The murals in Dunhuang Cave 285 depict two people sitting on chairs; the murals in Cave 257 show women sitting on square stools and long benches with crossed legs; and the stone carvings in the Lotus Cave of Longmen Grottoes show women sitting on round stools. These images vividly reproduce the use of chairs and stools in the homes of officials and nobles during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Although the seating at that time already possessed the shapes of chairs and stools, they were often used for meditation in temples, hence the name "meditation bed." After the Tang Dynasty, the use of chairs gradually increased, and the name "chair" became widely used, thus separating it from the category of beds. Therefore, when discussing the origin of chairs and stools, one must start with the "Hu bed" , which was introduced from India during the Han and Wei Dynasties.
Before the Tang Dynasty, the character also had another interpretation, meaning "side railing of a carriage." Its function was to provide support for people riding in carriages. Later chairs, in their form, consisted of a four-legged platform with a railing attached. Their design was likely inspired by the railing of a carriage, and the name "chair" was adopted from this. Based on existing materials, the Tang Dynasty already had quite sophisticated chairs.
