Chinese culture
Chinese inventions
Fashion accessories
Hand tools
Chinese traditional clothing
(), also called (),
(),
''fan of reunion'', are typically silk rigid
hand fan which originated in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
; they are typically circular or oval in shape.
Up to the
Song dynasty, the appears to have the most common types of the fans in China.
These types of fans were mostly used by women in the
Tang dynasty. with
Chinese paintings
Chinese painting () is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as ''guó huà'' (), meaning "national painting" or "native painting", as opposed to Western style ...
and with calligraphy became very popular by the
Song dynasty among court circles and artists
and even continued to be in use even by the end of the 19th century.
The was also used as part of the
traditional Chinese wedding and was part of the ceremonial wedding rite.
They continue to be produced and sold in present-day China and has become a common form of accessory in .
The was also introduced in other countries, such as
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
The also remained mainstream in China even after the growing popularity of the folding fans which originated in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
.
Origins
The originated in China, its prototype was round silk fan which was developed in the
Eastern 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 warr ...
which was itself developed based on the earlier Chinese fans design.
Cultural significance
Fans play a significant aspect in
Chinese culture and Chinese life regarding of social identities and ranks,
having functional usage such as cooling and facilitates air circulation and was used as a sartorial accessory and held an important ceremonial use.
Over time, the Chinese fans have evolved in a cultural artifacts which reflects and incorporate the essence of Chinese folklore culture.
Wedding
Chinese brides also used a type of moon-shaped in
traditional Chinese wedding called .
The ceremonial rite of was an important ceremony in Chinese wedding: the bride would hold it in front of her face to hide her shyness, to remain mysterious, and as a way to exorcise evil spirits.
After all the other wedding ceremonies were completed, such as drinking the wine, and after the groom had impressed the bride (e.g. reciting poems), the bride would then proceed in revealing her face to the groom by removing the from her face.
This ceremonial rite is referred as ''Etiquette of removing fan''; the performance of such rite can be traced back to the
Tang dynasty and continued in the
Song dynasty.
Design and construction
The is composed of a handle or stick with a rigid mount like a frame and a fabric whose shape will conform to the desired shape of the .
Traditionally, they were made of
bamboo or
ivory with
silk fabric, which would stretch across the rigid frame.
It could be decorated with
Chinese embroideries or
Chinese paintings
Chinese painting () is one of the oldest continuous artistic traditions in the world. Painting in the traditional style is known today in Chinese as ''guó huà'' (), meaning "national painting" or "native painting", as opposed to Western style ...
.
See also
*
Hanfu accessories
Hanfu accessories () refers to the various form of fashion accessories and self-adornments used and worn with throughout Chinese history. consists of many forms of miscellaneous accessories, such as jewelries, (), ribbons, shawls, scarves, and ...
*
Traditional Chinese wedding dress
Traditional Chinese wedding dress is a collective term which refers to all the different forms and styles of traditional wedding attire worn by the Han Chinese when performing their marriage ceremony, including the traditional Chinese marriage. Th ...
*
Hand fan
Gallery
File:Chen Hongshou, Appreciating Plums, detail.jpg, A woman holding a flat oval fan with a Chinese painting from the painting "Appreciating Plums" by Chen Hongshou (1598–1652).
File:Circular Silk Fan with "Cat and Calligraphy" and a Wooden Handle 2013-07.JPG, An hexagonal rigid fan with a Chinese painting of a cat and a calligraphy, late Qing dynasty.
Notes
References
{{Types of Han Chinese clothing