How to identify south, southeast Asian furniture?

Hey all, this is a bit of a long shot, but might as well ask on a forum dedicated to antiques.

I'm a writer, working on a sci-fi book, and among the many unhinged ideas I had, one of them is identification of imported furniture at a glance.

If I wanted to identify the country of origin of basic wooden furniture, like cabinets, chairs, wardrobes, etc., modern or 20th century, what would I be looking for? What are the unique characteristics found on furniture from India, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, etc., that you look for, and that make you go, "Oh! That has to be 1960s Burma!"

Is it wood color? Carving method? Joints method? Metalwork?

Is it even possible, or is it just approximation, since many of southeast Asian countries share the same trees?

 

All the above.... mixed in with many years of experience , and book learning of styles and hands on touching....

Oh...& you'll luv this.... " never judge a book by it's cover "

Hardware can be swapped out...
table tops can be added or replaced..
pieces may be missing
& of course...Revival..... items made to look like period pieces....
large or small , over time some items may have been stripped... stained, or painted to suit a more modern look..

Yes....the type of wood used is an important part of identification as well....

So.... at a glance... off the cuff.... one has to be well practiced...well seasoned...with many years of training a good eye..... for that kind of snap identification to hold any value at all !!!

 

I didn't mention any marking on an item...... cuz your parameter of at a glance ... does not allow for a close up inspection of the furniture parts , that may hold valuable clues to it's origin.

Just sayin ....

 

Yes, they share the same trees, but they don't share the same culture or have had the same colonial influence.

And then there are regional differences. For instance, Bali and Madura are both small (groups of) islands in Indonesia, even neighbours, but their furniture styles are recognizably different.

 

Can you point me to some examples I can research myself?

 

what era?

 

And where from?
South and Southeast Asia is a huge part of the world, with over 2 billion people. India alone has a population of 1 1/2 billion.
Just imagine how many different styles there are in the entire South and Southeast Asian region.

 

Then 2nd half of 20th century, India, Vietnam and Indonesia.