Chinese Wood Dining Table

A little over nine feet of walnut, and almost nothing else.

This dining table comes from Shanxi Province, China, 19th century, in walnut. Furniture makers in Shanxi often worked in local woods such as walnut and elm, and they had a taste for plain, well-proportioned forms. Here a long, flat top with a framed panel rests on four straight legs, which end in small inward hoof-like feet. A slender curved brace links each corner leg to the underside of the top. The wood is warm brown with darker streaks, and the top looks evenly toned. It runs 109.5 inches long and 32.5 high.

Room for a very long argument.