Chinese Wood Altar Table

Ancestors prefer a clean line. So, it turns out, do most rooms.

Shanxi Province, China, 19th century: this altar table of elmwood is as spare as furniture gets. Such tables were the center of household ritual, placed against the wall of the main room so a family could make offerings to its ancestors and gods. The finish here reads nearly black, with a slightly paler top. Slender square legs drop from a flat, unadorned frame to small hoof feet. Sixty-six inches long, 11.5 deep, 30 high.

Put one thing on it. Then consider removing that.