How Did the Bed Develop as Household Furniture

We spend much of our lives in beds and numerous adverts discuss the merits of different types of beds that are intended to give us better sleep and comfort. Today, what represents a bed differs greatly from culture to culture. The history of the bed, like most furniture, has been shaped by its complex development. It is, on the one hand, an essential item of furniture, but for different cultures it has varied as an important object of cultural value to simply a utilitarian furniture piece.

Early History

The bed develops as humans began to built long-term settlements or more permanent dwelling places. Before this time, beds were mostly ad hoc construction that would have been made from surrounding materials (e.g., straw or twigs) and often discarded as human populations moved. Early beds were mainly built from wood, straw, or had underlying stone. However, what began to change in early beds is they became raised from the floor. This became needed as many agricultural societies need raised platforms for beds, as stored agricultural food in more permanent settlements began to attract rodents and other pests. Greater use of the physical space also meant that raising a platform or level above the floor became needed for early beds.

While platforms of wood or stone raised the bed from the floor, cushioning was needed for a softer sleep. This led to the development of different materials, ranging from textiles stuffed with soft materials such as leaves, to other, less harsh forms of cushioning from basic materials, including feathers. Other innovations included filling a cushion with water, such as used in ancient Persian, which made, essentially, an early form of water bed.

By the Bronze Age, elites and likely wealth classes, had begun to make specific bed frames, often made of wood. The frames not only made beds portable, but they also allowed beds to become decorative and media of art. Frames began to be decorated or were created from expensive woods. Inlays, ivory, and metal decorations were now found on bed frames in the ancient Near East and Eastern Mediterranean. Pillows also became decorated and covered over with pillow cases made of expensive materials and embroidery. Beds were also sometimes recessed into walls or made from material that folded, a type of cot.

By the Bronze Age, beds began to be symbolically associated with the life cycle. While, on the one hand, beds were the creators of life, such as the marital bed, they were also the final resting place. In underground chambers used for burials for Mediterranean and Near East societies, beds were made and deceases were placed in a sleeping position. In essence, the burial of the dead was seen as one's eternal resting.

In the Roman period, five different types of beds were known. Beds were used for eating, studying, burying the dead, for lovemaking, and normal sleeping. The Romans differentiated these with different words and this may have also meant that different beds were used for each of these activities.

Cultural Diversity

Societies in east Asia, particularly China, Korea, and Japan, developed a floor-based culture for many activities, including eating and sleeping. One main reason has to do with cooling and heating for different months. Heating, for instance, was done underneath floors, which meant that sleeping on the floor more directly, with only a thin mattress, would be more practical, as it greater heat would be felt. Furthermore, the floor was seen as where sitting would take place in, thus the bed became the primary social space in eastern Asian societies. Beds such as the kang became the spaces that many social activities revolved around, but they were practical as it allowed easy heating of this space without having to create smoky rooms for heating such as found in many ancient and medieval homes in Europe.

In Europe, leather or rope was used in the framing. This probably led to the expression "sleep tight" as the rope or leather would loosen over time as the bed was used. Beds were often used as chairs and tables, as limited space in smaller homes with large families meant beds were generally not seen as a standalone piece of furniture. On the other hand, royalty and wealthy individuals used their beds for different activities. Formal beds were sometimes used as reception rooms to receive guests. A second bed might be kept for sleeping and sexual activity.

During the Medieval period, beds in different regions began to develop canopies or curtains. While this provided privacy, the idea was it also protected against insects and other pests that might be around at night. The curtains also allowed for warmth and protected against drafts.

The Vikings (or Danes/Norsemen) were known to use a style of bunk bed, where cupboard were fashioned into beds that could then be stacked on to each other. The intent was to use this style of bedding to save room so that they can be moved during the day or multiple people can sleep in an area more easily.

Modern Development

Key developments from the 18th century and later included the use of iron frames for beds and switch to cotton for mattresses and covers. The switch to metal frames likely was practical, as micro-insects are less likely to burrow in non-wooden frames. In effect, iron frames reduced a form of bed bugs from spreading.