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bench is a piece of
furnitureFurniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
, on which several people may sit at the same time. Benches are typically made of wood, but may also be made of metal, stone, or synthetic materials. Many benches have arm and back rests; some have no back rest and can be sat on from either side. In public areas, benches are often donated by persons or associations, which may then be indicated on it, e.g. by a small
plaqueA commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other vertical surface, and bearing text in memory of an important figure or event...
.
Different types of benches
Often benches are simply named for the place they are used, regardless of whether this implies a specific design.
- Park benches are set as seating places within public park
A park is a protected area, in its natural or semi-natural state, or planted, and set aside for human recreation and enjoyment, or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. It may consist of rocks, soil, water, flora and fauna and grass areas. Many parks are legally protected by...
s, and vary on the amount of people they can seat.
- Garden benches are similar to public park benches, but are longer and offer more sitting places.
- Picnic table
A picnic table is a modified table with attached benches, designed for eating a meal outdoors .-Uses:...
s, or catering buffet tables have long benches as well as a table. These tables may have table legs which are collapsible, in order to expedite transport and storage.
- Scenic benches are situated to provide a comfortable means of enjoying the contemplation of a beautiful landscape, a busy street scene, or perhaps a specific event.
The process of benchification is also associated with benches, as it is the process of an object turning into a bench.
Various types of benches are specifically designed for and/or named after specific uses, such as:
- church pew
A pew is a long bench seat or enclosed box used for seating members of a congregation or choir in a church, or sometimes in a courtroom.-Overview:Churches were not commonly furnished with permanent pews before the Protestant Reformation...
s inside places of worship are equipped with an additional kneeling bench.
- a bench seat
The bench seat was the traditional seat installed in American automobiles. This seat featured a continuous pad running the full width of the cabin...
is a traditional seat installed in automobiles, featuring a continuous pad running the full width of the cabin.
- a punishment bench is used to have a punishee lie (and often be tied) down on for the administration of a corporal punishment, after which it may be specifically named, e.g. caning
Caning is a form of corporal punishment consisting of a number of hits with a single cane usually made of rattan, generally applied to the offender's bare or clothed buttocks or hand . Application of a cane to the knuckles or the shoulders has been much less common...
bench
- a bench (weight training)
A weight training bench is a piece of equipment that has a resemblance to a normal bench, but is designed for use in weight training....
is used for fitness exercises, such as the bench pressThe bench press is an exercise of the upper body. For bodybuilding purposes, it is used to stimulate the pectorals, deltoids, and triceps. While on his or her back, the person performing the bench press lowers a weight to the level of the chest, then pushes it back up until the arm is straight...
which is named after its use of a bench
- a communion bench
A Communion bench is an adaptation of the sanctuary guard or altar rail.Standing in front of this barrier, in a space called the chancel, or pectoral, the faithful were wont in early times to receive Holy Communion, the men taking the Consecrated Bread into their hands and the women receiving it on...
is not used as a seat
- a piano bench offers usually one person seating and is height adjustable.
- a spanking bench, such as a caning
Caning is a form of corporal punishment consisting of a number of hits with a single cane usually made of rattan, generally applied to the offender's bare or clothed buttocks or hand . Application of a cane to the knuckles or the shoulders has been much less common...
bench, is specifically designed for a spankee to lie upon, possibly strapped down, while submitting to paining of the posterior
- Swing seats
A swing is a hanging seat, usually found at playgrounds for children, a circus for acrobats, or on a porch for relaxing. The seat of a swing may be suspended from chains or ropes. Once a swing is in motion it continues to oscillate like a pendulum until external interference or drag brings it to a...
are independently movable, suspended benches, used for play or as a relaxing porch swing.
- a courting bench
A courting bench, also known as a kissing bench, conversation bench, or a tête-à-tête is a bench with two parallel seats, facing in opposite directions, with a shared arm of the bench separating them....
(or kissing bench, or tête-à-tête): a two-seater with the seats pointing in opposite directions, thus almost facing each other.
- a friendship bench
A friendship bench is a special place in a school playground where a child can go when they want someone to talk to.Friendship benches may be distinctively different from other seating in the school and may be specially designed by an artist or with the help of the children themselves...
in a school playground is where a child can go when they want someone to talk to.
- the bench in a courtroom
A courtroom is the actual enclosed space in which a judge regularly holds court.The schedule of official court proceedings is called a docket; the term is also synonymous with a court's caseload as a whole.-Courtroom design:-United States:...
, behind which the judge is seated.
Gallery
Image:Bench in Tehran.JPG|An open park bench in al-Mahdi Park, TehranTehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
Image:Snow covered park bench aka.jpg|Snow covered park bench
Image:Mano Seca bench with Sunrise over the Grandstand.jpg|This scenic bench was provided by the Mano Seca Group to enjoy the view of the Grandstand at Racetrack PlayaThe Racetrack Playa, or The Racetrack, is a scenic dry lake feature with "sailing stones" that leave linear "racetrack" imprints. It is located above the northwestern side of Death Valley, in Death Valley National Park, Inyo County, California, U.S.....
, Death Valley National ParkDeath Valley National Park is a national park in the U.S. states of California and Nevada located east of the Sierra Nevada in the arid Great Basin of the United States. The park protects the northwest corner of the Mojave Desert and contains a diverse desert environment of salt-flats, sand dunes,...
, United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Image:Bench.JPG|A bench found in the Science faculty of National University of SingaporeThe National University of Singapore is Singapore's oldest university. It is the largest university in the country in terms of student enrollment and curriculum offered....
Image:Tree bench by Matthieu Riegler.jpg|Bench made with a chainsawA chainsaw is a portable mechanical saw, powered by electricity, compressed air, hydraulic power, or most commonly a two-stroke engine...
in a tree trunk
Image:Old-bench-from-Etara.jpg|Ancient trunk bench from Etar Architectural-Ethnographic ComplexThe Etar Architectural-Ethnographic Complex is an open-air museum and a neighbourhood of Gabrovo in northern Bulgaria. It is located on the northern edge of the Bulgarka Nature Park, between the park and the city of Gabrovo....
File:Park bench -Lackford Lakes, Suffolk, England-30July2010.jpg|In Suffolk, England
File:Bench in Anapa, Russia.jpg|In AnapaAnapa is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, located on the northern coast of the Black Sea near the Sea of Azov. It was originally a seaport for the Natkhuay tribe of the Adyghe people. Population: The town boasts a number of sanatoria and hotels...
, Russia
See also
- Bench Around the Lake
Bench Around the Lake is a public artwork by Danish artist Jeppe Hein, located in the 100 Acres: The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art and Nature Park, in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The artwork consists of fifteen individually designed yellow interactive bench installations strategically placed...
, an artwork by Jeppe HeinJeppe Hein is an artist based in Berlin and Copenhagen. Hein is widely known for his production of experiential and interactive artworks that can be positioned at the junction where art, architecture, and technical inventions intersect...
at the Indianapolis Museum of ArtThe Indianapolis Museum of Art is an encyclopedic art museum located in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The museum, which underwent a $74 million expansion in 2005, is located on a campus on the near northwest area outside downtown Indianapolis, northwest of Crown Hill Cemetery.The...