cupboard

If it is important to know the meaning of the term cupboard, it is also important to be clear about its etymological origin. In this case, we can establish that it is a word of Arabic origin, since it derives from “al-hizanah”, which can be translated as “closet”.

The term cupboard refers to a type of furniture which is used for the storage of different items. It's about a closet that has doors and of shelves or shelves, and that it is usual that it is installed in a hole made in a wall.

Typically, the cupboard is in the kitchen of the house since it allows to store food, cutlery, glasses, glasses, tablecloths and napkins, among other elements that are used at mealtime. For this same reason, this piece of furniture can also be located in the dining room, when the dimensions of the environment allow it.

Cupboards have always been so important in homes and especially in kitchens, that they can be found reflected in a long list of pictorial works, for example. Specifically, we have to underline that examples of this are the following tables:
-"Cupboard". It is a painting from 1610 that was made by the German Georg Flegel, who is considered the first painter in his country to specialize in what is known as still lifes. Today this painting is part of the collection of the National Gallery in Prague.
- "Still life with food". From 1602 is, for its part, this other painting that belongs to the Spanish author Juan Sánchez Cotán, known for works such as “Still life of the thistle” or “Still life of game, vegetables and fruits”. This painting can be admired today in the Prado Museum.
-"Cupboard". This other painting dating from 1769 is currently located in the National Gallery of Art in the city of Washington. It is the work of Antonio Pérez de Aguilar.

The characteristics of the cupboards have changed throughout the story. In its origins, the cupboards were developed in holes in the walls that were protected with doors. Over time, the cupboard was divided into two sections: a closet closed in the lower part, with doors, and a sideboard in the upper sector with open shelves.

Currently cupboards are usually built with wood. Its doors can be glazed so that it is possible to observe its interior without having to open them. The height, the number of doors and shelves and the design of the cupboards are highly variable.

In some countries we can underline that pantry is commonly used as a synonym for pantry, chiller or vasar. However, in others all these terms are clearly differentiated.