Animal furniture refers both to furniture used by animals and to furniture made from animals.
In 2008, James Stephenson and Jason R. Rich cited high-end furniture for cats and dogs as one of the best categories of products to buy and sell for big profits. Home-crafted furniture for pets has also become popular.
"Of trophies to be secured from our elephants the feet rank first . . . They make fine footstools, liquor stands, or, if cut long in the leg, umbrella stands.
In his book, "Empire and the Animal Body," John Miller wrote that the animal furniture made from exotic animals from throughout the British Empire became "hyperbolically domesticated metropolitan accessories that testify to imperial power through their extraordinary, and sometimes comic, ingenuity.
Victorian furniture made from animals is sometimes referred to as "Wardian furniture," derived from the name of the noted taxidermist, Rowland Ward. One author noted:
"As a result of the work of Rowland Ward, there was a craze in the Victorian era for furniture and other decorative items made from the parts of animals. His were so popular that he got the unofficial naming rights: 'Wardian furniture' was the name generally given to any such object ..."
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