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A four-poster bed is a bed with four vertical columns, one in each corner, that support a tester, or upper (usually rectangular) panel. This tester or panel will often have rails to allow curtains to be pulled around the bed. There are a number of
A four-poster bed is a bed with four vertical columns, one in each corner, that support a tester, or upper (usually rectangular) panel. This tester or panel will often have rails to allow curtains to be pulled around the bed. There are a number of antique
An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...
four-poster beds extant dating to the 16th century and earlier; many of these early beds are highly ornate and are made from oak.
Four-poster beds were developed for several practical reasons. Bedrooms often had drafts and could be cold at night: the curtains could be closed to help keep the occupant of the bed warm. The curtains also helped to give privacy to the sleepers, since servants and bodyguards often slept in the same room, especially in the case of royalty, served by a special group of servants of the bedchamber (usually noble courtiers), lords and ladies of the bedchamber, esquires of the body, etc. In the mediaeval era and up to the 18th century beds were items of furniture on which great personages and royalty made public appearances and held court, thus they were designed to impress. A four poster bed with backboard and tester allowed extra space from which to display and hang expensive fabrics and heraldic decoration.
History
A four-poster bed is referenced in theMishnah
The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Tora ...
, which was redacted in the 3rd century CE.
Four-poster beds are mentioned in numerous Irish sagas and were recorded in early Irish manuscripts. In the 12th century tale of Acallam na Senóradh, in the wooing of Credhe, Cael ua Nemhnainn cites in a poem "Four posts round every bed there are, of gold and silver laid together cunningly; in each post's head a crystal gem: they make heads not unpleasant o behold
O, or o, is the fifteenth Letter (alphabet), letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in ...
,Acallam na Senórach, Colloquy of the Ancients, translated by Standish Hayes O'Grady, pg 23. when speaking of a fairy-mansion on the Paps of Anu, in Co. Kerry.
An example of 16th-century four-poster resides in Crathes Castle
Crathes Castle (pronounced ) is a 16th-century castle near Banchory in the Aberdeenshire region of Scotland. It is in the historic county of Kincardineshire. This harled castle was built by the Burnetts of Leys and was held in that family for ...
, which was made for the original castle owners in the Burnett of Leys
The House of Burnett (Burnet, Burnette, Burnard, Bernard) is a Lowland and Border Scottish family composed of several branches. The Chief of the Name and Arms of Burnett is James Comyn Amherst Burnett of Leys.
Origins of the name
It remains u ...
family.
See also
*Canopy bed
A canopy bed is a bed with a canopy, which is usually hung with bed curtains. Functionally, the canopy and curtains keep the bed warmer, and screen it from light and sight. On more expensive beds, they may also be elaborately ornamental.
History
...
*Mosquito net
A mosquito net is a type of meshed curtain that is circumferentially draped over a bed or a sleeping area, to offer the sleeper barrier protection against bites and stings from mosquitos, flies, and other pest insects, and thus against the d ...
* Domestic furnishing in early modern Scotland
References
External links
* Beds {{furniture-stub