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Hill Censer
The hill censer or ''boshanlu'' (博山爐 "universal mountain censer" or ''boshan xianglu'' 博山香爐) is a type of Chinese censer used for burning incense. Hill censers first start appearing in tombs dating to the Western Han (202 BCE – 23 CE). Fashioned with a conical lid, the censers were designed to look like miniature mountains. The more elaborately crafted versions incorporate imagery of trees, wild animals, and humans among the rocky crags of the landscape. The scented smoked is vented through apertures in the lid, creating a scene reminiscent of clouds swirling around a mountain. The earliest vessels of this type were recovered from tombs of the imperial family, including Liu Sheng (d. 113 BCE), half-brother of the famed Emperor Wu of Han (157 – 87 BCE). Some excavated vessels lack vents and are thus believed to be examples of '' mingqi'', or "spirit objects." These latter objects are often called "hill jars" by scholars. Because hill censers first appeared when b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boshan Burner Inlaid With Gold'
Boshan () is the southernmost District of the People's Republic of China, district of the city of Zibo, in central Shandong province, China. Description BoShan is a district in southern Zibo City with a population of around 400,000 people. It is 42 kilometers south of the urban center of Zibo City: Zhang Dian. Downtown BoShan has a wide central avenue which is divided by a park-like river with walkways, stone bridges and gazebos. A modern expressway bypassed the downtown area, and that has attracted development to the outskirts of the city. BoShan's major industries are Pottery, ceramics, industrial pumps, vacuum pumps, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. They advertise themselves as being the Pump Capital of China. History In the early 20th century, BoShan was the Administration (government), administrative Capital (political), capital of the area. But BoShan is in the mountains while Zhang Dian is in a flat valley. Zhang Dian is on a main rail corridor, while BoShan was just a s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Censer
A censer, incense burner, perfume burner or pastille burner is a vessel made for burning incense or perfume in some solid form. They vary greatly in size, form, and material of construction, and have been in use since ancient times throughout the world. They may consist of simple earthenware bowls or fire pots to intricately carved silver or gold vessels, small table top objects a few centimetres tall to as many as several metres high. Many designs use openwork to allow a flow of air. In many cultures, burning incense has spiritual and religious connotations, and this influences the design and decoration of the censer. Often, especially in Western contexts, "censer" is used for pieces made for religious use, especially those on chains that are swung through the air to spread the incense smoke widely, while "perfume burner" is used for objects made for secular use. The original meaning of pastille was a small compressed mixture of aromatic plant material and charcoal that was l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Incense
Incense is aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also be used as a simple deodorant or insect repellent. Incense is composed of aromatic plant materials, often combined with essential oils. The forms taken by incense differ with the underlying culture, and have changed with advances in technology and increasing number of uses. Incense can generally be separated into two main types: "indirect-burning" and "direct-burning". Indirect-burning incense (or "non-combustible incense") is not capable of burning on its own, and requires a separate heat source. Direct-burning incense (or "combustible incense") is lit directly by a flame and then fanned or blown out, leaving a glowing ember that smoulders and releases a smoky fragrance. Direct-burning incense is either a paste formed around a bamboo stic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Han Dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warring interregnum known as the ChuHan contention (206–202 BC), and it was succeeded by the Three Kingdoms period (220–280 AD). The dynasty was briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty (9–23 AD) established by usurping regent Wang Mang, and is thus separated into two periods—the Western Han (202 BC – 9 AD) and the Eastern Han (25–220 AD). Spanning over four centuries, the Han dynasty is considered a golden age in Chinese history, and it has influenced the identity of the Chinese civilization ever since. Modern China's majority ethnic group refers to themselves as the "Han people", the Sinitic language is known as "Han language", and the written Chinese is referred to as "Han characters". The emperor was at the pinnacle of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liu Sheng, Prince Of Zhongshan
Liu Sheng (; died 113 BC), posthumously known as King/Prince Jing of Zhongshan Kingdom (Han dynasty), Zhongshan (), was a king/prince of the Western Han empire of Chinese history. His father was Emperor Jing of Han, Emperor Jing, and he was the elder brother of Emperor Wu of Han. His mausoleum is one of the most important archaeological sites pertaining to the Western Han imperial family. Life Liu Sheng was born to Emperor Jing of Han and Consort Jia, who also had another son, Liu Pengzu the Prince of Zhao. He was given the fief of Zhongshan Kingdom (Han dynasty), Zhongshan by his father in 154 BC, and therefore reigned in the period right after the Rebellion of the Seven States, when the political atmosphere was one of suspicion regarding the feudal states. Given this atmosphere Liu Sheng was one of the more successful feudal rulers. In the third year of the reign of Emperor Wu, his younger brother, Liu Sheng and several other princes were invited to Chang'an to feast; at the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Wu Of Han
Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87BC), formally enshrined as Emperor Wu the Filial (), born Liu Che (劉徹) and courtesy name Tong (通), was the seventh emperor of the Han dynasty of ancient China, ruling from 141 to 87 BC. His reign lasted 54 years – a record not broken until the reign of the Kangxi Emperor more than 1,800 years later and remains the record for ethnic Chinese emperors. His reign resulted in a vast expansion of geopolitical influence for the Chinese civilization, and the development of a strong centralized state via governmental policies, economical reorganization and promotion of a hybrid Legalist–Confucian doctrine. In the field of historical social and cultural studies, Emperor Wu is known for his religious innovations and patronage of the poetic and musical arts, including development of the Imperial Music Bureau into a prestigious entity. It was also during his reign that cultural contact with western Eurasia was greatly increased, directly a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mingqi
Mingqi (Chinese: or , p ''míngqì''), sometimes referred to as "spirit objects" or "vessels for ghosts", are Chinese burial goods. They included daily utensils, musical instruments, weapons, armor, and intimate objects such as the deceased's cap, can and bamboo mat. Mingqi also could include figurines, spiritual representations rather than real people, of soldiers, servants, musicians, polo riders, houses, unicorns and horses. Extensive use of mingqi during certain periods may either have been an attempt to preserve the image of ritual propriety by cutting costs, or it may have a new idea separating the realm of the dead from that of the living. Purpose Mingqi served to provide the deceased with necessities and comforts in the afterlife. The deceased person's '' po'' was said to remain in the realm of the tomb while the ''hun'' ascended to heaven. To appease and make worthwhile the deceased's ''po'', mingqi claimed relevant and liked by the deceased were placed in hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xian (immortal)
''Xian'' () refers to a person or similar entity having a long life or being immortal. The concept of ''xian'' has different implications dependent upon the specific context: philosophical, religious, mythological, or other symbolic or cultural occurrence. The Chinese word ''xian'' is translatable into English as: * (''in Daoist philosophy and cosmology'') spiritually immortal; transcendent human; celestial being * (''in Daoist religion and pantheon'') physically immortal; immortal person; an immortal; saint * (''in Chinese alchemy'') alchemist; one who seeks the elixir of life; one who practices longevity techniques ** (''or by extension'') alchemical, dietary, or qigong methods for attaining immortality * (''in Chinese mythology'') wizard; magician; shaman; sorcerer * (''in popular Chinese literature'') genie; elf, fairy; nymph; (''xian jing'' is fairyland, faery) * (''based on the folk etymology for the character , a compound of the characters for ''person'' and ''mounta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mount Penglai
Penglai () is a legendary land of Chinese mythology. It is known in Japanese mythology as Hōrai.McCullough, Helen. ''Classical Japanese Prose'', p. 570. Stanford Univ. Press, 1990. . Location According to the ''Classic of Mountains and Seas'', the mountain is located at the eastern end of Bohai Sea. According to the pre-Qin mythology which retells the legend of Xu Fu presenting a memorial to the Qin Emperor in order to seek for the elixir of life, there are three godly mountains which are found in the Bohai sea where immortals reside; these mountains are Penglai, Fāngzhàng (), and Yíngzhōu (/). Other islands where immortals reside are called Dàiyú () and Yuánjiāo (). In the ''Illustrated Account of the Embassy to Goryeo in the Xuanhe Era'' (; ''Xuanhe fengshi Gaoli tujing''), written in 1124 by Xu Jing (徐兢), Mount Penglai is located on an inhabited island which is found within the boundaries of Changguo prefecture and can be reached "after crossing thirty thousa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ding Huan
Ding Huan () was a Chinese craftsman, mechanical engineer, and inventor who lived in the first century BC during the Han dynasty. Among the inventions attributed to him is an air conditioning system based on evaporative cooling. Purported invention of the zoetrope In his multi-volume ''Science and Civilisation in China'', the British scientist and historian Joseph Needham briefly describes several devices he classes as "... a variety of zoetrope, which may well have originated in China".Needham, Joseph (1962). ''Science and Civilization in China'', vol. IV, part 1: ''Physics and Physical Technology''. Cambridge University Press. p. 123-124. The first example he offers used an umbrella-like canopy hung over an oil lamp and provided with a vaned opening at its top, so that heated air rising from the lamp would cause it to rotate. The lower part of the canopy was in the form of a cylinder and had translucent panes with paintings of animals or men. Sufficiently rapid rotation would "g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Inventions
China has been the source of many innovations, scientific discoveries and inventions. This includes the ''Four Great Inventions'': papermaking, the compass, gunpowder, and printing (both woodblock and movable type). The list below contains these and other inventions in ancient and modern China attested by archaeological or historical evidence, excluding prehistoric inventions of Neolithic and early Bronze Age China. The historical region now known as China experienced a history involving mechanics, hydraulics and mathematics applied to horology, metallurgy, astronomy, agriculture, engineering, music theory, craftsmanship, naval architecture and warfare. Use of the plow during the Neolithic period Longshan culture (c. 3000–c. 2000 BC) allowed for high agricultural production yields and rise of Chinese civilization during the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600–c. 1050 BC). Later inventions such as the multiple-tube seed drill and the heavy moldboard iron plow enabled China to s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
