Small red and gold lacquered stool with one drawer. The top is decorated with two dragon heads. The Chinese dragon symbolizes benevolence, prosperity, longevity and the renewal of life. Ancient Chinese believed that the dragon brought rain, good harvests and fertility. On the top is the figure of a boy surrounded by clouds symbolizing a wish for many sons and Good Luck as clouds, sometimes referred to as ‘Auspicious clouds’ (xiangyun 祥云) represent the heavens and also ‘Good Luck’ because the Chinese word for cloud (yun 云) is pronounced the same as yun (运) meaning ‘Luck’ or ‘Fortune’. The cruel practice of foot binding meant applying painfully tight bindings to the feet of young girls folding four toes backwards to make the feet smaller. Small feet, sometimes referred to as ‘lotus’ feet, were considered to be beautiful (and erotic) and were also a sign of social status as women from wealthy families did not need to work. Almost every girl had to go through this painful practice because without bound feet she would have a problem find a husband with status in later life. The smallest feet were the most desired. Our foot binding stool was used to make the bandaging process easier. Before going to bed the bandages were removed (and replaced by special soft night shoes) and could be rolled up on the rotating system in the top of the stool and stored in the small drawer. The stool dates from the Qing period (1644 – 1912). Height 60 cm. Diameter of the platform 35 cm.