This cabinet comes from a set of furniture set on a staircase landing in a house in Malacca. Peranakans were avid patrons of locally made, European-style teak furniture. Teak was the most popular type of wood for such furniture from the late 19th to mid-20th century. Native to South and Southeast Asia, it is a hardwood that grows in abundance in India, Thailand, and Myanmar. Being relatively less dense, teak lends itself well to the carving of intricate designs.