Yu's time, when it was called Yi and was mostly used for sacrifice. The name of the case only appeared in the late Zhou Dynasty. Song Gaocheng's selection of "The Times" contains: "There are three generations of danger, but there are no examples, and the Warring States began to have its name." Table names came into being in the Five Dynasties. The Ming and Qing dynasties prevailed, and almost every family, whether it is a dignitary or an ordinary person, can find the shadow of the square table, and even become the only big piece of furniture in many families.

structure

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An old square table for eight people.

In terms of structure and use, the popularity of the square table has great inevitability. It is generally believed that the square table is the most simple, economical and practical furniture in large-scale furniture. Easy to use, square in appearance and firm in structure. Kindness, peace and strong sense of stability make the square table an elegant main hall furniture. No matter whether the hall decoration is elegant, simple or even rough, as long as the space is not particularly cramped, putting a square table and two chairs on both sides will produce a very stable feeling, such as being a great scholar, stable and peaceful.

Because the table top of the Eight Immortals table is relatively large, it is difficult to make such a complete and flawless material from precious hardwood that can be cultivated for hundreds of years, so there are few tables made of all materials except firewood.

The origin of the name

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When the square table is used for eating and drinking, it can seat about eight people, hence the name.

trait

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By the Ming dynasty, the shape of the square table was basically perfect, which was divided into two forms: waist-tied and non-waist-tied. The technique of waist binding is to shrink a circle at the lower part of the table, and the four legs without waist binding are directly connected to the table. By the Qing Dynasty, most of the Eight Immortals tables were changed into belts, and some table legs were also changed into three-legged ones. Many decorative parts have been added to the dental plate, such as the dragon-turning, embossed auspicious patterns and so on, which are very beautiful and exquisite in workmanship.

The square table is simple in structure and saves materials. A piece of furniture has only three parts: legs, edges and teeth. The side length of the desktop is generally required to be more than 0.9 meters, and the edge of the desktop should be wider. The frame is slotted and the plate is used as the core plate. There are generally two core plates (in Xiangtan, Hunan, there are generally three core plates). A support belt is installed behind the desktop to increase the firmness and bearing capacity of the desktop. Porcelain boards, beeches and marble are also used as tabletops.

On the ninth day of the first month, Shishi people have the custom of "worshipping God". On this day, every household will set up such a "square table", which is filled with various offerings and is very rich. In addition, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month or when there is a happy event at home, such a scene will also appear in Shishi's home. It is a way worth promoting to reproduce the local customs of hometown by hand and let children know about traditional culture [1]? .