Columns rarely appear now, and when they do, they are usually light. Sometimes, indeed, they are of iron, and covered with the same material as the curtains. It is preferred to place the bed sideways (_vu de face_) against the wall. In this case, the headboard and footboard are of equal height and exactly alike. (See Plates XLIV. and XLV.) Often the headboard and footboard are covered with the curtain-material; they are also left plain and printed, or lacquered or gilded. Natural wood ornamented with bronze gilt _or moulu_ decorations is used. The use of veined woods gradually did away with the practice of covering the head and footboards. When the headboard was higher than the footboard, the head was placed against the wall (_vu de pied_), or it stood in the corner. Muslin, Persian, silk, and other materials were used for draperies, and these were trimmed with bows of ribbon, fringe, cords and tassels. The curtains and counterpane were subject to a formal arrangement of loops and festoons, and feathers still decorated the canopy. Among the most popular varieties were _lit à la Polonaise_, _à la Turque_, _à la Chinoise_, _à tombeau_, _à double tombeau_, and _à l’anglaise_. There was another new bed called _à la dauphine_, which did not long remain in fashion. Ranson designed one in 1780. This was a _lit à impériale_ or _à dôme_, which was light and rather graceful. Instead of being supported by columns the dome was held by an iron armature. The _lit à l’Italienne_, so named on account of the draping of the curtains, was very popular in 1775; and the _lit à couronne_ had a round or oval canopy, surmounted by a festoon drapery, trimmed with ball fringe. Two curtains, similarly trimmed, fell from the canopy on either side of the bed to the floor. [Illustration: PLATE XLV]