Tag: travel China Qing Dynasty

#北京 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #November2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage.  –   3rd -17th November 2023…..

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On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden City collection…. 

Qing Dynasty, the emperor’s winter crown. The imperial crown is the crown and hat worn when wearing imperial robes. In the imperial attire system of the Qing Dynasty, imperial garb and imperial robes were the garments worn during major ceremonies, and were the highest-grade among the garments of the Qing Dynasty. The “Great Qing Hui Dian” of the Kangxi Dynasty records: “The emperor’s crown and attire were decided in the first year of Chongde, and the crown was inlaid with Dongzhu stones… It was decided in the 22nd year of Kangxi that in all grand ceremonies and altars and temples, the crown was inlaid with large Dongzhu stones. For the crown, the dress should be yellow, autumn fragrant, or blue… The queen’s crown dress: for any celebration ceremony, the crown should be set with east beads on the top, and the dress should be yellow, autumn fragrant, or blue.” By the time of the Qianlong Dynasty, the “Dynasty Ritual Utensils Illustration” described the costumes Made a more detailed classification. The ceremonial dress worn by the emperor during major celebrations consists of a court crown, court clothes, end cap, court beads, court belt, etc. When the emperor comes to the Taihe Hall to receive congratulations from princes and officials when he wears court robes for his wedding, he must also wear a court crown. This crown is the emperor’s winter crown.

Qing Dynasty, bright yellow kesi silk clouds and gold dragon pattern, leather edge men’s court robe. The court robe was the most important form of dress in the Qing Dynasty. It was the attire worn by emperors and empresses during court ceremonies. In addition to court crowns, formal attire also includes court robes, hoods, gowns, court beads, etc. The emperor must wear court robes when he holds a wedding ceremony to celebrate the Empress Dowager, and when he comes to the Taihe Palace to receive celebration gifts from princes, officials, and concubines. The court robe is in the style of a top and lower skirt, with a collar, arrow sleeves and a large placket on the right side. A sarong can also be worn over the court robe. This robe has a tapestry pattern of colorful clouds and golden dragons on a bright yellow ground and is trimmed with leather. It was probably worn by Emperor Guangxu when he held major ceremonies in winter.

“The sunset gradually sets in the west, and the sunset glow turns the sky red, as well as the locust forest and bamboo forest. There are fewer and fewer birds in the sky, but the gray starlings in the whole forest still don’t want to sleep prematurely. Look, these few days Just as they landed on the branches, those few flew up again… Inside and outside the woods, hundreds of birds were singing, calling for friends and chirping, like a waterfall falling into a deep stream, or like a stormy wave crashing on the beach. , the entire black locust forest and bamboo forest became a natural club.” The author of the essay “Gray Starling” is China’s first crane taming girl, Xu Xiujuan. She died in 1987 while rescuing an injured white swan from drowning. She was later Posthumously considered a martyr.

Today, we will get to know the gray starlings written by Xu Xiujuan. Gray starlings have a strong sense of community. In addition to moving in pairs during the breeding season, they often move in groups during the non-breeding period. In the Forbidden City, pay more attention to the grass or tall trees, you may be able to see them….

Qing Dynasty, Queen Xia Chaoguan inlaid with jewels and green velvet. The imperial crown is the most important among all kinds of crowns and hats. The various ornaments on the crown are symbols of the status and rank of the wearer. The more pearls inlaid on the top of the crown, the higher the status of the owner. The queen wears a crown of sable in winter and green velvet in summer. This queen’s crown is made of green velvet. There are three layers of phoenixes on the top of the crown. Seven birch-bark phoenixes and one Zhai are hung on silk threads on the top of the crown. The hanging beads are in the “five elements and two” style. It is one of the highest-ranking symbols in the crown of a concubine. First, it is the Xia Dynasty crown worn by empresses and empress dowagers of the Qing Dynasty when they wore formal clothes…

“Puzzle Figure” is a traditional toy in the Qing palace. It was designed by Tong Yegeng in the first year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1862) based on the “Tangram”. It is composed of 15 different wooden boards, which are arranged and combined according to the principle of Bagua. The graphics that can be assembled are more abundant than the “tangram”. On the base of this “wooden puzzle picture”, an unknown prince or princess also drew a pony, which is very childlike and very cute. The cultural relics in the picture are on display in the exhibition

Qing Dynasty, coral carvings with 囍 characters and patterns on the beads. Chaozhu is a kind of pendant in the Qing Dynasty, hung around the neck and hanging on the chest. When the concubines of the Qing Dynasty wear court clothes, they must wear three strings of court beads, one hanging in the middle and two hanging crosswise. Depending on the rank, the beads worn are also different, so it is also a symbol of identity and status. The Queen’s Chaozhu belongs to the highest level. The queen wears a court robe and must wear a string of East beads on the front of her chest and two strings of coral beads on her armpits. This piece of court beads is made of red coral beads engraved with the character “囍”. The Buddha’s head and the pagoda are made of lapis lazuli. Yellow sash, used for the queen’s wedding

If you want to learn a foreign language, where should you start? This “Mongolian” study book by Emperor Qianlong can be used for our reference. In 1743, when Emperor Qianlong was on an eastward tour, he began to systematically learn Mongolian in order to communicate with the Mongolian princes and nobles he met along the way. In this book “Mongolian”, the translated Mongolian words are transcribed from Manchu letters to facilitate understanding and learning; in terms of content, it is mainly suitable for scenes such as meeting lamas in the Mongolian and Tibetan areas. It is highly targeted and focuses on phrases and sentences. , mostly contain spoken language components. “How’s the journey? When did you arrive?” “Is there snow on the road?” “How is the year?” It seems that regardless of ancient and modern times, to master a foreign language, most of them start with “300 Practical Conversational Sentences”!

Autumn leaves are still red, rustling and cold wind blows. Today is the beginning of winter , under the clear sky and setting sun, it is the early winter of  Falling in Love with the Forbidden City .

Qing Dynasty, silver and gold-plated beaded stone collar. The collar, also known as a collar, was an accessory worn on the necks of concubines in the Qing Dynasty to distinguish their status. It was very valuable in the royal dowry of the Qing Dynasty. “The Qing Hui Dian Diagram·Crown Clothes·Contract” stipulates: “The Queen’s contract is engraved with gold and decorated with eleven east beads, with coral in between. There are two yellow sash hanging at both ends, with coral in each middle, and turquoise at the end. Two of each.” The higher the user’s status, the more Eastern beads will be inlaid. The same is used for concubines, concubines and concubines. This necklace is made of gold-plated silver, carved with hollow curly grass patterns, inlaid with two sections of rubies, two sections of ink jade, inlaid with red stones and pearls at intervals, tied with a golden ribbon, and four red and green stones at the corners.

During the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty, women’s court robes were made of bright yellow silk embroidered with colorful clouds, bats and 囍 characters and gold dragon patterns. The queen’s dress consists of court crown, court robe, court gown, court beads, gold covenant and collar covenant, etc. It is made like the emperor’s dress. When the emperor receives congratulations from the court on his wedding day, the queen must also wear court robes, crowns, collars, court beads, colorful silk ribbons, etc. This queen’s court robe has a large placket with right flap, round collar, horse hoof sleeves, attached collar, and straight body style. The court robe is bright yellow, with silk embroidered with the word “囍”, colorful clouds and golden dragon patterns. It should be worn by the empress at the wedding of Emperor Tongzhi.

During the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty, he wears a green gown with clouds, bats and emblems, and a golden dragon pattern. This gown was worn by the concubines of the Qing Dynasty when celebrating grand ceremonies. It is slightly shorter than the court robe and is worn over the court robe. The gown has a round collar, double lapel, sleeves, and left and right trains. The whole body is decorated with colorful silk and gold embroidery patterns, with two flat gold embroidered dragons on the chest and back. The embroidered seawater cliff is densely covered with colorful clouds and the word “囍” pattern, which is suitable for the wedding.

Qing Dynasty, gold hoop inlaid with rubies and red satin color. Caixi is a kind of scarf used by the imperial concubines in the Qing Dynasty. It is mostly made of silk and satin and is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. When in use, it is hung on the second button of the court gown and hangs down on the chest. This colorful silk ribbon is made of red silk with embroidered patterns on the front such as bats, Ganoderma lucidum, peach fruits, the Eight Immortals, and seawater cliffs. The upper end is a green and white jade ring, with eight groups of sixteen pendants, and various gemstones at the bottom. A red coral flat bead with a dragon pattern is dropped from the top of the yellow ribbon, and a tourmaline drop is placed on each corner of the gold lace support. The colors and embroidered decorations of different colored silk ribbons can be used to distinguish the rank of concubines.

What did the ancient “coach” look like…  In, we reviewed the scene of the autumn sentry deer in the Qing Dynasty palace. In addition to setting up ambushes for hunting, horseback shooting is also a national skill developed by the Manchus in their long-term hunting life. It was designated as a “national policy” in the Qing Dynasty and an important assessment subject for members of the Eight Banners. The Xi Yi Huating exhibition at Prince Gong’s Mansion Museum displays several Qing court riding and archery equipment, including bows and arrows, quivers and saddles. The photo materials in the exhibition hall also show an important prop for learning equestrian-a wooden saddle, which can be called an ancient version of a “coach” and provides a window for us to understand the riding and shooting culture of the Qing Dynasty..

In the 1920s, Wanrong dressed up in old photos for her wedding. Guo Bulo Wanrong (1906-1946), courtesy name Muhong and nickname Zhilian, was a native of Zhengbai Banner in Manchuria and the wife of Emperor Puyi of the Qing Dynasty. Wanrong and Puyi got married in 1922, and the wedding was held in the Forbidden City, imitating the emperor’s wedding ceremony. During the wedding, Wanrong wore court clothes, a court crown on her head, a collar and court beads around her neck. She was dressed according to the Qing Dynasty queen’s dress. This is an old photo from that time….

Emperor Kangxi was very interested in natural science subjects such as mathematics, astronomy, geography, pharmacology, anatomy, etc. Among them, the best results were in mathematics and astronomical calendar. Mathematics subjects such as geometry, algebra, trigonometry, and logarithms laid a good mathematical foundation for his future decisions such as advocating science and regulating the Yellow River. He also personally taught the princes how to use telescopes and observed solar eclipses together. The XiYiHuating exhibition at Prince Gong’s Mansion Museum displays Qing Dynasty drawing tools, logarithmic tables, telescopes and other cultural relics..

Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, gilded copper chimes with cloud and dragon patterns; Qingkuan et al. of the Qing Dynasty, pictures of wedding celebrations, edicts and banquets (details). The emperor’s wedding is one of the most important ceremonies in the palace. During major ceremonies, there is a Zhonghe Shao music band under the east and west eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Zhonghe Shao music belongs to ancient court music and has the highest standard among the music systems of the Qing Dynasty. Zhonghe Shao music was used in the wedding ceremonies of emperors in the Qing Dynasty, which was a symbol of the supreme status of the emperor and empress. During the emperor’s wedding ceremony, Zhonghe Shao music was played when the emperor ascended and descended.

Chime bells are an important instrument in Zhonghe Shao music. They are the “gold” musical instruments in the “eight tones”. There are a set of sixteen pieces, including twelve regular temperaments and four double temperaments (bass). The bell is gold-plated, with double dragon buttons, chiseled with cloud and dragon patterns, and is oval and hollow, with respective names cast on the back. When Zhonghe Shao music is played, the bells and chimes ring in harmony, and the golden sound vibrates.

During the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, jasper chimes were made with golden clouds and dragon patterns. Chimes and bells are both important instruments in Zhonghe Shao music. The musical instruments used in Zhonghe Shao music are made of eight materials: gold, stone, silk, bamboo, gourd, soil, leather and wood. They are called eight tones, with a total of sixteen types. When the grand ceremony is held, Zhonghe Shao music is set up under the eaves of Taihe Hall. The “stone” in the “eight tones” of the chime is a musical instrument, with a set of sixteen pieces, and the name of the chime is the same as that of the chime. The thickness of the chime body adjusts the sound. This chime is made of Hetian jasper in Xinjiang and decorated with golden cloud and dragon patterns on both sides. It was made in the 29th year of Qianlong’s reign (1764)…

The beautiful elf yellow-rumped warbler, commonly known as “Tree Chuan’er”, is a small bird in the Forbidden City and difficult to identify. This little bird is not only beautiful to look at, but also has a nice chirping sound, which is loud, melodious and changeable. Commonly found in the middle and upper crowns of trees and some shrubs, it flies and jumps short distances between tree branches. In warm and sunny weather, it is relatively active in singing and foraging. The yellow-rumped warbler is a migratory bird in urban Beijing, mainly during its migration in spring and autumn. The chance of encountering it is relatively high from April to May and October to November every year…

The Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, the gold-plated copper bell at the entrance of Yongniu Bridge was Zhonglu. Bells and special chimes are important ritual instruments used exclusively in the Qing palace and Shao music. In the twenty-sixth year of Qianlong’s reign (1761), Emperor Qianlong imitated the shape of ancient bells and made a set of twelve bells with gold-plated copper. Each bell was hung separately. The pitch was adjusted by the size of the bell body, and the sound of the bell became louder. The lower. Before the band plays, the bells are struck once, and at the end of the music, the chimes are struck once to create a golden sound.

During the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, a special chime made of jasper depicting golden clouds and dragon patterns was produced. After Emperor Qianlong cast the bell, in order to complete the ritual and music system, he also added a set of twelve special chimes in the same year, one for each, and they were used in the same way as the bell. The special chime is made of a whole piece of Xinjiang Hotan jasper and is crafted by Suzhou jade craftsmen. The body of the chime is obtuse-angled rectangular, with both sides decorated with golden clouds and dragon patterns. The gold and green contrast with each other, and the decoration is gorgeous. On the left and right sides of the upper part of the stand are phoenix heads. The page board is decorated with phoenixes pierced by peony patterns, and the lower part supports a reclining duck.
There are twelve special chimes in a set, corresponding to the twelve rhythms made in the Qing Dynasty. The pitch is adjusted by the size of the chime body. The larger the chime, the lower the pronunciation. Each chime is hung separately, so it is called special chime. When used, different special chimes are chosen according to the rules for each month, such as “Taicu” corresponding to the first month, and so on. The use of special chimes reflects the political concept of Emperor Qianlong advocating Confucian ritual and music education…

Daju, who was covered in autumn fat, couldn’t resist the howling autumn wind and started playing “hide and seek” under the stone fence. This weekend, have you decided where to go to “cat”?

Yellow satin embroidered cloud and dragon pattern (replica). Hui was the commanding tool of Heshao music in court performances in the Qing Dynasty. When the music was under his command, the music was composed, and when it was under his command, the music stopped. The main body of the robe is made of bright yellow cloud satin, embroidered with colorful rising dragons, clouds and fire beads. The upper part is made of blue satin, embroidered with nebulae. In the middle is the sun wheel, with the word “中和” embroidered on it. The lower end is embroidered with seawater and river cliffs. The upper and lower parts of the muzzle are pierced with gold-painted crossbars, with double dragons carved on the upper part and landscapes carved on the lower part. The harem is hung on a red pole, the end of the pole is decorated with a copper-plated dragon head, and the lower part is inserted into a gold-lacquered wooden base. The chariot shown in the picture is a replica, and the red pole and stand are left over from the Qing palace

“Roasted pears” is a popular snack on the streets in autumn and winter today. The middle of the pear is hollowed out, filled with red dates, rock sugar and other ingredients, and then slowly roasted in the oven. The roasted pears are soft in the mouth, sweet and mellow. Chinese people have a long history of eating pears, and they eat them in different ways. Fresh food is the most common, and steaming and boiling are also common practices. There is a poem that goes, “The old man in the Tian family has nothing to do, and the pear steamed in the steamer during the day has a dull fragrance.” In ancient times, The method of roasting pears is similar to today’s roasted pears. The story of “burning pears to give secretion” in the Tang Dynasty is well known. In addition, there is also a poem in the poem, “I still remember the wind and snow in the official Chengcheng, and the fire burned pears together at night.” Burning pears is the joy of gathering around the fire at night.

There are many ways to eat pears, which one do you prefer?

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

#北京 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #November2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage.  Collection 26th October – 3rd November 2023…..

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On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden City collection…. 

Qing Dynasty, filigree enamel candlestick with the word “囍”. Before the advent of electric lights, people used oil lamps or candles for lighting. There were many candles and candlesticks in the Qing palace. Candlesticks are mostly made of metal, which is stable and difficult to ignite. Menorah styles vary depending on where they are used. This cloisonné enamel candlestick has a sky blue glaze base and is decorated with lotus patterns. Yuanbao symbolizes wealth and can prevent wax oil from spilling. The word “囍” indicates that this candlestick is specially made for weddings.

Wang Xizhi’s “Lanting Preface” of the Eastern Jin Dynasty is known as “the best running script in the world”. The “Lanting Preface” that has been handed down from generation to generation is divided into two types: later generations’ copy, copy and stone rubbing. During the Song Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, engraving and calligraphy flourished. “Preface to Orchid Pavilion” was carved in stone and passed down, which became a fashion. Collecting rubbings of “Lanting Preface” has gradually become a hobby among literati, ranging from a few to more than ten, or even hundreds or even hundreds.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, Lizong, the Prime Minister of Yousi, collected hundreds of rubbings of Wang Xizhi’s “Lanting Preface”, which were later called “Youxiang Lanting”. According to the heavenly stems, there are ten types of each stem from A and B to Ren and Gui. In the third section of the exhibition 松图charm , “You Xiang Orchid Pavilion”, the Palace Museum and the Art Museum of the Chinese University of Hong Kong jointly displayed fourteen of them for the audience to compare and appreciate….

Encounter ancient characters in the Forbidden City “Grandfather”, “Grandmother”, “Ancestor”, “ancestor”… Where does the word “ancestor” come from? What does the Yin-Shang period mean? Are grandparents represented by the word “ancestor”?

Qing, the wooden tablet of the God of Joy. The wedding of an emperor and an empress, with dragons and phoenixes appearing auspicious, is the greatest joyous event in the world. The emperor and the empress wanted to seek good fortune, avoid misfortune, and bring joy with them, so they naturally wanted to worship the God of Joy. The emperor and queen only became official husband and wife after performing the wedding ceremony. The next day, they also had to worship the gods of heaven and earth, the god of joy, etc. This picture is the tablet used to worship the God of Joy. The tablet is made of wood and has the words “the tablet of the God of Joy” on it. It is placed on the table of the God of Joy when worshiping. The time, direction, and location of worshiping the God of Joy are determined by the calculations of Qin Tianjian…..

Purple Forbidden City Xunfang In the ninth month of the lunar calendar, chrysanthemums are the official flower of the month. Whether it is cold and chilly or rich and gorgeous, the various features of autumn can be expressed through the posture of chrysanthemums.

As one of the Four Gentlemen of Flowers, the chrysanthemum has a deep connection with literati. From Qu Yuan, who “ate autumn chrysanthemums in the evening” to Tao Yuanming, who “picked chrysanthemums by the east fence”, there are many sages in Chinese history who were fascinated by their unique temperament. “A thousand years of white clothes and wine, a lifetime of youthful fragrance” is a vivid portrayal of the image of chrysanthemum.

Qing Dynasty, red paint with 囍 character pattern and incense bucket. After the wedding, emperors and empresses would worship the God of Joy and ask the God of Joy to bring happiness to their bodies. The specific method is to place the tablet of the God of Joy and the incense stick with the word “囍” in it, the green apple, and the incense stick with the word “囍” in red paint on the table to worship the God of Joy together. The four sides of this incense bowl are painted with the Chinese character “囍” in gold, which is specially used to worship the God of Joy. The incense bucket was originally stored in Kunning Palace, indicating that the ceremony to worship the God of Joy was held in Kunning Palace.

Late autumn has arrived and the weather is getting colder. Children should wear cute hats and warm cotton clothes. The several costumes in the picture were all used by princes and princesses in the palace in the old days. Tiger-head shoes and tiger-head hats are traditional Chinese children’s clothing. They are often worn at the same time and have auspicious meanings to ward off evil and ensure safety. Regardless of the court or the people, people like to wear tiger-head shoes and hats for their children to wish them healthy growth. The cultural relics in the picture are on display in the exhibition 西伊华堂 at the Prince Gong’s Mansion Museum….

During the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty, a round cushion made of red silk embroidered with dragons, phoenixes and 囍 characters. The center of the round cushion is embroidered with the golden word “囍”, the two sides of the word “囍” are embroidered with images of dragons and phoenixes, and the edges are embroidered with the character “囍”, bats, and gourd patterns, which means that the wedding of the emperor and the empress will bring many happy events, endless blessings, and the proliferation of descendants. This red silk cushion with embroidered dragon and phoenix “囍” characters may have been specially made for the wedding ceremony of Emperor Guangxu and his wife.

In order to implement the spirit of the “Opinions on Promoting the Work of Ancient Books in the New Era” and deepen the protection and revitalization of ancient literature and cultural relics, the Palace Museum, on the basis of sorting, protecting and researching the engraving cultural relics in the museum’s collection, has established a monastery in the southeast of Taihe Gate. The ” 九牌馆 ” was opened in the building and the court room , and the ” 吉光片雨 – Exhibition of Qing Dynasty palace engraving cultural relics collected by the Palace Museum” was held at the same time , with more than 15,000 pieces (groups) of cultural relics displayed in a warehouse-style display. This is the first time the Palace Museum has held a special cultural relics exhibition of this type since its establishment. The exhibition will be officially open to the public from October 31, 2023, in the Southeast Chonglou and Chaofang Engraving Hall inside the Taihe Gate of the Palace Museum.

Qing Dynasty, silver-plated gold-plated stone, jade and coral beads inlaid with three Ruyi. According to the wedding custom in the palace, after marriage, one should worship the God of Joy in the bridal chamber of Kunning Palace. On the table of the God of Joy, the word “囍” for “Ruyi” is placed. A “Ruyi” is also placed on each corner of the emperor’s and empress’s marriage bed to convey the beautiful wishes of the newly married emperor and empress. This silver-plated Ruyi piece is inlaid with various jewels with the characters “auspicious”, “auspicious”, “ru”, “yi” and “囍”, which may be related to the emperor’s wedding ceremony to worship the God of Joy. Three-inlaid Ruyi is one of the Ruyi shapes. It is named after the inlays are applied to the head, handle body and tail of Ruyi. Inlay was initially used on bamboo handles and wooden handles, and then gradually expanded to other materials.

Qing Dynasty, celebrations, etc., wedding celebrations, imperial edicts, banquet etiquette pictures (partial). The emperor and the empress performed the union ceremony in the bridal chamber. After officially becoming husband and wife, they also held celebration ceremonies, edict-issuing ceremonies and banquet ceremonies. The eighth volume of Emperor Guangxu’s “Wedding Pictures”, “Pictures of Celebrations, Edicts, and Banquets,” depicts the entire process of celebrations, edicts, and banquets. The pictures in this volume are very rich in connotation. The “Wedding Pictures” selected this month are all taken from this volume. Emperor Guangxu first congratulated Empress Dowager Cixi in Cining Palace. During the celebration ceremony, the emperor knelt down and kowtowed to the empress dowager, and the emperor and internal and external ministers presented congratulations to the empress dowager. This picture shows Emperor Guangxu leading the princes and ministers in a celebration scene of kneeling three times and bowing nine times to the Empress Dowager Cixi…

1st November 2023 – Frost red is dancing in several places, and thousands of golden spots are dyed, riding on the autumn wind. Hello November fall in love with the forbidden city …..

Qing., pictures of wedding celebrations, issuing edicts, and giving banquets. The emperor led the princes and ministers to congratulate the Empress Dowager at the Cining Palace, and then came to the Taihe Hall to receive the congratulations from the princes, princes and officials, and then issued an edict to announce it to the world. The celebration of the emperor’s wedding, the issuance of edicts, and the banquet are all state rituals, and the scenes are extremely grand. The picture selected this month is a page from the album “Pictures of Etiquette for Celebrations, Edicts, and Banquets”. In the picture, you can see the Fajialu Book in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Square of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Zhonghe Shaoyue Music under the eaves of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and the There is Danbi Da Le under the eaves of Taihe Gate. The princes, ministers, civil and military officials, and envoys from foreign vassals were ranked according to their grades and stood respectively in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, His Majesty Dan and His Majesty Dan. As the official of Luan Yiwei issued the whip command, His Majesty Dan, the captain of the whip, cracked the silent whip three times, and then the praise officer of Honglu Temple shouted the command: “Scheduling!” The saluting officials presented congratulations to the emperor according to their rank. , among whom there were also envoys from foreign vassals, who kowtowed and saluted under the guidance of ritual music.

How many steps does it take to transfer the words on the stone tablet to paper?
The process of rubbing a monument may seem simple, but a good rubbing also requires skilled rubbing skills. Take a look at the schematic diagram below. Do your eyes catch it? Do you know how to do it?
Search and enter the “Transfer Heart and Extension” applet to experience the art of transfer with your own hands…

Qing Dynasty, static whip with red wooden handle; Qing Dynasty, celebration of Kuan, etc., pictures of wedding celebrations, edicts, and banquets (partial). The static whip is a tool used to maintain order during grand ceremonies in the palace. The static whip has a wooden handle, one foot long, engraved with a golden dragon head, and painted with red paint. The total length of the whip is about 5.93 meters. When the emperor came to the Hall of Supreme Harmony to accept the congratulations from all the officials, ascended to the throne and descended from the throne to leave the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the guard Luan Yi shouted the command: “Cry the Whip!” At this time, His Majesty Dan’s Whip Cry was set up in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. The captain of the school whips his whip to the ground three times to remind the officials that the ceremony is about to begin or to announce the end of the ceremony.

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

#北京 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #October2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage.  Collection Collection 16th –  26th October  2023…..

kevinjamesngLeave a comment

On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden City collection…. 

On the 26th October 2023  is World Food Day, let’s get to know the word “rice” in Oracle!
The word “rice” in oracle bone inscriptions is made up of rice grains. The small dots above and below represent rice grains. Some people think that the horizontal drawing in the middle is the shape of a sieve.


“Mi” initially referred to millet that had taken off its shell, and later it gradually referred to rice specifically, which is the rice we are familiar with. my country’s early rice domestication played an important role in the origin of world agriculture. As early as more than 10,000 years ago in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River (Shangshan Site), our ancestors had begun the domestication of rice, which was basically synchronized with the domestication of major crops in the world such as wheat and corn.


Today, more than half of the world’s population depends on rice, but there are still 200-300 million people facing severe food crises. Let us join together to respond to the ” palacezerowaste  ” initiative, take action on discs, cherish every particle and never throw it away!

Qing Dynasty, clay paint and yellow wine jar. Wedding ceremonies are grand and lively, often with wine added to the fun. This wine jar is made of clay and painted with colorful paint. The body of the jar is painted with auspicious patterns of dragons and phoenixes. There is the word “囍” on the jar body and sealing mud. The jar is filled with rice wine produced in Zhejiang. In ancient China, the best rice wine was brewed in Shaoxing, Zhejiang. This wine may have been specially produced by local officials as a tribute to the emperor’s wedding.

Tongzhi, Qing Dynasty, yellow ground pastel color magpie plum bowl. In preparation for the wedding in the 11th year of Tongzhi (1872), the palace issued a firing list and official instructions to the Jingdezhen Royal Kiln Factory: “The queen needs to use porcelain for fourteen points and nine colors.” Among them, “Fourteen Points” refers to fourteen sets of porcelain with different patterns, each of which is a sea bowl, a large bowl, a medium bowl, a soup bowl, a rice bowl, a pocket bowl, a nine-inch plate, a seven-inch plate, a five-inch plate, and a four-inch plate. One-inch plates, three-inch plates, two-inch five-plates, wine cups, soup spoons, tea cups, large tea cups, tureens, tea jars, urns, powder boxes, rice bowls, rouge boxes, flower pots, narcissus boxes, etc. The inner wall of this bowl is plain, and the outer wall is painted with magpies and plum blossoms on the yellow ground. The main trunk of the plum tree is curved, the branches are strong, and plum blossoms are dotted on the branches. Black magpies are flying or perching, with vivid postures and delicate depictions. The magpie climbing on the plum blossom is a traditional Chinese auspicious pattern. It is pronounced by the words “xi” and “plum”, which means “happy on the eyebrows”. This patterned bowl is one of the “Fourteen Points” porcelain fired at Tongzhi’s wedding ceremony.

From October 12th to 18th, the week-long third “Forbidden City Zero Waste Catering Culture Week” came to an end! During this Catering Culture Week, the Forbidden City has newly upgraded and launched an “immersive zero-waste restaurant” experience. It provides publicity, decoration tips, action guidelines, etc. based on scientific dining procedures to encourage audiences and employees to proactively reduce food waste and develop a “CD-ROM” Actions”, “reduce disposable plastic tableware”, “garbage sorting” and other good green dining habits.

“Grains are the life of all people and the most important treasure of the country.” Palace museum and Vanke philanthropy foundation invite you to participate in palacezerowaste and let the good habit of “zero waste dining” accompany you every day to ensure “food security”

Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty, a gold-engraved tea bowl with patterns of flowers, longevity and longevity. The tea bowl is made of 80% gold. The round mouth is slightly open, and the upper part of the outer wall and the circle foot are engraved with a pattern around it. The middle of the outer wall is engraved with two pairs of characters “囍” and the character “Shou”, and the lower part is decorated with lotus petals. Inscribed on the sole of the foot is “Two liang equal to seven liang, four qian and two cents in the eleventh year of Tongzhi (1872)”. The eleventh year of Tongzhi (1872) was the year of Emperor Tongzhi’s wedding. The word “囍” was engraved on the bowl, which should be used for the wedding.

Dharma stickers are made by imitating the ink marks of famous people from different eras on stones, making rubbings and spreading them widely. Among them, the ancients said that those with fine imitation, engraving, and rubbing are “first class than authentic works.” Dharma stickers can more realistically reproduce the calligraphy of famous artists, making it easier for people to practice calligraphy. The publication of “Chunhua Pavilion Tie” in the Northern Song Dynasty created the trend of engraving and passing on rubbings, and it is known as the “ancestor of Fati”.

The original stone of “Chunhua Pavilion Tie” was destroyed long ago. Song Tuo Charming The second section of the exhibition “Chunhua Pavilion Calligraphy and Song Dynasty Dharma Calligraphy” displays the Maoqin Palace copy collected by the Palace Museum and the Quanzhou copy collected by the Art Museum of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. They are both rare re-engraved copies of the “Chunhua Pavilion Calligraphy” handed down from ancient times.

Qing Dynasty, golden dragon and phoenix double 囍 pattern plate. This gold plate is 4.8 centimeters high and 30.6 centimeters in diameter. It is made of 80% gold and weighs forty taels. It is the largest gold plate existing in the Qing palace. There are four characters on the plate: “dragon”, “phoenix”, “double” and “囍”. This plate may have been used for the weddings of emperors and empresses.

Painted banquet table with golden dragon and phoenix patterns. In the Qing Dynasty, when the emperors and empresses held wedding ceremonies, they had to share a table and eat together. The table was entered by the female official of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The emperor sat on the right and the queen sat on the left, eating and drinking opposite each other. This table is the combined banquet table. The table is made of wood, with a yellow lacquered table top and a painted golden dragon and phoenix “囍” pattern. The legs are slightly curved, making it beautiful and practical. Emperor Guangxu’s “Red Banquet of the Wedding Ceremony” records that the emperor and empress’s banquet table was one foot high, three feet five inches long, and two feet five inches wide. It was decorated with the Chinese character “囍” with dragons and phoenixes on a yellow ground. The size and pattern matched this table.

The scroll of “Guiju Mountain Birds” (Fig. 1) was painted by Lu Ji, a court painter of the Ming Dynasty, and is now collected in the Palace Museum. The subjects depicted on the axis of the picture are red-billed blue magpies, starlings, sweet-scented osmanthus, and autumn chrysanthemums, all of which are auspicious and precious things. The objects in the picture not only truly show the natural nature of the creatures, but also vividly express the beautiful meaning. The starlings on the branches are chirping at each other, highlighting their good singing nature; the four red-billed blue magpies are graceful and their dark blue feathers are particularly eye-catching. Among them, the three in the lower left corner are fighting for an insect, which is lifelike. The red-billed blue magpie is a beautiful bird. The male and female have similar feather colors. Its extraordinary temperament can be called the “face value” among birds. However, their calls are in great contrast to their beautiful appearance and graceful flying posture. They make many different noisy calls and whistles, which are rough and noisy….

Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty, the recipe for the Henu Banquet. According to Emperor Guangxu’s “Red Banquet of the Wedding Ceremony”, on the twenty-seventh day of the first lunar month in the fifteenth year of Guangxu’s reign (1889), the emperor and his empress had a banquet. The meal list was as follows: red gold plate with two items: pig black fork and sheep black fork; red gold bowl The fourth product: bird’s nest with the character “Eight Immortals” duck, the bird’s nest with the character “囍”, shredded duck, thin pork shreds soup; the second product of the red gold plate: the bird’s nest with the character “dragon” mixed with shredded smoked chicken, the bird’s nest with the character “phoenix”, golden and silver elbow flower, the bird’s nest with the character “Cheng”, spiced chicken , bird’s nest with auspicious characters, gold and silver duck silk; red gold snail plate with side dishes, second item; red gold plate with side dishes, second item; red ground with golden flower characters, porcelain bowl, second item: bird’s nest and eight immortals soup, second item; colorful Bai Zi porcelain bowl, second item: old rice meal; second item; The second product of the colorful Baizi porcelain bowl: the second product of Zisun Pastry. The dumplings are dumplings brought by the queen from her natal family and cannot be cooked. When the emperor and empress were eating them, a boy outside the window asked if they were alive, and the emperor and empress had to answer “live”. Eating cakes for descendants should be done before the Henu Banquet, which shows that the royal family attaches great importance to the inheritance of descendants. The tableware for the Hexin Banquet is luxurious, and the dishes contain the beautiful meaning of dragons and phoenixes, and the succession of descendants…

Qing Dynasty, red sandalwood inlaid glass with the word “囍” hanging on the corners. Emperors of the Qing Dynasty mostly married their queens in the afternoon or evening. Emperor Tongzhi married during the Shen hour, that is, between 3 pm and 5 pm, while Emperor Guangxu chose the Zi hour, which was between 11 pm and 1 am. When a wedding is held at night, lights and candles are naturally indispensable. There are poke lamps that can be inserted on the base, hand-held lamps, table lamps placed on the table, and hanging lamps hung on the room. Poke lamps and holding lamps are mostly used outdoors, while table lamps and hanging lamps are mostly used indoors. This hanging lamp consists of two parts: a lamp cap and a lamp body. The red character “囍” is pasted on the lamp body, which means prosperity and joy.

Today is #Double Ninth Festival# , it is advisable to climb high and face the open air, and express your feelings with your eyes wide open. # fall in love with the forbidden city #

Qing, the horny character holds the lamp. The lamp consists of two parts: cover and base. The lampshade is round in shape, with the upper and lower parts slightly tightened, and the word “囍” is written in red on both sides. The handle is connected to the base, and a bracket is installed on the base to fix the lampshade. The cover is made of horn, heated and boiled with cow and sheep horns and solvent until soft, and then different types of lasts are used to gradually expand it. The cover wall is thin and seamless, has good light transmission and is windproof. However, the production of lampshades is difficult, the yield is low, and those with large diameters are particularly rare. This kind of horn lamp is controlled by eunuchs and is not only used to illuminate the queen’s carriage when walking in the palace, but can also be placed in the wedding room to create a festive atmosphere…..

On the 24th October 2023 .. Fall in Love with the Forbidden City…. Turtles and cranes watch the sun and moon from a distance, while divine lins spit out mist and turn into frost. Repost three auspicious beasts and reap Frostfall…… good luck!

The autumn air is crisp and the autumn clouds are light. After mid-autumn, galloping horses and sentrying deer in the forest were seasonal leisure activities for the Qing Dynasty court. The method of sentrying a deer is to “put on the deer’s head and lie down in the forest ravine, and use the whistle to call the deer.” It can be seen that the deer whistle is an important tool for hunting deer. Deer whistles are shaped like horns, about two to three feet long, and can simulate the sound of a deer. According to the habits of deer, deer hunters need to start from the camp before the fifth watch, go to the predetermined location to hide, and wait with bated breath after the deer whistle blows. After the deer appears, because the distance is close and the target is clear, the deer will hit more; if occasionally If you fail to hit, the pursuit will generally not continue. Figure 8 is one of the imperial deer whistles collected by the Palace Museum that is on display in the exhibition….

Qing Dynasty, filigree enamel candlestick with the word “囍”. Before the advent of electric lights, people used oil lamps or candles for lighting. There were many candles and candlesticks in the Qing palace. Candlesticks are mostly made of metal, which is stable and difficult to ignite. Menorah styles vary depending on where they are used. This cloisonné enamel candlestick has a sky blue glaze base and is decorated with lotus patterns. Yuanbao symbolizes wealth and can prevent wax oil from spilling. The word “囍” indicates that this candlestick is specially made for weddings.

Wang Xizhi’s “Lanting Preface” of the Eastern Jin Dynasty is known as “the best running script in the world”. The “Lanting Preface” that has been handed down from generation to generation is divided into two types: later generations’ copy, copy and stone rubbing. During the Song Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, engraving and calligraphy flourished. “Preface to Orchid Pavilion” was carved in stone and passed down, which became a fashion. Collecting rubbings of “Lanting Preface” has gradually become a hobby among literati, ranging from a few to more than ten, or even hundreds or even hundreds.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, Lizong, the Prime Minister of Yousi, collected hundreds of rubbings of Wang Xizhi’s “Lanting Preface”, which were later called “Youxiang Lanting”. According to the heavenly stems, there are ten types of each stem from A and B to Ren and Gui. In the third section of the #松图charm exhibition, “You Xiang Orchid Pavilion”, the Palace Museum and the Art Museum of the Chinese University of Hong Kong jointly displayed fourteen of them for the audience to compare and appreciate.

日国宫 , tonight’s good night comes from the book “Yuemanqingyoutu”·Chrysanthemum Appreciation on the Double Ninth Festival.

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

#北京 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #October2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage.  Collection 11th   towards  16th October  2023 …..

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On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden City collection…. 

 On the 11th October the anniversary of Daily palace, tonight’s good night comes from the 98-year-old Palace Description: [Heart]Museum…..

The wind blows and the rain blows, the stars move, and the ancient city remains undefeated through the prosperous years. Today is the 98th anniversary of the founding of the National Palace Museum . The Forbidden City carries the ancient memories of history, and has witnessed and accompanied everyone to open new chapters in life over the long years. On the 98th birthday of the Forbidden City, let us look back on every detail of our visit to the Forbidden City, relive our exclusive memories with the Forbidden City, and jointly protect this precious world cultural heritage!

Let’s read the calendar together  During the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty, bright yellow satin and flat gold embroidery with dragon and phoenix patterns on the backrest, bedding, and greetings. The Qing Dynasty palace mostly used hardwood furniture. Hardwood furniture is valuable and strong, but it can cause discomfort when sitting or lying down for long periods of time, especially in winter, so soft cushions are needed. The wooden kang is larger, and the mattress, backrest, and handstands are often used together. They are filled with cotton on the inside and wrapped in brocade and other fabrics, making them soft and comfortable. The soft cushion in the picture is embroidered with flat gold, using real gold threads embroidered on the surface of the fabric. Mattress, backrest and handrails are essential items in home life. Although they are trivial details, they are related to personal feelings and can reflect the taste of life, so they are valued by people at the time. Emperor Yongzheng put forward specific requirements for the design of cushions, backrests and hand patterns.

“The Qiang Guan is covered with frost all over the ground.” The autumn wind blows the camel bells, and also blows away the confusion at the end of the eyes of homesick travelers.

[Clothing] Camel gray tufted kui pattern dark flower diameter gauze small simple robe, camel ground dragon and phoenix Ganoderma lucidum Ruyi pattern brocade, beige ground flower pattern woven gold brocade, camel gauze short-waisted women’s socks
[Accessories] Topaz sword head with hooked grain pattern, light camel satin embroidered scratching chrysanthemum pattern waist round purse, gauze head flower
[Daily necessities] Topaz double ear-shaped movable ring bottle with lid, yellow tapestry fan with vines, flowers and butterflies and mahogany carved handles

日面宫# , tonight’s good night comes from Zhu Yunming’s cursive chrysanthemum poem ceremony.

In the Qing Dynasty, the kang blanket was embroidered with red cloth with Chinese characters, dragons and phoenixes, and colorful cloud patterns for generations. The carpet cultural relics in the Palace Museum are divided into carpets, kang rugs, and tapestries according to their uses. The center of this kang rug has a dragon and phoenix character “囍” pattern, and the edges are patterns of bats, gourds, plum blossoms, longevity peaches, and the character “囍”, which symbolize wealth, longevity, and descendants for generations. This kang rug uses Cantonese embroidery stitching and may come from Guangdong. It was a tribute specially purchased for the emperor’s wedding. According to Emperor Guangxu’s “Red Wedding Ceremony”, the East Nuan Pavilion of Kunning Palace used a red felt kang blanket embroidered with dragon and phoenix “囍” patterns.

Forbidden City Autumn Fashionable Color – Fragrant color
“The fragrance of ripe rice is ten miles west. The hibiscus fences fall with long bamboo silk. The hanging mountain fruits hang green and yellow.” In the scene of a good harvest, where does the autumn fragrance come from?

[Clothing] Women’s robe with fragrant yarn embroidered with eight groups of peony and Kuifeng patterns, fragrant satin soap boots with rice beads, fragrant satin velvet mouth with peony pattern oval purse, fragrant silk embroidered flower pattern handkerchief [Accessories] inlaid with pearls and
jade Belt buckle, yellow tourmaline bracelet with pearls and emerald ornaments
[daily necessities] jade flower handle cup, tea powder glazed string pattern bottle, tea powder glazed flower

Qing Dynasty, with dragon and phoenix characters on the mattress. The emperors and empresses of the Qing Dynasty often sat on the kang when they lived in the house, and kang blankets and mattresses were laid on the kang for convenience. According to Emperor Guangxu’s “Red Wedding Ceremony” records, when Emperor Guangxu got married, eight large red satin mattresses embroidered with dragons and phoenixes with “囍” patterns were prepared in the East Nuan Pavilion of Kunning Palace. This cushion was originally stored in Kunning Palace. From the embroidered pattern of dragon and phoenix with the character “囍”, it can be seen that it was used during the wedding of Emperor Guangxu.

Knots are the flowers that decorate the flowers. The mother-in-law is composed of a skeleton, an inner tube, and an exterior mother-in-law flower. The shapes of the flowers are various, including vase-shaped, olive-shaped, long angular, round, etc. They are called knots, hairpins, green strips, etc. according to the yellow strips they are attached to. Among them, the knot is decorated on the lower middle part of the front of the knot. Since most of the knots are equipped with hanging rings on both sides and the bottom edge of the back, beads can be hung; round hairpins are decorated on it, and long angular hairpins are decorated on the left and right sides of the knots..

Qing Dynasty, wood inlaid material, stone, gold and peach leather saddle. The saddle is made of wood, with an asphalt surface and painted with patterns such as butterflies and lotuses. The edge of the saddle is inlaid with rubies, turquoise, coral and other jewels. The attached yellow strips have the words “Happy Saddle” and “Branded Bundle” written on it. , it can be seen from this that it is a wedding saddle specially used for weddings. When the stipulated time came on the day of the emperor’s wedding, the eunuchs used ceremonial carriages to carry the queen to the Kunning Palace in the middle palace. When the queen entered Kunning Palace, the eunuch arrived in advance..

Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, bright yellow silk embroidered with clouds, bats, dragons, phoenixes and 囍 patterns. The napkin is a napkin. The emperor and empress wore it on their chests to avoid staining their clothes when they ate. The main color of this piece of clothing is bright yellow, with red, blue, white, and green colors in between. There is a yellow “囍” pattern in the center, dragon and phoenix patterns on both sides, and the edges are decorated with cranes, bats, deer, and the Chinese characters “Shou” and “Shou”. “囍” character pattern, etc. This bodice was specially made for the weddings or longevity celebrations of emperors and empresses of the Qing Dynasty.

Before the Han Dynasty, there were pre-Qin stone drums and Qin Shihuang carved stones. It was not until the Eastern Han Dynasty that rectangular standing stones with inscribed characters and a certain shape appeared, which were the stele with the meaning of later generations. With the development of the times, the meaning of stele gradually expanded to include stone inscriptions, such as stone inscriptions, epitaphs, cliff inscriptions, statue inscriptions, stone monument inscriptions, etc.

Most of the steles handed down from the Han Dynasty are rubbings from the Ming and Qing dynasties, with only a few rubbings from the Song Dynasty. The “Xiyue Huashan Temple Stele” of the Eastern Han Dynasty was destroyed in the Ming Dynasty, and only four rubbings survive: the Huayin and Siming editions collected by the Palace Museum, the Shunde edition collected by the Cultural Relics Collection of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Nagagaki edition collected by the Taito Ward Museum of Calligraphy in Tokyo, Japan. . Two of them, the Huayin version and the Shunde version, are on display in the first unit of this  Song Tuo Charm exhibition, “Xiyue Huashan Temple Stele and Han and Tang Stele Inscriptions

Ming Dynasty, Zigang style sapphire cup. After the sitting ceremony was completed, the emperor and empress performed the ceremony of union. Before the ceremony, the queen redressed and dressed up. In addition to changing into court robes and gown, she also had to comb her long hair, which is a symbol of an unmarried girl, into the “two hairs” of a married daughter-in-law. At the end of the lunar month, the emperor and empress sat on the mattress, drinking and eating. Under the eaves outside the house, the banner couple sang a song of celebration in Manchu to wish the emperor and empress good luck on their wedding, and the wedding ceremony was completed. This sapphire cup has two connected tubes. A phoenix is ​​carved between the two tubes as the cup handle. The rim of one side of the cup is engraved with the inscription “Zigang Zhi”, and the rim of the other side is engraved with the inscription “Henan Cup”.

Qing Dynasty, clay paint and yellow wine jar. Wedding ceremonies are grand and lively, often with wine added to the fun. This wine jar is made of clay and painted with colorful paint. The body of the jar is painted with auspicious patterns of dragons and phoenixes. There is the word “囍” on the jar body and sealing mud. The jar is filled with rice wine produced in Zhejiang. In ancient China, the best rice wine was brewed in Shaoxing, Zhejiang. This wine may have been specially produced by local officials as a tribute to the emperor’s wedding.

Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty, yellow ground pastel magpie plum bowl. In preparation for the wedding in the 11th year of Tongzhi (1872), the palace issued a firing list and official instructions to the Jingdezhen Royal Kiln Factory: “The queen needs to use porcelain for fourteen points and nine colors.” Among them, “Fourteen Points” refers to fourteen sets of porcelain with different patterns, each of which is a sea bowl, a large bowl, a medium bowl, a soup bowl, a rice bowl, a pocket bowl, a nine-inch plate, a seven-inch plate, a five-inch plate, and a four-inch plate. One-inch plates, three-inch plates, two-inch five-plates, wine cups, soup spoons, tea cups, large tea cups, tureens, tea jars, urns, powder boxes, rice bowls, rouge boxes, flower pots, narcissus boxes, etc. The inner wall of this bowl is plain, and the outer wall is painted with magpies and plum blossoms on the yellow ground. The main trunk of the plum tree is curved, the branches are strong, and plum blossoms are dotted on the branches. Black magpies are flying or perching, with vivid postures and delicate depictions. The magpie climbing on the plum blossom is a traditional Chinese auspicious pattern. It is pronounced by the words “xi” and “plum”, which means “happy on the eyebrows”. This patterned bowl is one of the “fourteen points” porcelain fired at Tongzhi’s wedding…

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

#北京 #中國 #China #Beijing | #紫禁城 #ForbiddenCity #October2023 | #ForbiddenCityDairies -The Palace Museum #ForbiddenCity Collections of Chinese intangible cultural heritage.  Collection  8th -11th October  2023-

kevinjamesngLeave a comment

On July 19th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of China was officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

 The multilingual website of the Palace Museum is committed to establishing an international website that is concise, clear, easy to use for overseas audiences, and fits the construction of the modern civilization of the Chinese nation, including tour guides, information, panoramic tours, online exhibitions, collection appreciation, cultural topics, etc. Rich immersive content describing of the most detail collection that housed within the Forbidden City collection…. 

中国romantic farewell Hangzhou  Asian Games In the eighth month of the lunar calendar, the osmanthus flower blooms and is the official flower of that month. In ancient times, the sweet-scented osmanthus was regarded as a good omen for success, and now it also contains the good expectations of “winning the laurels in the toad palace” and “winning the laurel crown”. The Hangzhou Asian Games will close tonight. Let us give a golden osmanthus to the athletes who are working hard to achieve greater success in their future journey!

Qing Dynasty, yellow satin embroidered pillow with gourd and 囍 characters, dragon and phoenix patterns. Pillows are bedding that is placed under the head to help people sleep. In the early days, they were mostly wooden and porcelain pillows, and later gradually became soft and comfortable fabric pillows. The pillow shapes include rectangular, round waist, cloud heads, petals, silver ingots, chicken hearts, etc. The most common decorative patterns are the lions who control the house, children praying for children, peonies hoping for wealth, dragons and phoenixes blessing marriage, etc. This pillow is used in the bridal chamber for weddings. It is embroidered with yellow satin, with the word “囍” in the center, dragon and phoenix patterns on both sides, and gourd patterns on the edges, which is consistent with the overall decoration theme of the bridal chamber.

Forbidden City Autumn Popular Colour – Sapphire Blue
“A crane lining the clouds in the clear sky brings poetry to the blue sky.” Autumn chrysanthemums, okra, and begonias blend into the gem-like blue sky of autumn.

[Clothing] Royal blue satin robe with flat gold embroidery and cloud and crane pattern, blue satin embroidered chrysanthemum and butterfly pattern bordered pipa lapel waistcoat, royal blue three-autumn pattern makeup satin [Daily necessities] Warm bowl with enamel painted with the Chinese character “Happiness” and treasure phase pattern, blue and
white Snuff bottle with cloud and dragon pattern, blue and white snuff bottle with cloud and dragon pattern, multicolour garlic bottle with golden and blue ground embossed pattern, blue glaze chrysanthemum petal plate, white ground covered blue glass chilong pattern amphora .

Interior view of the bridal chamber of Kunning Palace. This picture shows the northeast Kang (North Outer Kang) in the bridal chamber. Hanging on the wall of the Kang are the couplets “Ancestor Wu’s Rope, the Hall of Five Fortunes is the same as the Five Dynasties; Tianyan is happy, the third level wishes to merge with three more”. During the reign of Emperor Qianlong, there was a “Tangtong with the Five Dynasties”. For this reason, he specially ordered people to engrave the plaque of “Five Blessings and Five Dynasties Hall” and the seal of “Five Blessings and Five Dynasties Hall Ancient and Rare Emperor Treasure”, and wrote an article to record this event. “Three more” means more blessings, more longevity and more children, which means the emperor will have a long life. There are several tables built into the room, there are paintings on the walls, and there are mattresses, cushions, backrests, handrails, etc. on the kang.

The 98th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum The ancient city remains undefeated in the turbulent years. After ninety-eight years of struggle, the people of the Forbidden City are ushering in the rising sun of a new day!

[Raise hands] Based on the arrangement of the pictures, how many landmark buildings in the Forbidden City can you recognize?

Palace autumn popular color – Purple color
“The slow autumn light cannot be retained, and the red leaves are full of dusk.” The rustling of the sycamores and the rustling of the maple forest break the tranquility of the cold mountains in late autumn.

[Clothing] Cotton shirt with orchid pattern embroidered with gold and silver, crimson satin cotton with chrysanthemum pattern, maroon satin short-waisted socks [Accessories] oval purse with
dark maroon satin nailed damask bat pattern
[Daily necessities] birch wood inlay Box, purple gauze and silk with flowers and birds, round fan with bamboo carving handle, purple glass flat square snuff bottle, white sauce plate with folded branches, flowers and fruits, sauce stove with white phoenix pattern.

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..