Six-post canopy bed, Huanghuali wood Late Ming (1573–1644)

The seat frame of mitre, mortise, and tenon construction. The edge of the frame is flat and moulds downwards and inward starting from about one-third way to end in a beaded edge. The deep, curvilinear, beaded-edged apron which ends in an elegant c-scroll is mitred, mortised, and tenoned into, and half-lapped onto the legs, also carved with a c-scroll echoing that of the apron, forming a beautiful silhouette where they meet. The legs are double tenoned to the underside of the mitred frame of the bed and capped at the feet with pads. The aprons are further secured to the bed frame by wedge-shaped pegs, two on the long side and one on the short side. The seat of the bed is a removable mitred frame with soft cane surface and palm-fibre rope underwebbing, supported by three curved transverse braces. Two additional braces are tenoned into the short sides of the frame and the transverse braces at the ends for further support. The removable bed seat rests on the bed frame which has five curved transverse braces that are tenoned into the long sides of the frame. Four structural uprights mortised and tenoned to the four corners of the bed frame, rise to support the canopy, a mitred frame with two transvers braces on the long sides, and a longitudinal one on the short sides, all further secured by wood pins. Below the canopy and between the structural uprights are mitred, mortised, and tenoned frames with beaded-edged openwork panels of stylized lingzhi fungus, seven on the long sides and four on the short sides, interphased with mitred uprights. These frameworks are double tenoned into the uprights and the canopy, and the one in front is further supported by two posts which are tenoned to the seat frame of the bed. Above this seat frame and tenoned to the uprights are railings with begonia shapes and crosses pattern created by double mitred members mortised and tenoned together, one long one in the back, two on the sides, and two square ones in front. All the members above the bed-seat frame, are finished with butterflied corners. The entire superstructure can be dismantled.

Hong Kong, 1991, Art Gallery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, "The Dr. S. Y. Yip Collection of Classic Chinese Furniture"
Singapore, 1997 – 1999, Asian Civilisations Museum, "The Chinese Collection"
London, 1999, Institute of Contemporary Art, "Grace Wu Bruce presents Ming Furniture from the Collection of Dr. S. Y. Yip"
Hong Kong, 2012, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, "Grace Wu Bruce presents a choice selection of Ming Furniture from the Dr S Y Yip collections"

Grace Wu Bruce, Dreams of Chu Tan Chamber and the Romance with Huanghuali Wood: The Dr. S. Y. Yip Collection of Classic Chinese Furniture, Hong Kong, 1991, pp. 129 – 131
Grace Wu Bruce, 'Examples of Classic Chinese Furniture: (II) Masterpieces of the Joiner's Art', Oriental Art, Summer 1991, London, pp. 94 – 96
Yip Shing Yiu, 'Collecting Ming Furniture of Huang Hua-Li Wood', Arts of Asia, May – June 1991, Hong Kong, p. 124
Grace Wu Bruce, Grace Wu Bruce presents a choice selection of Ming Furniture from the Dr. S. Y. Yip collections, Hong Kong, 2012, pp. 28 – 29

Similar example:
Grace Wu Bruce, Sublime and Divine Chinese Ming Furniture, Hong Kong, 2014, pp. 64 – 71 for an example with railings of a similar design but with straight aprons and legs ending in hoof feet

This is a magnificent canopy bed of exceptional beauty. Even without the silk hangings and beddings of its original state in a late Ming setting, it still exudes a sense of luxury and sumptuousness.
The design is extremely refined. The begonia shapes and crosses on the railings are contrasted by short members joined together, forming a beautiful pattern. Below the canopy, the hanging eaves inset with panels of openwork stylized lingzhi fungus, and every element of the bed is edged with fine mouldings. The curvaceous design on the aprons of the bed, the carved c-scrolls where the apron meets the legs forming a beautiful silhouette, although often illustrated in woodblock prints of Ming books, are seldom found in surviving examples of canopy beds.
The timber employed is of the highest quality, a rich orange-brown huanghuali wood, beautifully figured and very tight grained.