Stool

This richly carved waisted stool, because of its relatively elaborate detailing, would have been reserved for a person of high social standing. The legs, for instance, are carved with a continuous corner bead terminating in a stylized leaf motif in each of the feet. There is an elegant lip carved with a motif on two sides of each leg just below the humpback stretchers. A raised ruyi head lappet design is also carved into the shoulder of each leg and the waist itself is set off with a bead course along the rail and a continuous step-back molding around the four rails of the seat frame. The overall effect is one more sumptuous than that of a standard corner-leg stool. It is also possible that a rectangular shape, because of its more formal directional aspect (versus round or square) may have been considered more prestigious.