### 252580457 Chinese beds were multipurpose > the different types of beds you might find in a wealthy dynastic Chinese household. Here's a generalized summary from what I could research: > For the upper class throughout much of Chinese history, beds were a multi-purpose piece of furniture. Go far enough back in history and you'll discover a time when beds *weren't* used for sleeping; while shelf beds can be traced back to the Shang dynasty in 1600-1046 BCE, linguists during the Western Han dynasty (which existed from 202 BCE to 8 CE) wrote that “Beds are used for sitting, (床，安身之坐者)” not sleeping. Beds were a place to receive guests and provide hospitality; mats were available for rest instead. This changed by 220 CE, or the end of the Eastern Han dynasty; the books in that time were updated to state “Beds are used for sitting and sleeping (人所坐卧曰：“床”)” making the living room the center for household activity. These were not like beds as we know them today; even the most basic types, frame beds, came with handrails and a removable table. - [View Highlight](https://reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/r189so/looking_for_info_on_the_historical_practice_of?__readwiseLocation=0%2F0%2F0%2F4%2F2%2F1%2F0%2F0%2F0%2F1%2F0%2F0%2F0%2F4%2F1%2F0%2F1%2F0%2F0%2F0%2F5%2F1%2F0%2F3%3A99%2C2%2F1%2F0%2F4%2F2%2F1%2F0%2F0%2F0%2F1%2F0%2F0%2F0%2F4%2F1%2F0%2F1%2F0%2F0%2F0%2F5%2F1%2F0%2F3%3A684#:~:text=the%20different%20types%20of%20beds%2Chandrails%20and%20a%20removable%20table.) - [[noble Chinese girls growing up without leaving their bed by pineyapples#252580457 Chinese beds were multipurpose|View in Vault]] - [n] used for [[2022-08-29 Woodworking, Cavalry, & Divination Games]] section relating to [[2021-02-15 Beds (DRAFT)]].