Resting deer, China Chu Kingdom, Warring States, 4th-3rd century BC.

Lying dear in carved wood composed of two parts: The head and the body assembled by a tenon. The antlers are natural deer antlers.
This type of object was part of the funerary furniture found in the tombs of high dignitaries and aristocrats.
Resting deer is the beneficial and sacred animal in Chu culture. Only one is present in each tomb .
Wooden elements from this period are rare. Only a few submerged graves allowed the wet sediments to preserve the wood from oxygen and xylophagous organisms. The conservation and restoration of its waterlogged objects require a treatment of several months. The objects are immersed in a bath consisting of an aqueous solution containing polyethylene glycol and then dried by lyophilization.

China, Chu kingdom, Warring States Period, 4th-3rd century BC.
Height: 70 cm
Width with antlers: 65 cm
Depth: 23 cm