Skip to main content

Qing Tray Tables

QING STYLE

The last imperial dynasty from 1644 to 1912 was a time of change in China, beginning with the invasion by Manchurian forces that ended the Ming dynasty and established the Shunzhi Emperor. The expansion of exportation and trade that had bolstered the arts during the Ming era continued, as Qing dynasty furniture involved the same attention to craftsmanship with expert construction techniques in hardwood pieces that were assembled with mortise and tenon joints rather than nails or glue. Together, these eras comprise a golden age of Chinese furniture design.

Ming-style furniture is simple and elegant with clean lines. Chairs of the period and other Ming furniture made an impression on Scandinavian modernist Hans Wegner and his streamlined seating, for example. Whereas Qing-style furniture is elaborate, with an increasing influence from the West leading to lavish carving inspired by the European Baroque and Rococo styles. And while many of the forms that define examples of the latter are common within classical Chinese furniture, such as curving and folding chairs as well as large screens, Qing designs are laden with ornamentation. Frequently, the carved motifs and inlaid designs in mother-of-pearl were auspicious, such as peonies for wealth or dragons for luck. Bats were symbols of happiness in the design of Qing furniture, with one of the characters in the word for bat, bianfu, being a homophone for fu, or “fortune.”

While several types of wood were used in the construction of Qing beds, tables, storage pieces and seating, today’s collectors know that the most prized were the rare rosewoods zitan and huanghuali. They were both sourced from Hainan, China’s largest island, and are marked by a rich luster that occurs naturally, without the application of lacquer or other decorative materials. Many of the most popular woods were imported from southeast Asia, adding to their value. Red sandalwood was also sought after for its durability and connection with Chinese medicine, with some chairs being made for health benefits.

Find a collection of antique Qing tea tables, stools, benches, decorative objects and more furniture on 1stDibs.

to
2
Height
to
Width
to
Depth
to
5
1
6
201
187
105
50
48
31
26
18
14
10
8
8
7
5
4
4
1
5
1
6
4
2
2
2
6
6
6
6
6
6
Style: Qing
19th Century lacquered hand painted tray table
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
19th century Chinese black lacquered tray table circa 1880. Beautifully hand painted and decorated tray table.  Black lacquered base colour, profusely painted in gold leaf, depictin...
Category

Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Softwood, Lacquer, Paint

Wood Altar Tray with Mother-of- Pearl Inlays, Late 19 Century
Located in New York, NY
A small altar tray, hand-crafted in teak with mother-of-pearl inlays. China, late 19th Century. Rustic teak in a dark brown/red semi-gloss finish. Four stretchers connect the turn...
Category

1880s Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Mother-of-Pearl, Teak

Chinese Carved Hardwood Scholar's Tray, Qing Dynasty, 19th Century, China
Located in Austin, TX
A sophisticated Chinese carved and pierced hardwood scholar's tray, Qing Dynasty, 19th century, China. The tray of rectangular form with high sides and rounded corners. The sides...
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Hardwood

Elm Small Altar Table, China, Mid-19th Century
Located in New York, NY
A small Chinese altar display table, hand-crafted in Elm wood, circa 1860-1880. Soft, supple elm wood, in a dark brown/red semi-gloss finish. Beautifully turned legs with circular ...
Category

1860s Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Elm

Wood Altar Tray with Mother-of- Pearl Inlays, Late 19th Century
Located in New York, NY
A small altar tray, hand-crafted in teak with mother-of-pearl inlays. China, late 19th Century. Rustic teak in a dark brown/red semi-gloss finish. Four stretchers connect the turn...
Category

1890s Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Mother-of-Pearl, Teak

Chinese Qing Rosewood Folding Tray Table
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Elegant Chinese Qing carved rosewood folding tray table featuring a lower removable tray. Rectangular tray top with a raised moulded gallery above ...
Category

20th Century Chinese Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Rosewood

Related Items
Superb Midcentury Rosewood Folding Table
Located in BROOKLYN, NY
Model ka 128 Beautiful and rare rosewood folding table made in Denmark. Designed for compact portability. This versatile table can be used and ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Danish Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Brass

Superb Midcentury Rosewood Folding Table
Superb Midcentury Rosewood Folding Table
$2,950
H 18.75 in W 25.75 in D 16 in
19th Century English Mahogany Butler's Tray Table
Located in Germantown, MD
19th Century English Mahogany Butler's folding Tray Table. Newer Base Measures 32" in width, 19.5" in depth and stand 34.75". Tray is 3.25" in height.
Category

19th Century American Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Mahogany

19th Century English Mahogany Butler's Tray Table
19th Century English Mahogany Butler's Tray Table
$1,495
H 34.75 in W 32 in D 19.5 in
19th Century Chinese Carved Giltwood Panel
Located in San Diego, CA
Antique 19th century Chinese carved gold gilt and painted wood wall panel or plaque with scholar and warrior figures scene. Signed on back as p...
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

19th Century Chinese Carved Giltwood Panel
19th Century Chinese Carved Giltwood Panel
$2,600 Sale Price
25% Off
H 27.5 in W 37 in D 5 in
19th Century French Hand Painted Tole Tray with Flowers and Foliage
Located in Dallas, TX
This antique tray was created in Normandy, France, circa 1870, round in shape, the colorful tray features hand painted flowers and leaves in the white an...
Category

Late 19th Century French Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Tôle

Minimalist Chinese Altar Table, 19th Century
Located in Isle Sur La Sorgue, Vaucluse
Elegant and chicly minimalist Chinese altar table, with upturned pagoda-style tabletop ends, and legs with a cut-out design. The wood has acquired a lovely, rich patina.
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Wood

Minimalist Chinese Altar Table, 19th Century
Minimalist Chinese Altar Table, 19th Century
$5,751
H 34.65 in W 88.98 in D 15.36 in
Early 20th Century Walnut Serving Tray with Inlay
Located in San Francisco, CA
Early 20th century walnut serving tray with inlay Handsome serving / drinks tray Measures: 20" long x 13.75" wide + 3/4" metal surround Good antique condition.
Category

Early 20th Century English Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Walnut

Serving Tray on a Folding Stand
Located in Palm Beach, FL
British colonial style serving tray with a removable top with a herringbone reed surface in a bamboo frame with brass handles on a mahogany folding base carved with a palm leaf motif...
Category

20th Century Philippine Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Bamboo

Serving Tray on a Folding Stand
Serving Tray on a Folding Stand
$3,950
H 35 in W 34 in D 24 in
19th Century Tray on Stand
Located in Charlottesville, VA
This elegant antique tray on stand is a versatile and stylish accent piece, featuring a beautifully hand-painted tray with intricate gold detailing around the border. The deep burgun...
Category

19th Century French Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Metal

19th Century Tray on Stand
19th Century Tray on Stand
$695
H 21 in W 22 in D 30 in
19th Century English Mahogany & Satinwood Etagere Tray Table
Located in London, GB
This is a truly exceptional antique English Edwardian mahogany and satinwood marquetry oval two tier 'etagere', in the manner of Edwards & Roberts, circa 1890 in date. Crafted from the best flame mahogany, note the wonderful grain to the wood and the beautifully inlaid decoration with musical trophies within scrolling foliage and kingwood crossbanding. Masterfully inlaid with Sheraton influences, this etagere has an elegant refined look. The removable glass bottomed tray can be used to serve drinks, etc. It is raised on elegant square section tapering outswept legs with a shaped cross stretcher. The craftsmanship and finish are second to none. THE BOTANICAL NAME FOR THE MAHOGANY THAT THIS ITEM IS MADE OF IS SWIETENIA MACROPHYLLA AND THIS TYPE OF MAHOGANY IS NOT SUBJECT TO CITES REGULATION AND DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY RESTRICTED MATERIALS. Condition: In excellent condition having been beautifully cleaned and waxed in our workshops, please see photos for confirmation. Dimensions in cm: Height 84 x Width 89 x Depth 55 Dimensions in inches: Height 33.1 x Width 35.0 x Depth 21.7 Edwards & Roberts was founded in 1845, and had premises at 21 Wardour Street London. By the 1892 they occupied more than a dozen buildings in Wardour Street, where they continued to trade until the end of the century. They became one of the leading London cabinet makers and retailers working in a variety of styles, both modern and revivalist. Their business also involved retailing, adapting and restoring the finest antique furniture and there are many examples of their earlier furniture with later embellishments bearing their stamp. Edwards & Roberts specialised in marquetry, inlay and ormolu. Marquetry is decorative artistry where pieces of material (such as wood, pewter, or brass silver) of different colours are inserted into surface wood veneer to form intricate patterns such as scrolls or flowers. The technique of veneered marquetry had its inspiration in 16th century Florence. Marquetry elaborated upon Florentine techniques of inlaying solid marble slabs with designs formed of fitted marbles, jaspers and semi-precious stones. This work, called opere di commessi, has medieval parallels in Central Italian "Cosmati"-work of inlaid marble floors, altars and columns. The technique is known in English as pietra dura, for the "hardstones" used: onyx, jasper, cornelian, lapis lazuli and colored marbles. In Florence, the Chapel of the Medici at San Lorenzo is completely covered in a colored marble facing using this demanding jig-sawn technique. Techniques of wood marquetry were developed in Antwerp and other Flemish centers of luxury cabinet-making during the early 16th century. The craft was imported full-blown to France after the mid-seventeenth century, to create furniture of unprecedented luxury being made at the royal manufactory of the Gobelins, charged with providing furnishings to decorate Versailles and the other royal residences of Louis XIV. Early masters of French marquetry were the Fleming Pierre Golle and his son-in-law, André-Charles Boulle, who founded a dynasty of royal and Parisian cabinet-makers (ébénistes) and gave his name to a technique of marquetry employing brass with pewter in arabesque or intricately foliate designs. Etagère is a piece of light furniture which was extensively made in France during the latter part of the 18th century. It consists of a series of stages or shelves for the reception of ornaments or other small articles. Like the what-not it was very often cornerwise in shape, and the best Louis XVI examples in exotic woods are exceedingly graceful and elegant. In modern usage, an étagère is often used to refer specifically to a long-legged shelf unit that fits over a bathroom toilet...
Category

1890s English Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Mahogany, Satinwood

Shagreen Tray with Mother of Pearl and Brass Inserts by R&Y Augousti
Located in New York, NY
The Paris based label has distinguished themselves since their launch, with their iconic use of shagreen mixed with brass and other exotic materials. All furniture is handcrafted by skilled artisans, ultimately making each piece unique, designed in Paris and produced in the Philippines. The Lunar light...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Philippine Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Brass

Moroccan Folding Tray Table in Brass and wood
Located in Barcelona, ES
Large Traditional Moroccan Folding Tray Table, Brass, Wood, Morocco, 1940s-1950s. This moorish brass tray table features a round brass tray...
Category

20th Century Moroccan Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Brass

Campaign Table English 19th Century Victorian Campaign Folding Table.
Located in Vero Beach, FL
English 19th Century Victorian Campaign Folding Table. Authentic folding Field Campaign table from England. The table has distinctive serpentine shaped legs in striking X-form with ...
Category

19th Century English Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Wood

Previously Available Items
19th Century lacquered hand painted tray table
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
19th century Chinese black lacquered tray table circa 1880. Beautifully hand painted and decorated tray table.  Black lacquered base colour, profusely painted in gold leaf, depictin...
Category

Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Wood, Lacquer

19th Century lacquered hand painted tray table
19th Century lacquered hand painted tray table
H 28.75 in W 31.25 in D 22.5 in
Petite Chinese Tea Tray, circa 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Simple lines, a modest form, and a layer of hand-brushed lacquer give this petite Qing-dynasty tray a provincial charm that recalls the warmth of home. The dark brown lacquer finish ...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Pine

Petite Chinese Tea Tray, circa 1900
Petite Chinese Tea Tray, circa 1900
H 1.25 in W 10 in D 9.75 in
19th Century Chinese Folding Kang Table
Located in Chicago, IL
This table was designed centuries ago to accompany Chinese artists and scholars on excursions into gardens, forests, and fields. It would have been used for painting sessions, poetry...
Category

Early 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Cedar

19th Century Chinese Folding Kang Table
19th Century Chinese Folding Kang Table
H 15.25 in W 30.75 in D 23.75 in
19th Century Chinese Rosewood and Brass Folding Table
Located in Garnerville, NY
Exquisitely carved and chased brass Chinese folding table. The rosewood base is a raised floral motif and the chased brass charger is decorated w...
Category

Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

Materials

Brass

19th Century Chinoiserie Tray Table
Located in San Marino, CA
A 19th Century Chinoiserie tray table, painted with scenes of life including houses, horses, people and trees. The tray is mounted on four legs that are stabilized by an X stretcher....
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Qing Tray Tables

19th Century Chinoiserie Tray Table
19th Century Chinoiserie Tray Table
H 18.5 in W 30 in D 22 in

Qing tray tables for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Qing tray tables for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the Early 20th Century, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage tray tables created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include tables, asian art and furniture and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with wood, hardwood and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Qing tray tables made in a specific country, there are Asia, China, and East Asia pieces for sale on 1stDibs. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for tray tables differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $288 and tops out at $4,800 while the average work can sell for $2,817.

Recently Viewed

View All