The Twelve Ornaments (Chinese :十二章; pinyin :Shí'èr zhāng) are a group of ancient Chinese symbols and designs that are considered highly auspicious. They were employed in the decoration of textile fabrics in ancient China, which signified authority and power, and were embroidered on vestments of state. [1]
According to the Book of Documents , the Twelve Ornaments were referred to by Emperor Shun, one of the legendary Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, as being ancient in his time. Oral tradition holds that he lived sometime between 2294 and 2184 BC. [2] According to the book, the emperor wished for the symbols to be used on official robes of the state.
“I wish,” said the Emperor, “to see the emblematic figures of the ancients: the sun, the moon, the stars, the mountain, the dragon, and the flowery fowl, which are depicted on the upper garment; the temple-cup, the aquatic grass, the flames, the grain of rice, the hatchet, and the symbol of distinction, which are embroidered on the lower garment; I wish to see all these displayed with the five colours, so as to form the official robes; it is yours to adjust them clearly.” [3] [4] Only the emperor had the right to wear the complete set of twelve emblems painted or embroidered on his robes of ceremony. [5]
When the Twelve ornaments were used in different amounts, it could denote different social ranks; for example, in 59 AD during the Eastern Han dynasty, [6] it was specified that the 12 ornaments concerning the sun, the moon and the star had to be used for the emperors while 9 ornaments concerning mountains and dragons should be used by the 3 councillors, dukes and princes. [6] The 9 ministers and the lower-ranking officials had to use 7 ornaments concerning pheasants. [6]
The twelve ornaments featured in the Twelve Symbols national emblem of China, which was the state emblem from 1913 to 1928. [7]
The "twelve symbols" were used as insignia for reigning emperors, empress and the immediate members of the imperial family. [8]
The portrait of the Wanli Emperor (1563–1620) in his mianfu features all twelve ornaments: [1]
The dragon and phoenix represent the natural world. In yin and yang terminology, a dragon is male yang and the phoenix a female yin. [7] Therefore, the emperor was often identified as the dragon, while the empress was the phoenix. This was also reflected in the robes they wore.
In Japan, Emperor Monmu introduced the Twelve Ornaments via Taihō Code.
Gojong of Korea used the Twelve Ornaments on his enthronement costume (i.e. myeonbok , 면복/冕服) when he proclaimed himself Emperor of Korea in 1897 which followed the dress system of ancient China. [9] In the myeonbok of Korean Kings could only use 9 symbols (i.e. gujanbok, nine-emblem myeonbok) instead of the 12 as only the Chinese Emperor could wear the twelve ornaments. [10] [11] It is only after Gojong proclaimed the Korean Empire, equal to China, that he was allowed to wear the 12 symbols. [11]
The meyonbok, featuring the Twelve Symbols, continue to be used in the Korean imperial household's Jongmyo Daejae ancestor-worship ceremony.
Otherwise nowadays, these embroidered Chinese symbols lost most of their significance and are mostly used to decorate clothing. Some of these Chinese symbols were also adopted in Western fashions, such as T-shirts and tattoos. [8]
The Chinese dragon, also known as the loong, long or lung, is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture at large. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms such as turtles and fish, but are most commonly depicted as snake-like with four legs. Academicians have identified four reliable theories on the origin of the Chinese dragon: snakes, Chinese alligators, thunder and nature worship. They traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, typhoons, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck for people who are worthy of it in East Asian culture. During the days of Imperial China, the Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial strength and power. In Chinese culture, excellent and outstanding people are compared to a dragon, while incapable people with no achievements are compared to other, disesteemed creatures, such as a worm.
Fènghuáng are mythological birds found in Sinospheric mythology that reign over all other birds. The males were originally called fèng and the females huáng, but this distinction of gender is often no longer made and they are blurred into a single feminine entity so that the bird can be paired with the Chinese dragon, which is traditionally deemed male.
The National Emblem of the People's Republic of China is a national symbol of the People's Republic of China and contains in a red circle a representation of Tiananmen Gate, the entrance gate to the Forbidden City, where Mao Zedong declared the foundation of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. Above this representation are the five stars found on the national flag. The largest star represents the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), while the four smaller stars represent the four social classes as defined in Maoism. The emblem is described as being "composed of patterns of the national flag":
...The red color of the flag symbolizes revolution and the yellow color of the stars the golden brilliant rays radiating from the vast red land. The design of four smaller stars surrounding a bigger one signifies the unity of the Chinese people under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
—China Yearbook 2004
The three-leggedcrow is a mythological creature in various mythologies and arts of East Asia. It is believed to inhabit and represent the Sun.
Gwanbok is a Korean term which was borrowed from the Chinese terms guanfu and/or the Chinese term guanfu. The term gwanbok is a collective term which refers to historical official attire, which was bestowed by the government court, including Chinese courts of various dynasties. The Guanfu (冠服) system was a court attire system in China which also formed part of the Hanfu system. This system was them spread to neighbouring countries and was adopted in Korea since the ancient times in different periods through the ritual practice of bestowal of clothing. Acknowledgement through bestowed robes and crowns (冠服) from the Emperor of China, who held hegemony over East Asia, would give support to Korean Kings and successors, as being the authentic rulers of their country as well as confirmed the political status of the Korean kingdom in the rest of the Sinosphere. The Gwanbok system in Korea was different for each kingdom and changed throughout different periods. For example, initially given by the Chinese court in ritual practice, successive gwanbok were more often than not locally manufactured in Korea with different colours and adopted into Hanbok. The gwanbok, which was used as the uniform of the court officials, formed part of the Gwanbok system and was used like how the suit is used in nowadays.
Diyi, also called known as huiyi and miaofu, is the historical Chinese attire worn by the empresses of the Song dynasty and by the empresses and crown princesses in the Ming Dynasty. The diyi also had different names based on its colour, such as yudi, quedi, and weidi. It is a formal wear meant only for ceremonial purposes. It is a form of shenyi, and is embroidered with long-tail pheasants and circular flowers. It is worn with guan known as fengguan which is typically characterized by the absence of dangling string of pearls by the sides. It was first recorded as Huiyi in the Zhou dynasty.
Yansheng Coins, commonly known as Chinese numismatic charms, refer to a collection of special decorative coins that are mainly used for rituals such as fortune telling, Chinese superstitions, and Feng shui. They originated during the Western Han dynasty as a variant of the contemporary Ban Liang and Wu Zhu cash coins. Over the centuries they evolved into their own commodity, with many different shapes and sizes. Their use was revitalized during the Republic of China era. Normally, these coins are privately funded and cast by a rich family for their own ceremonies, although a few types of coins have been cast by various governments or religious orders over the centuries. Chinese numismatic charms typically contain hidden symbolism and visual puns. Unlike cash coins which usually only contain two or four Hanzi characters on one side, Chinese numismatic charms often contain more characters and sometimes pictures on the same side.
The Imperial Seal of Korea or Ihwamun was one of the symbols of the Korean Empire. It was originally the emblem of the royal family and was subsequently used for the coat of arms of the short-lived empire. The symbol features a plum flower. Plum blossoms commonly known as the Maehwa, signals the beginning of spring in Korea. Plum blossom was taken to symbolize courage in the face of hardship, especially in something so physically delicate, and has been long admired by the Korean and Chinese literati. As the Plum tree blossoms between two seasons, it is also seen as a symbol of spring - bringing warmth, transition and the promise of fruitfulness. Since ancient times, plum blossom has been filled with meaning and mystery. Plum blossoms bloom at the end of the winter, and because of this, they are called the herald of spring. They also symbolize perseverance because of how they can possibly bloom during the cold winter. Since they are considered the first flower of the year, they also represent purity and renewal. Plum flowers are supposed to have five petals. Its five petals are believed to carry 5 different blessings such as: wealth, health, virtue, peaceful and natural death.
Myeonbok is a kind of ceremonial clothing worn by the kings of Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910) in Korea. Myeonbok was adopted from Chinese Mianfu, and is worn by kings at special events such as the coronation, morning audience, lunar new year's audience, ancestral rites at Jongmyo and the soil and grain rite at Sajikdan. Myeonbok symbolizes the dignity of king when conducting important ceremonies.
Dragon robes, also known as gunlongpao or longpao for short, is a form of everyday clothing which had a Chinese dragon, called long (龍), as the main decoration; it was worn by the emperors of China. Dragon robes were also adopted by the rulers of neighbouring countries, such as Korea, Vietnam, and the Ryukyu Kingdom.
The Twelve Symbols national emblem was the state emblem of the Empire of China and the Republic of China from 1913 to 1928. It was based on the ancient Chinese symbols of the Twelve Ornaments.
Mianfu is a kind of Chinese clothing in hanfu; it was worn by emperors, kings, and princes, and in some instances by the nobles in historical China from the Shang to the Ming dynasty. The mianfu is the highest level of formal dress worn by Chinese monarchs and the ruling families in special ceremonial events such as coronation, morning audience, ancestral rites, worship, new year's audience and other ceremonial activities. There were various forms of mianfu, and the mianfu also had its own system of attire called the mianfu system which was developed back in the Western Zhou dynasty. The mianfu was used by every dynasty from Zhou dynasty onward until the collapse of the Ming dynasty. The Twelve Ornaments were used on the traditional imperial robes in China, including on the mianfu. These Twelve Ornaments were later adopted in clothing of other ethnic groups; for examples, the Khitan and the Jurchen rulers adopted the Twelve ornaments in 946 AD and in 1140 AD respectively. The Korean kings have also adopted clothing embellished with nine out of the Twelve ornaments since 1065 AD after the Liao emperor had bestowed a nine-symbol robe to the Korean king, King Munjong, in 1043 AD where it became known as gujangbok.
Traditional Korean patterns are often featured throughout Korea on architecture, clothes, porcelain, necessities, and more. These patterns can be recognized either by one of the four time periods they originated from, or by their shape.
Open-work charms are a type of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese numismatic charms characterised by irregularly shaped "holes" or "openings" between their design elements known as openwork. The design of the amulets represent yin while the holes represent yang and their general purpose was to attract good fortune and ward off evil spirits and misfortune. Unlike most other types of Chinese numismatic charms which usually tend to have square center holes if they’re holed, open-work charms tend to almost exclusively have round center holes though open-work charms with square center holes are known to exist and certain thematic open-work charms that feature human-made constructions mostly told to have square holes. Another distinctive feature of open-work charms is that they’re almost purely based on illustrative imagery and only a small minority of them contain legends written in Hanzi characters. While most other forms of Chinese numismatic charms are made from brass open-work charms are predominantly made from bronze.
Marriage coin charms are a category of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese numismatic charms that depict marriage, harmonious, and/or sexual imagery. These coin charms often imitate the design of Chinese cash coins, but can exist in many different shapes and sizes.
Yunjian, also known as Cloud collar in English and sometimes referred as châr-qâb, is a Chinese term which can either to a four-lobed motif, or to a traditional Chinese garment accessory item in Hanfu, the Traditional clothing of the Han Chinese, which is typically found in the form of a detachable collar with cloud patterns and is worn over the shoulders area, similar to a shawl. As an garment accessory, the yunjian is also typically found in four-lobed design although multi-lobed design also existed throughout history. The yunjian could also be applied directly on garments, where it would fall around the collar of robes onto the chest and shoulder region,or as a clothing appliqué. In China, the yunjian has both ceremonial and practical uses when used in clothing. As a garment item, the yunjian was an important clothing element for Chinese women, especially in the Ming and Qing dynasties; its usage was spread across China where it became associated with the Han Chinese's wedding clothing. In Henan, brides would wear yunjian decorated with hanging ribbons and bells. It also had the practical use of preventing clothing from being dirty and oily by covering up the clothes and by covering up the stains. The yunjian is used in Peranakan wedding; the multi-layered yunjian worn by Chinese brides on the day of their wedding is sometimes known as "phoenix collar". The yunjian also started to be worn by the Non-Chinese, the Tartars of northern China and Manchuria in the later medieval period.
Qungua, also known as longfenggua, or longfeng qungua, or guaqun, is one type of two-piece ceremonial traditional Chinese wedding set of attire, which is composed of a jacket called gua (褂) and of a long Chinese skirt called qun (裙). The qungua is a type of Hanfu worn by Han Chinese brides and originated in the 18th century during the Qing dynasty. It eventually became the traditional wedding attire of Cantonese brides in the Guangdong regions. It is traditionally handmade and is decorated with dragons and phoenixes embroideries. Nowadays, the qungua is still popular as a wedding dress in China, including in Hong kong and Macau.
Lishui or shuijiao is a set of parallel diagonal, multicoloured sea-waves/line patterns. It originated in China where it was used by the Qing dynasty court prior to the mid-18th century. Lishui represents the deep sea under which the ocean surges and waves; it is therefore typically topped with "still water", which is represented by concentric semicircle patterns which runs horizontally. Lishui was used to decorate garments, including the bottom hem and cuffs of some of the court clothing of the Qing dynasty. It could be used to decorate as wedding dress items. It is also used to decorate Chinese opera costumes, typically on the bottom hem of the costumes. It was also adopted in some court clothing of the Nguyen dynasty in Vietnam under the influence of the Qing dynasty.
Chinese auspicious ornaments in textile and clothing refers to any form of Chinese auspicious ornaments, which are used to decorate various forms of Chinese textile and clothing, fashion accessories, and footwear in China since the ancient times. Chinese auspicious ornaments form part of Chinese culture and hold symbolic meanings. In ancient China, auspicious ornaments were often either embroidered or woven into textile and clothing. They are also used on religious and ritual clothing and in Xifu, Chinese opera costumes. Auspicious symbols and motifs continue to be used in present day China in industries, such as home textiles and clothing; they are also used in modern design packaging and interior design. Some of these Chinese auspicious ornaments were also culturally appropriated by European countries during the era of Chinoiserie, where they became decorative patterns on fashionable chinoiserie fashion and textiles.
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