3,257
edits
Changes
→Later Development
In the early Medieval period, tables once again lost some of their prominence. Household furniture often did not emphasize large tables and multiple types of furniture, such as chests, would be substituted for tables as they were required. However, wealthy classes or individuals began creating long tables that they could put all or many guests on. Tables began to represent a type of social bonding that guests would come together around physically but also socially. Benches and chairs now began to be associated with long tables. Thus, long tables in prominent halls became symbolic as wealth and social status, where one can dine many guests at once as a way of showing social status and power. Desks were differentiated by this time from tables, where monks and others who worked with written documents required tables have drawers or different design to make writing and reading easier, such as a slightly angled table.<ref>For more on Medieval furniture in Europe, see: Diehl, D., & Donnelly, M. (1999). <i>Medieval furniture: plans and instructions for historical reproductions </i> (1st ed). Mechanicsburg, Pa: Stackpole Books.</ref>
One aspect of tables was they became ways in which social rank was displayed. Those from prominent families or status ate at the head of the table, sometimes on a raised dais, while others were further way from the raised part or front of the table. If anything, it was only later in the Medieval period that dinning tables began to reduce in size again. This was seen, in part, due to the Black Death and declining larger gatherings held. Uprisings and political instability, in part due to split between Catholics and Protestants in the 16th century, led to smaller dinning gatherings, as it was seen less beneficial to have too many large banquets. This led to a reshaping of dinning into more intimate type gatherings and smaller tables becoming more fashionable. Round dinning tables also began to be seen as giving a more intimate gathering.<ref>For more on dinning around tables and rank in society, see: Weiss Adamson, M. (2010). <i>Food in medieval times.</i> Westport, Conn. [u.a.: Greenwood Press.</ref>
In the Renaissance period, there was renewed interest in all things Classical. Tables were among the many types of items and furniture where they were created to resemble Roman or Greek style ornate tables. Highly elaborate designs found in wealth wealthy households from the Roman period began to be copied and reproduced. There were innovations though by the 17th century. As the urban elite and rich began to imitate Roman or Greek designs, the trestle table was a development of this period in the countryside. It was seen as a simple but elegant design for dinning.<ref>For more on the trestle, see: Sparkes, I. G. (1980). <i>An illustrated history of English domestic furniture, 1100-1837: the age of the craftsman.</i> Bourne End [Eng.]: Spurbooks.</ref>
In the 18th century, the idea of men drinking around tables after dinner led to more "masculine" style tables in Europe. As tables began to be associated with drinking and male social commraderycomradery, the social setting was reflected in the design of the period where decorative elements and thick tables resembled more masculine forms. Coffee and tea culture also began to become important in much of Europe and Britain. As these drinks often were consumed by themselves or with a small portion of snack or sweet, tables required tended to be small. However, it was uncomfortable to be seated low, so this gave the rise of high standing but narrow tables used in cafes throughout Europe. In effect, it was a new form of table used for the increasing role of coffee and tea houses as social gathering places. However, for the home, coffee tables did evolve to have shorter legs, as more people in the family were expected to gather around it and making the higher design less suitable for larger numbers of people.<ref>For more on socializing and tables, see: Koda, H., Bolton, A. (2006). <i>Dangerous liaisons: fashion and furniture in the eighteenth century</i>; [Exhibition “Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century” held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, from April 29 to September 6, 2004]. New Haven: Yale Univ. Press [u.a.].</ref>
==Variations of Designs==
