Charpais are commonly found across rural communities in South-Asia, made from four rounded timber legs and posts to form size of a single bed. As they were traditionally fabricated prior to mechanical fixings being readily available, all the joints are solid mortise and tenon without the need for nails or screws. These joints are highlighted beautifully at each corner to express how the posts connect to the feet. The timber frame is typically finished with cane weaving as a readily available by-product of agriculture forming a comfortable base. The charpai is specifically interesting to explore as it performs the functions required from all furniture in a typical home with a single unifying design.
Most commonly, charpais are used as a bed, for sitting, socialising and eating meals indoors or outdoors. They are a bed, a dining table, a sofa and garden furniture. Often many charpais are arranged in a U-shape for communal meeting so they become a mini auditorium. Historically, before people had bathrooms, four charpais would be tilted vertically for washing to form a shower enclosure, so they become sanitaryware. During events, charpais are used to store food and make Halwa (a desert) so they also become a kitchen.
Two charpais can be stacked to form bunk beds to become a space saving device. During warmer months charpais are used to keep quilts to become storage and the furniture of different seasons. Dogs are often tied to the posts of a charpai and shelter underneath from the sun to become furniture for your pets. Multiple charpais can be arranged vertically to form a screening wall where furniture becomes architecture.
A cloth can be tied to two posts on a charpai to form a baby's cradle. During a funeral, charpais are used as an open coffin. In this respect, the charpai is the furniture of life and death. If someone is mourning, charpais are turned upside down as an expression of grief to become the furniture of symbolism, transcending pure function.
Charpais in Veranda.