Chinese Wood Altar Table: Parson Style

Three planes of elm, and a surface that refuses to lie quiet.

This altar table in Parson style comes from China. It is elmwood with a crackle finish. Long, narrow altar tables stood against a wall in Chinese homes and halls, holding incense, offerings and family tablets at a respectful height. Here the form is cut down to a flat top and two wide slab sides that meet at sharp mitered corners. The finish is a fine, ridged gray-green crackle over every face. Five feet long at 60 inches, and 30.5 high.

Incense is optional.