Buzz
It's a common misconception that the bed of a Chinese emperor would be large, but in reality, it's not the case.
The plots of these dramas revolve around the power struggle among concubines to win the emperor's favor. Consequently, scenes of court intrigue are frequent in these dramas.
Fans of palace intrigue dramas often wonder why the Chinese emperor, residing in the Forbidden City, with its vast scale of 72 hectares and 800 different palaces, only sleeps on an extremely narrow bed? It's approximately 2m long and 1m wide.
Compared to today, this size is quite cramped and may not provide a comfortable sleep. However, surprisingly, in ancient times, not only the emperor but also the empress and concubines used beds of similar style.
Desire for Longevity
Ancient people valued longevity greatly, with many monarchs even longing for an 'immortal life'. To extend their lifespan, numerous Chinese rulers sent individuals in search of the elixir of immortality, sometimes blindly trusting alchemists who could end up losing their lives in the pursuit.
In addition to seeking the 'elixir of life', they also had various rituals, beliefs, and practices to convey the desire for longevity. In Chinese, the word for 'bed' sounds similar to 'longevity', and the word for 'narrow' is homophonic with 'life'. Thus, a 'narrow bed' sounds similar to 'longevity'. This is why not only in the royal court, but also in general, kings used beds with narrow dimensions in the hope of extending their lifespan.
Suitability to Room Size
In feudal times, ancient people considered the construction of rooms a significant matter, directly affecting the homeowner. Therefore, there were many taboos in construction and spatial arrangement.
For the Chinese, excessively large bedrooms were believed to invite sudden disasters. A narrow bedroom, however, was thought to bring auspiciousness to the owner.
As a result, within the royal palace, most rooms, especially the king's chambers, are predominantly designed to be low and narrow. The bedroom area never exceeds 10m2. To fit the space of these rooms, the beds are also designed to be more compact.
Moreover, the rooms in the palace are typically constructed of wood. Generally, wood has limited load-bearing capacity. Therefore, the smaller the cross-section of the beams, the more robust the room will be. Consequently, the beds are designed with corresponding dimensions for convenient room layout and arrangement.
Based on the number of concubines in the palace
The Chinese emperor possessed a harem with thousands of beautiful concubines. Most concubines had their own chambers. Consequently, the number of rooms allocated by the court was significant. Additionally, the emperor could only visit a limited number of concubines each day.
According to palace regulations, if designated for attendance, concubines would be brought to the emperor's chambers. In the event of the emperor visiting the concubines' chambers, he would only rest there for 2 hours before returning to his own chambers. To save costs, the court decided to construct the concubines' chambers with small dimensions.
That's why Chinese emperors, despite their luxurious lifestyles, had beds that were only about 1m wide.
