Following the "Tang Palace Night Banquet" of the Spring Festival Gala, "Luo Shen Shui Fu" of the Dragon Boat Festival, "Long Men Jin Gang" of the Double Seventh Festival, and "You Feng Lai Yi" of the Double Ninth Festival, Henan TV brought a masterpiece with more than 40 million plays! Tens of thousands of people scored 9.9 for it, and it is the new dance variety show "Dance Millennium (舞千年)" launched by Henan TV and Bilibili. The cultural drama dance program created by Henan TV and Bilibili is focused on telling Chinese stories through dance. The 5 dance recommending officers disguise themselves as historical figures, travel through the 4 most representative cultural periods in Chinese history, search for the most beautiful music and dance in ancient and modern times, and enshrine the dance book "Shi Er Feng Wu Zhi", tell the story of China with dance programs created by top 13 Chinese dance companies, and discuss the beauty of Chinese dance together. ---Positioning of Dance Millennium   New Model + New Content The innovation and high quality of Dance Millennium have gained a large and loyal audience. If Henan TV's "Chinese Festival" series breaks through the traditional gala structure, the…

The history of Chinese women's make-up is very long. After the rotation of dynasties, the traditional Chinese makeup has changed with the development of the times, reflecting the changes in customs and thoughts in each era. We will prepare a series of articles to introduce traditional Chinese makeup.   Ancient traditional Chinese makeup Throughout the ages, women have different ways and methods to make themselves more beautiful. Compared with the modern, ancient women are more conservative and implicit, but they also have their own set of "secret weapons". As early as in the cultural relics unearthed in the Warring States period, it can be seen from them that at that time, women had the habit of thrushing and use rouge. That is to say, more than 2000 years ago in China, cosmetics had appeared. Of course, ancient China was an agricultural society, always in a state of self-sufficiency, and cosmetics were no exception. At that time, cosmetics were mainly made of pure natural plant and animal oils, and some natural spices were added. The general production process includes boiling, fermentation, filtration, etc. compared with the modern cosmetics production process, it is still relatively simple. Therefore, compared with modern women, ancient…

The oldest Chinese embroideries found date back to the Zhou dynasty (1027-221 B.C.) and may well be the earliest that ever existed. However, very early embroideries have also been found in Egypt and Northern Europe, so it is not clear in which part of the world the art of embroidery actually originated - it may also have appeared in several parts of the world at about the same time. It is, however, accepted that the Chinese invented sericulture and mastered the art of reeling the cocoons of the bombyx and spinning the silk from very early times. It is therefore not surprising that the ancient Chinese embroideries were made of silk. Strangely enough, embroidery in China was at first reserved for men, before they entrusted this task to the more delicate fingers of their women. The earliest surviving example of Chinese silk embroidery is a ritual garment found in a tomb in Mashan, now Hubei Province, in the fourth century BC, during the early Taoism period (before the appearance of Buddhism in China). However, if we are to believe the patterns drawn on this garment, it could just as well have been used to perform the rituals of a religion…

Henan TV's "Tang Palace Night Banquet" takes us back to the Tang Dynasty, a dance that makes us marvel at the"Chinese culture is profound" and makes more people start to focus on traditional culture. Today we introduce a new theatre production. It is a Chinese dance drama "Zhi Ci Qing Lǜ (只此青绿, The Painting Journey—The Legend of A Panorama of Mountains and Rivers)", which is based on the logic of the creation of "A Panorama of Mountains and Rivers (千里江山图)", the only work of the Chinese painter Wang Ximeng (王希孟) from the Northern Song Dynasty. It is a joint production by The Palace Museum, China Oriental Performing Arts Group, and People's Daily Online! After its premiere at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, it immediately received an exposure of 247 million and was well received by the audience! The whole drama is about the upcoming exhibition of A Panorama of Mountains and Rivers, a researcher (in the drama is known as the Zhan Juan Ren 展卷人) from The Palace Museum, after studying "A Panorama of Mountains and Rivers", entered the inner world of the painter Ximeng through time travel, and the interplay of time and space allowed…

The Mid-Autumn Festival, the second-largest folk festival in the Chinese festival system next to the Spring Festival, has spawned countless legends and poems over the centuries. “明月几时有，把酒问青天。不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年？” "How long will the full moon appear? Wine cup in hand, I ask the sky. I do not know what time of the year 'Twould be tonight in the palace on high." In fact, the Mid-Autumn Festival is essentially the "Chinese Ritual Moon Festival", and the worship of the moon by the Chinese people has started since ancient times. "The lonely moon goddess, spreads her ample sleeves, To dance for these loyal souls in infinite space." "Chang'e is dancing in the long sky for ten thousand miles." From Chang'e Flying to the Moon to the lunar exploration program, for more than 2,000 years, people have never paid less attention to the moon. Mid-Autumn Festival was popularized during the Han Dynasty, a period of economic and cultural exchange and integration, when cultural exchanges across the country led to the fusion and spread of festival customs. The term "Zhong Qiu (mid-autumn, 中秋)" was first written down in Han Dynasty literature, and the Zhou Li between the two Han dynasties recorded that during the pre-Qin period,…

Dear veteran viewers of ancient Chinese costume dramas, I'm sure that for everyone, the plot of the hanfu beauty, palace plot, power rivalry, wrongly paid life, and so on has long been known. However, I wonder if you have caught the details to keep up with the fashion trends of traditional accessories throughout the dynasties? For example, what kind of ornaments did Empress Cao put on her face? Another example is that the "tip set" worn on Ru Yi's fingers was for decoration or for something else? And, did the yellow and red powder applied to Mulan's face before the blind date actually exist in history? Also, will this level of hair volume be standard per person? The story of jewelry is long and wide, fine and splendid. We might as well put together a "Top 10 List of Ancient Traditional Accessories Trends" for all the major categories of accessories, based on their length of popularity, usage, and popularity, etc. Since history is too voluminous to be told in one article, this list temporarily selects the mainstream accessories.   No.10 Hu Zhi - Nail Guards Hu Zhi (护指), also know as Nail Guards, is the Qing Dynasty drama, the aristocratic…

Have you ever heard of that trivia tidbit where it's like "the Chinese were so impressed by Kung Fu Panda that they held meetings to figure out why they couldn't produce something as good as it with their own culture"? Well, it's true. That did happen. And the answer is probably a combination of a lack of financial and cultural support for artists, government censorship of storytelling, and animation not being taken seriously as an artform. But what did Kung Fu Panda do that was so right? What influences did it take from Chinese culture? I'm gonna try and figure that out. I'll talk about my opinion on whether it matters that this movie was made by white people when Chinese audiences liked it so much. So let's start! Wuxia Jianghu Dream To begin with, these mountains in the opening immediately reminded me of Huangshan, or the Yellow Mountains. It's a pretty famous mountain range in China with a lot of these jagged stony peaks and clouds surrounding them. The Kung Fu Panda artbook confirms that the Valley of Peace is inspired by the Yellow Mountains and the Li River Valley, another place famous for being really, really pretty. And…

In fact, while making this list today I found out there are so many upcoming costumed dramas that I'm waiting for.  This post is dedicated to my favorite upcoming costumed series, from historical to fantasy. Anyways, I hope you all are ready, today we will be going over the Top 14 Most Anticipated Upcoming Chinese Dramas in 2021. 1. Novoland - Pearl Eclipse This is definitely one of my favorite upcoming dramas. Yang Mi & William Chan lead this fantasy drama whose filming was completed last year on September 20, 2020. It's safe to assume that most of the post-production work is completed now and the drama is just waiting for a premiere date. Novoland Pearl Eclipse revolves around the story of a mermaid living together among her people in a small coastal village which gets raided and its inhabitants were slain. Pearl Eclipse referring to the tears of a young mermaid,  which becomes a magical pearl and is sought after by poachers of the time.  Yang Mi plays the part of the mermaid who is saved by the royal court official William Chan. I think the cinematography looks great and the storyline sounds interesting. You can never go wrong…

Umbrellas are very common in daily life. Whether it's a hot sun or a downpour, an umbrella is definitely your best assistant. Not only that, in the modern hanfu shooting, the appearance rate of the ancient style oil-paper umbrella is extremely high. The demand for shade from the sun and rain has been there since ancient times, take a look, the the history of ancient Chinese umbrellas, to see what kind of umbrellas the ancients used.   Pre-Qin Period The early Chinese umbrellas were called "Gai (盖)" or "Deng (簦)", made of grass, pieces of bamboo, etc., with a handle to hold, much like the current umbrella, but it could not be put away. Chinese umbrellas made of silk first appeared in the Western Zhou period, silk umbrellas are expensive, generally used by the nobility, are mainly decorative items and symbols of power for the dignitaries, noblemen, and the scholar. The common people could not afford to buy silk umbrellas, so they mostly used Douli (斗笠), or Suoyi (蓑衣, straw raincoats) in their lives. Suoyi has an important feature and symbol of ancient Chinese costume: Shang Yi Xia Chang. The top is called "Suoyi Pi (蓑衣披)", which is draped over…

This year, the Cantonese opera movie "Snake White (白蛇传·情)" was released, the combination of traditional Chinese opera and modern visual effects, let us surprised: the original traditional culture can also be so fashionable! And the protagonist of today's story, anthropomorphizing the mysterious and mythical creatures in the Shan Hai Jing, recreates the magnificent world of mythology. She has been reported by China Daily, Huaxi City Daily, and many other official media, while triggering the attention of millions of netizens. She is the photographer Huanhuan (焕焕). The "Shan Hai Jing (山海经, Classic of Mountains and Seas)" is an important ancient book of the pre-Qin Dynasty of China, and is also one of the oldest books rich in myths and legends, recording ancient Chinese mythology, geography, plants, animals, minerals, products, sorcery, religion, medicine, folklore and ethnicity, which can be said to be comprehensive.   Recreate the dream of childhood When she was young, Huanhuan was obsessed with the fantasy world of mythology, and her grandmother would often tell her various mythological stories: snakes with nine heads, birds with three legs, fish with wings...all these stories were so fascinating to Huanhuan that she began to yearn for the mysterious "Mythical World". Later, Huanhuan…

Chinese tea culture originated in the Tang Dynasty and flourished in the Song Dynasty. In the Song Dynasty, tea had become a necessity in people's daily life. With the overall prosperity of the Song dynasty's social commodity economy, tribute tea, tea sets, tea art, tea workshops, etc., but also flourished. The traditional Dian Cha (点茶, whisking tea) in the Song Dynasty had an extremely important position in the history of the Chinese tea ceremony. In this article, we will introduce the history and steps of whisking tea in the Song Dynasty, and let's feel the elegance of the literati in the Song Dynasty.   China's Tea Culture Chinese tea culture has a long history, the earliest written record is: "Shennong tasted hundred herbs, the day encountered seventy-two poisons, and got the Tu (荼) and solve", where the "Tu" is tea. Tea (茶) in the history of the five had used the name: Tu (荼), Jia (槚), She (蔎), Ming (茗), Chuan (荈). In five thousand years of Chinese civilization, people have accumulated a deep tea culture. In history, the application process of tea is roughly medicinal, edible, drinking. The way of tea drinking has also gone through several stages of…

Traditional Chinese nail guards (Zhi Jia Tao, 指甲套), also known as "Hu Zhi (护指, finger protection)". The ancient palace noblewomen used gold and silver to make nail guards to protect their nails and show their status, were extremely fine and gorgeous, with a wide variety. If you have watched the wonderful historical TV drama Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace, you may have noticed that the concubines in the drama have long nails on their slender hands and wear nail guards on their end fingers, showing their nobility and elegance. Such luxurious Chinese nail guards, in addition to showing the identity status characteristics, what is its role, today let's explore it!   History of keeping long fingernails Everyone has a love of beauty. Since ancient times, it has been every woman's wish to have a pair of delicate hands, and the ancient Chinese had three main aesthetic standards for women's fingers: pointed, long, and white. The direct purpose of keeping long nails for women in ancient times was to make the nails extend the fingers, making the hand shape look sharp and long. And in ancient times, both men and women pursued long nails for beauty, many noble families and literati,…

As a symbol of good fortune, Ruyi (如意, scepter) is a traditional handicraft unique to China that emerged during the Warring States period and has evolved in form and cultural connotation through the Han, Wei, and Jin dynasties, Tang, Song, and even Ming and Qing dynasties. Interestingly, the initial function of the Ruyi is the same as the backscratcher we use today. Only later did it evolve from a practical tool to a beautiful display at a later stage. Origin of Ruyi According to the National Palace Museum, Ruyi originated from the "Sao Zhang (搔杖)" (now called backscratcher) used by the ancients to scratch an itch. The earliest Ruyi, the end of the handle in the shape of a finger, to reach that the hand can not reach, so that can follow heart to relieve the itch, so-called Ruyi. Later, the "Sao Zhang" was combined with "Hu (笏, referring to the hand board used by courtiers to record their business at court)", and the shape gradually evolved into a curved head, and the end of the handle changed from straight to small Lingzhi-shaped, cloud-shaped and other shapes. The head and tail echo each other, the main body is streamlined, the…

A complete hanfu look is certainly not complete without fine jewelry to match. In the course of ancient history, traditional Chinese jewelry naturally evolved, graceful and luxurious, or refined and small. In this article, we will reveal through the order of dynasties, the fashion secrets in ancient traditional Chinese jewelry boxes. Let's see those periods of "China-Chic" how fashionable.   Wei, Jin and North and South Dynasties: A Fashion Trend from Abroad? The poem "Ballad of Mulan" contains the line: "She combs her hair by the window and, before the mirror, fastens golden yellow flowers." This "yellow flowers (Hua Hunag, 花黄)" refers to the makeup of women in the Wei and Jin dynasties, which was inspired by Buddhism. Due to the popularity of Buddhism, the Buddha-nature of gold brought inspiration to women, so although the "flower yellow" in makeup may have been a little exaggerated, but it does reflect the characteristics of Buddhism at the time, as well as the pursuit of exoticism. Of course, the rise of the introduction of Buddhism to the fashion circle brought not only makeup, with the matching jewelry also with a clear Buddhist style. In terms of production materials, although gold and silver remained…

During the Republic of China, the three most classic men's clothing, in addition to suits, Zhongshan suit, there is a Chinese traditional Changshan. At that time, gentlemen usually wear a ankle-length Changshan, only the leakage of Western-style leather shoes, so as to look enlightened and progressive, but also not lose the traditional elegance.   Characteristics of the Traditional Changshan Changshan (长衫, long shirt, or tunic), also known as Changgua (长褂, long coat), it is a style of clothing that was improved by the Han Chinese during the Qing dynasty based on the traditional robe and following the Qing dynasty clothing system. Changshan can be worn with a Magua (马褂, the prototype of Tang suit), "Magua Changshan (Changpao)", became the most common male wear in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. After entering the Republic of China, the number of ordinary people wearing Magua in their daily general life gradually decreased. If someone wears a Magua outside the Changshan, it is already a very grand dress, and a blue Changshan with a black Magua is the formal dress in the Republic of China. Different from the Manchu Qi dress, traditional Changshan is characterized by: no horseshoe sleeves,…

Nanjing Cloud Brocade (云锦, Yunjin) is a traditional Chinese silk craft that dates back to 417 and has a history of 1,600 years, known as "inch of brocade, inch of gold". Today, the traditional characteristics and unique skills of cloud brocade are still maintained, and the traditional jacquard wooden machine weaving has been retained. This traditional hand weaving technique, which relies on human memory to weave, still cannot be replaced by modern machines. In the ancient silk fabric, "brocade (Jin, 锦)" is the fabric representing the highest level of technology. The three famous Chinese brocades are cloud brocade, Shu brocade (蜀锦), and Song brocade (宋锦), and Nanjing cloud brocade is a collection of the art of weaving silk craft of all generations, ranking the first, represents the highest achievement of Chinese silk weaving, and is the brilliant crystallization of Chinese silk culture. This article will share the history, characteristics of Chinese silk crafts: the Nanjing Yun brocade.   History of Nanjing Cloud Brocade At the end of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Liu Yu destroyed the Later Qin and moved the craftsmen workers to Nanjing, where advanced production techniques were brought to the south from Xi'an and the silk weaving industry…

Qing Dynasty was the last stage of the highly developed feudal society in China. With the evolution of the dynasty, the Qing dynasty Manchu women's headdress is rich and diverse. Inheritance of headdress in the past generations, but also according to the national dressing characteristics, create jewelry corresponding to it. One of the most ancient Chinese headdress representatives is the Bian Fang (扁方). 01 What is Bian Fang? Bian Fang is one of the traditional hair ornaments in ancient China, which was mainly popular in the Ming and Qing Dynasty, used to fix hair. The shape of its head is generally curvy and its body is often 1-shaped. They have different shapes, large, small, wide, or narrow. The large one can reach more than 30cm. The small one, also known as double-tip, can be used as hair fixing or decoration. The large one is used to fix "two buns head (两把头)". Let's take a look at the evolution of women's hairstyles in the Qing Dynasty! Before the Qing Dynasty, Manchu people originally lived in the northern region, influenced by the environment, has long been accustomed to fishing and hunting, farming lifestyle. In order to move quickly and easily, easy to…

What is Wanxiu Among traditional Chinese embroideries, there is a very unique type of embroidery: Wanxiu (挽袖), which is the detachable part at the end of the sleeve of a traditional Chinese Qing Dynasty woman's dress. It is about 66cm long and 13cm wide, and is embroidered in pairs; the motifs range from small bridges and flowing water, pavilions, plum, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums, to Four arts (Qin, Qi, Shu, and Hua), talented men and women, etc. With exquisite patterns and workmanship. he Wanxiu is both decorative and functional, with thread sewn into the clothes when in use, and rolled out when worn, which is both beautiful and can adjust the length of the sleeves, and women in the Ming and Qing dynasties interpreted their personal understanding on the sleeve pattern, making it a rich and delicate emotional trust unique to women, reflecting the subtle connotation and profound meaning of women's art. Han style dress deeply influenced the Manchu court Manchu women's clothing style, the royal family in order to show the elegance, in the production of excellence, and the integration of the Manchu culture. To the early Republic of China, the influence of Western dress culture, coupled with the…

"Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk (Dao Lian Tu, 捣练图)" is a famous Chinese painting of the Tang Dynasty. It showing noble women ironing, sewing, and pounding the silk. It is an important custom painting of the Tang Dynasty, and is one of the more chic works among the paintings of ladies in the Tang Dynasty. It is the work of Zhang Xuan (张萱), a painter of the Tang Dynasty, and has had a great influence on the style of later paintings, and is also a great help to the study of modern Hanfu styles. Let's see the special details of this painting. Zhang Xuan of Tang Dynasty "Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk" was originally painted by Zhang Xuan in the Tang Dynasty, the painting "Lady Guoguo's Spring Outing (虢国夫人游春图)" is also a painting by him. Zhang Xuan mainly depicts the leisurely life scenes of royal and noble women, such as spring Outing, dressing up, drumming the qin, playing music, and enjoying the snow. Copied by Emperor Huizong Tang and Song history recorded dozens of Zhang Xuan's paintings, many also repeatedly copied by many painters, but out of Zhang Xuan's own handwriting of the original work, today there is…

"Traditional Chinese Clothing" has been popular in the world through the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States, the Qin and Han dynasties, the Wei, Jin, North and South dynasties, the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, and in modern times, with distinctive features, mainly Chinese Hanfu. This article will show you the "beauty of traditional Chinese clothing" in five different periods. The Beauty of traditional Chinese clothing- Western Han Dynasty The most representative clothing of the Western Han Dynasty is the Su Sha Danyi (素纱襌衣), a very light garment: from the collar to the hem, are 1.28 meters long; the sleeves are 1.9 meters long; even so, this wide robes with large sleeves are only 49 grams, and when folded, can fit into a small matchbox. The Su Sha Danyi was unearthed in 1972 at the Mawangdui Han Tomb No. 1 in Changsha, and is now collected in the Hunan Provincial Museum. Su Sha Danyi is not just a piece of clothing, but the result of the cultivation and spinning industry of the early Western Han Dynasty. The Beauty of traditional Chinese clothing - Wei and Jin The…