Black Forest

Term used for furniture carved in rural Germany and Switzerland during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Originally named for the Black Forest region of Germany where it was thought to have come from, it is now believed most Black Forest furniture was produced in Brienz Switzerland as an economic stimulus for the timber industry and local wood craftspeople. Black Forest furniture is commonly identified by its symbolic use of carved bears and other forest creatures such as eagles, ibexes, chamois, deer, and boars. Frequently the furniture is made of local woods of the region like the linden tree as it is easily carved, but walnut was also widely used.