This blog also serve to all readers.. This is the history of bed ...
- Early beds were little more than piles of straw or some
other natural material. An important change was raising them off the ground, to
avoid drafts, dirt, and pests. Beds found in a preserved village in northern
Scotland which were raised boxes made of stone and likely topped with
comfortable fillers, were dated to between 3200 BC and 2200 BC. Given the
increased cost though, it was only available to the wealthy. The Egyptians had
high bedsteads which were ascended by steps, with bolsters or pillows, and
curtains to hang round.
- The oldest account of a bed is probably that of Odysseus: a
charpoy, woven of rope, plays a role in the Odyssey. A similar bed can be seen
at the St Fagans National History Museum in Wales. Odysseus also gives an
account of how he crafted the nuptial bed for himself and Penelope, out of an
ancient, huge olive tree trunk that used to grow on the spot before the bridal
chamber was built. His detailed description finally persuades the doubting
Penelope that the shipwrecked, aged man is indeed her long-lost husband.
Homer
also mentions the inlaying of the woodwork of beds with gold, silver and ivory.
The Greek bed had a wooden frame, with a board at the head and bands of hide
laced across, upon which skins were placed. At a later period the bedstead was
often veneered with expensive woods; sometimes it was of solid ivory veneered
with tortoise-shell and with silver feet; often it was of bronze. The pillows
and coverings also became more costly and beautiful; the most celebrated places
for their manufacture were Miletus, Corinth and Carthage. Folding beds, too,
appear in the vase paintings.
- The Roman mattresses were stuffed with reeds, hay,
wool or feathers; the last was used towards the end of the Republic, when
custom demanded luxury. Small cushions were placed at the head and sometimes at
the back. The bedsteads were high and could only be ascended by the help of
steps. They were often arranged for two persons, and had a board or railing at
the back as well as the raised portion at the head. The counterpanes were
sometimes very costly, generally purple embroidered with figures in gold; and
rich hangings fell to the ground masking the front. The bedsteads themselves
were often of bronze inlaid with silver, and Elagabalus had one of solid
silver. In the walls of some of the houses at Pompeii bed niches are found
which were probably closed by curtains or sliding partitions. Ancient Romans
had various kinds of beds for repose.
--> Is Bedroom on the Detmold Open-air Museum premises
The ancient Germans lay on the floor on beds of leaves
covered with skins, or in a kind of shallow chest filled with leaves and moss.
In the early Middle Ages, they laid carpets on the floor or on a bench against
the wall, placed upon them mattresses stuffed with feathers, wool or hair, and
used skins as a covering. Curtains were hung from the ceiling or from an iron
arm projecting from the wall. They appear to have generally lain naked in bed,
wrapping themselves in the large linen sheets which were stretched over the
cushions.
In the 13th century luxury increased, and bedsteads were
made of wood much decorated with inlaid, carved and painted ornament. They also
used folding beds, which served as couches by day and had cushions covered with
silk laid upon leather. At night a linen sheet was spread and pillows placed,
while silk-covered skins served as coverlets. The Carolingian manuscripts show
metal bedsteads much higher at the head than at the feet, and this shape
continued in use until the 13th century in France, many cushions being added to
raise the body to a sloping position. In the 12th-century manuscripts the
bedsteads appear much richer, with inlays, carving and painting, and with
embroidered coverlets and mattresses in harmony. Curtains were hung above the
bed, and a small hanging lamp is often shown.
In the 14th century the woodwork became of less importance,
being generally entirely covered by hangings of rich materials. Silk, velvet
and even cloth of gold were much used. Inventories from the beginning of the
14th century give details of these hangings lined with fur and richly
embroidered. Then it was that the tester bed made its first appearance, the
tester being slung from the ceiling or fastened to the walls, a form which
developed later into a room within a room, shut in by double curtains,
sometimes even so as to exclude all drafts. The space between bed and wall was
called the ruelle, and very intimate friends were received there. The 14th century
is also the time when feather beds became highly prized possession.
In the 15th century beds became very large, reaching to 7 or
8 feet by 6 or 7 feet. The mattresses were often filled with pea-shucks, straw
or feathers. At this time great personages were in the habit of carrying most
of their property about with them, including beds and bed-hangings, and for
this reason the bedsteads were for the most part mere frameworks to be covered
up; but about the beginning of the 16th century bedsteads were made lighter and
more decorative, since the lords remained in the same place for longer periods.
In the 17th century, which has been called "the century
of magnificent beds," the style a la duchesse, with tester and curtains
only at the head, replaced the more enclosed beds in France, though they lasted
much longer in England. The great bed at Versailles had crimson velvet curtains
on which "The Triumph of Venus" was embroidered. So much gold was
used that the velvet scarcely showed.
To be continued ...
