Chinese herbalist cabinet with multiple drawers

Chinese antique herbalist cabinet with one shelf at the top and 30 small drawers divided in three and four larger drawers at the bottom. The fronts of the drawers have Chinese characters on them which name the herbs that would have been inside. This Chinese cabinet comes from Guangzhou and dates from the mid 19th century. It is made from Chinese Elm. The shelf would have been used for Chinese bowls, pots and grinders for preparing the medication.

Chinese medicine has a long history. This history is replete with the use of herbs and other natural items to relieve pain and to cure many ailments. Since so many herbs, roots and other natural items are used in traditional medicine, there were quite a few medicine chests or apothecary chests in use. Some of the more interesting chests have many subdivided drawers with each compartment's contents labeled on each drawer front. Modern western medicine is interested in the effectiveness of Chinese traditional medicines. Find them here at Zitan.