After calligraphy and painting, jewelry, the antique furniture collection represented by rosewood furniture has become the third biggest hotspot in the investment and collection circle of Shanghai. In December last year, Citibank, which is renowned for its considerate service to customers, conveyed the concept of high added value of rosewood furniture by showcasing rosewood furniture to its VIP customers; previously, the Construction Bank had reached an agreement with rosewood furniture manufacturers to provide loan services to customers who buy rosewood furniture. Relevant personnel of the China Rosewood Furniture Association expressed that the involvement of domestic and international financial circles in the field of rosewood furniture collection reflects the current craze for rosewood furniture collection in Shanghai.
Relevant personnel of the bank introduced that as a service for their customers' investment and financial management, they have held appraisal activities for calligraphy and painting, jewelry, etc. before, but recently found through market research that the most potential for development lies in the collection of rosewood furniture, "this time, by showcasing Yuanhengli hardwood furniture to customers, we are providing a more value-added investment channel for our customers."
Relevant personnel expressed that the involvement of the financial circle actually sends a signal about the sharp rise in price and increasing popularity of rosewood furniture collection. The item with the greatest potential for appreciation has been replaced by rosewood furniture instead of calligraphy and painting and jewelry. Compared with calligraphy, paintings, antiques, and mixed genuine and fake items, collecting rosewood furniture is almost zero risk.
Do not mistake rosewood for Hainan Huanghuali.
Hainan Huanghuali is also known as "blood pressure-lowering wood", called "jiang xiang" in Compendium of Materia Medica. Its wood shavings soaked in water can lower blood pressure and lipids, and using it as a pillow can promote blood circulation and relax muscles. Huanghuali is extremely easy to survive, but extremely difficult to grow into useful timber. A tree with a bowl-sized trunk only has material the size of a rolling pin, and it takes hundreds or even thousands of years to truly mature. Its wood is hard and is an excellent material for making classical hardwood furniture.
Huanghuali is good, but with the increase in demand for rosewood furniture in recent years, production enterprises have also rapidly "expanded": although Huanghuali is very precious, it is everywhere on the market, and the prices of "Huanghuali" vary greatly, always leaving consumers confused. Little do they know, "this huang is not that huang." People knowledgeable about valuable furniture materials all know that huang includes Huanghuali, sub-huang, grass huang, and even red huang. In fact, only "Hainan jiangxiang huangtan" can be called Huanghuali, and only Hainan's unique climate and environment are suitable for the growth of Huanghuali.
Consumers can go to the market and ask about the origin of similar product materials, and see if they can get a contract certifying that the material used in this product is from Hainan jiangxiang huangtan or Hainan xiangzhi wood (Huanghuali). This way, the authenticity can be determined.
Tips for distinguishing the real from the fake:
1. Huanghuali furniture should have no iron nails.
The production process of hardwood furniture is quite challenging. Due to the preciousness of the material, the production and manufacture of top-grade Huanghuali furniture require meticulous carving, just like jade carving. The wooden tenon structure must not have iron nails, and only artisans with considerable craftsmanship can complete it. It often takes several months to finish a piece of top-grade Hainan Huanghuali furniture.
2. Huanghuali wood shavings soak in water to turn green.
It is generally difficult for ordinary consumers to distinguish the authenticity of Huanghiali wood, but this wood has obvious characteristics. From a sensory perspective, there are the following points: one, Huanghuali wood itself is a Chinese medicine, with a "jiang xiang" smell of Chinese medicine; two, it is hard in texture, with clear and beautiful grain patterns, offering an excellent visual sensation, with wheat ear patterns and crab claw patterns, the grain patterns may be hidden or visible, lively and changeable; three, it has "ghost faces." Ghost faces are caused by scars during the growth process. Its scars are different from those of ordinary trees, irregular, so people call them "ghost faces," but it cannot be said that all Huanghuali wood has ghost faces. Lastly, according to the experience of old artisans from Yuanhengli: Huanghuali has phosphorescence like fireflies, and after soaking its wood shavings, the water turns green. (Editor: Tián Tián)