Chinese and tibetan antique furniture

Dalian Gallery houses a vast collection of Chinese and Tibetan antique furniture and small selection of Mongolian pieces. The Tibetan collection in particular is among the largest in Europe.

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2025!

OPENING HOURS (now on break)

Tuesdays 15 - 18
Saturdays 11-15

Viewings arranged by appointment also during the break!

CONTACT

Porvoonkatu 53
Helsinki 00520, Finland
(10 min from the center of Helsinki)

+358 400 955 655, info@dalian.fi

Tibetan Trunk

THE ONLINE GALLERY DISPLAYS A SELECTION of items FROM OUR VAST COLLECTION.

Visit our 290 m2 showroom to see the full collection - WELCOME!

CHINESE ANTIQUE

In spite of the long history of Chinese furniture, it has begun to attract the attention of collectors only during the past few decades. After Wang Shixiang, the most renown researcher in the field, published his thorough study entitled ‘Classic Chinese Furniture: Ming and Early Qing Dynasties’, interest has grown rapidly overseas as well as in China.

Initially the attention was focused on furniture made from precious hardwoods like huanghuali and zitan, causing items made from other woods to be ignored. However, at the end of the 1990s, traditional Chinese furniture made from local woods (e.g. elm, nanmu, cypress, pear, oak, and walnut) began to gain recognition. Most of the items in the Dalian Collection are made from these woods, also known as Chinese softwoods. One has to be careful here, since in the West, the term "softwood" is used for soft woods such as pine, fir and cedar, while “hardwood” denotes wood from hard woods such as walnut, cherry and oak, the latter of which are considered softwoods in the Chinese tradition. Most of the old furniture that has survived is dated from mid to late Qing dynasty, that is, the 19th century or later.

TIBETAN ANTIQUE

Tibetan antique is dominated by Buddhist motifs. The ornamental designs on items commonly depict features of Tibetan Buddhist rituals that can seem gruesome to the Western eye. The more sizeable items in private Tibetan households used to include primarily trunks as well as small-sized tables and drawers that resemble kang furniture. These items were often decorated with floral paintings in bright hues of red, yellow and blue.

MONGOLIAN ANTIQUE

Dalian also has a small collection of Mongolian antique furniture items, mainly small-sized drawers. Mongolian items reflect both Tibetan and Chinese cultural influences. The furniture resembles Chinese counterparts, while the small-sized everyday objects of the nomads share uniform features across the wilderness of northern China. In Tibetan and Mongolian items alike, one can sense the scent of fireplace smoke, pipe tobacco, and butter.

Dalian Galleria

Dalian Galleriassa on laaja valikoima kiinalaisia ja tiibetiläisiä antiikkihuonekaluja sekä pienempi valikoima mongolialaisia huonekaluja. Erityisesti tiibetiläinen kokoelmamme on yksi Euroopan suurimmista tiibetiläisten antiikkihuonekalujen kokoelmista.