At the end of 2022, a documentary with only four episodes went online, "Dunhuang and Venice: Above Desert and Sea". Perhaps Marco Polo's visit to China is the only positive encounter between Dunhuang (敦煌) and Venice in history. They reunited with a new look in this documentary. From east to west, from sand to sea, the Silk Road conveys the most wonderful exchange of materials, culture and people.   East Meets West In 1271, Marco Polo set out from Venice for a long journey and crossed 6,400 kilometers of sand and sea. In his travelogue, he noted down a place called sandbank, which was Dunhuang. In the long river of history, the two seemingly completely irrelevant cities have more connections because of the Silk Road. For example, the cotton weaving of Persia appeared in Dunhuang Tang Dynasty documents and also appeared beside the governor of Venice. The pattern of lotus appeared in the Mogao Grottoes and also in the gorgeous clothes of the Madonna. Lapis lazuli from Afghanistan is not only the profoundest sky in Dunhuang frescoes but also the purest blue in Titian's works. Many traders may not travel the entire length of the Silk Road, but one short…

In 2022, Chinese drama frequently produced wonderful works, history, Xuanhuan, romantic, mystery, even the most discerning viewers can find a drama that suits them. In this article, we have selected eight ancient costume dramas that are among the best in terms of reviews and reputation.   01 The Long River · 天下长河 Details of The Long River Also known as: Tian Xia Chang He Aired: November 11, 2022 Episodes/Duration: 40/45min Period Background: Qing Dynasty Genres: Historical, Political Director: Zhang Ting Main Role: Luo Jin as Kangxi Emperor, Yin Fang as Chen Huang, Huang Zhi Zhong as Jin Fu. Plot Summary of The Long River ”The Long River“ takes the story of water governance in the Kangxi period as the main line. It tells the story of Jin Fu, Chen Huang and other water governance talents who overcome all obstacles to protect the stable water situation of the Yellow River and jointly build dikes that cannot be washed away by floods. Since a huge flood in the 15th year of Kangxi, the young Emperor Kangxi began recruiting river governance talents. Chen Huang, a 24-year-old scholar who just after the failure of the imperial examination, stood out and was good at river governance.…

Historical Background The Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties were the most important period in Chinese history. From the end of the 6th century to the mid-10th century A.D., feudal rule lasted more than 300 years. Tang Dynasty was the most glorious dynasty in Chinese history. It was powerful, materially abundant, and famous in frontiers and overseas. In 581 A.D., Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian seized the Northern Zhou regime and established the Sui Dynasty, and then destroyed Chen and unified ancient China. However, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was exacting and profligate, which made the Sui Dynasty last for only 39 years. Since the founding of Li Yuan and the pacification the various forces. Li Shimin succeeded to the throne as Emperor Taizong. During his reign for more than 20 years, logical administration and harmonious people. Historically, this peaceful and prosperous era was called the Governance during the Zhenguan Reign. After that, until ten years of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the country was prosperous and the people were safe and the society was rich, and historically known as the KaiYuan Period. After the An Lushan Rebellion, the Tang Dynasty changed from prosperity to decline. In 907,…

Since the Chinoiserie style became very popular, Dunhuang culture has naturally become one of the focuses. Many Chinese actresses and hanfu models have tried the Dunhuang flying apsaras. Dunhuang flying apsaras, as the top popular exotic culture, how is it possible to combine grandeur and ebullience in such an ingenious way? It all starts with the Dunhuang murals.   The Origin of Dunhuang Frescoes During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the divisive political situation made people’s lives turbulent. The concept of Buddhism’s compassion and salvation provided comfort to suffering people and developed rapidly. There was a monk on way to the west, passing through Dunhuang and encountered a golden light spectacle, identified as a holy place. He hired the craftsman to dig caves here and carve Buddha statues. Over time, not only the princes and nobles, and even the common people have come to Dunhuang to excavate Buddhist caves, then the scale of the grottoes gradually expanded. Gradually, Dunhuang, located at the west end of the Hexi Corridor, has become a true fertile land for the spread of Buddhism, forged a rich treasure house of art and culture. Grand, magnificent, and surpassingly beautiful, Dunhuang has an unparalleled aesthetic background, known…

Like the dragon, Feng (凤, phoenix) is the most representative of the Chinese totem. As a rumored divine bird, the appearance of the phoenix also gathers the advantages of hundreds of beasts. In the ancient book "Er Ya", Guo Pu noted the image of a phoenix "chicken head, snake neck, swallow chin, turtle back, fishtail, variety of colors, about six feet high." But in the long years, the image of the Chinese phoenix has also been completely different in different times.   Shang and Zhou Dynasties During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, ancient people's primitive totem worship of the phoenix gradually turned into awe of centralized rule. The divine bird phoenix has its special political meaning and has become an auspicious symbol of peace in the world. Phoenix patterns usually only appear in bronzeware and jade decorations, which are the patent of princes and nobles. During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, bronzeware was mostly used in sacrificial ceremonies and had a strict hierarchy. The sacrificial use determines the solemn and majestic overall style of bronzeware, and also affects the choice of pattern decoration on bronzeware. During this period, the phoenix pattern is mainly the image of Kuifeng (夔凤). The overall…

From the broadcasting of large quantities Chinese dramas around the world, to the strategy of overseas expansion of Chinese video websites and TV organizations to accelerate the pace of Chinese drama exports, the globalization model of Chinese dramas is achieving continuous progression. Recently, "New Life Begins" was launched on streaming platforms in North America, Europe, Australia, Indian Peninsula, Singapore, Malaysia and many other regions; before that, the web series "Immortal Samsara" was distributed to South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and other regions for broadcast; in addition, "Thank You, Doctor " was also launched on many overseas platforms including North America, Russia, South Korea and Japan during its broadcast.   01 Diversification Subject As an important breakthrough for Chinese dramas to go global, ancient costume dramas have always been the main force for culture export, such as "Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan", "Nirvana in Fire", "Eternal Love of Dream", "Story of Yanxi Palace", "The Untamed", "Joy of Life" and other costume dramas have driven a new round of fever to go global. Since 2022, the momentum of ancient costume dramas globally is still strong. In 2022, Korean platform bought the rights of "Love Between Fairy and Devil" and "A Dream of…

Hey everyone! College applications have been kicking my ass for the past few months so I've been pretty silent for a while, but I'm finally done—which means more hanfu content for you all to see! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m redsugar, or Tangtang (or a bajillion other variants of red and sugar in multiple languages that people have given to me as nicknames)! I’m a gender fluid Taiwanese-American hanfu designer based in the US. I’ve been part of the Newhanfu community for a couple years now and written extensively about my historical research and designs. Today I’m going to give you all a little summary of the designs modeled in our January 2023 model call outing! This includes five out of my eight 2023 Lunar New Year collection, photographed at the Chinese Cultural Garden in San Jose. Special thanks to all the participants for modeling these samples, and hope you guys all had plenty of fun! Let’s get to it then~ 機杼/JIZHU (modeled by 采蘑菇的小姑娘背着一只大狂猪) First up is Jizhu! This is a late Ming Dynasty four-piece set consisting of a 百迭裙/百迭裙/bai3 die2 qun2/hundred-layered skirt, a 立領衫/立领衫/li4 ling3 shan1/standing collar top, a waist tie, and a 比甲/比甲/bi3…

Serious eyes and magnificent scenes make the audience seem to be able to be in the painting. Each painting is powerful and has an impressive presence, and the oriental fantasy narrative is integrated into the painting, which makes people excited. Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu with soaring aspirations. The unruly and uninhibited Monkey King. Tang warriors, who dressed in warrior armor and wore masks in the style of Tang Sancai pottery, guarded the tomb of Li Yuan, the founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Xu Zihui, born in Qingdao in 1996, has been in contact with comic strips, sketches and cartoons since childhood, and he has been drawing for 16 years. During his study at the Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts, he won numerous awards and several heavyweight awards.   Young "veteran artist" Becoming famous at a young age, most people thought he was a genius. But in fact, Xu Zihui's creation in the past few years is also a process of constant transformation. He changes in each bottleneck and doubt, and gains new life in difficulties just as in his painting. During the seven-year undergraduate and master years, the first two years are a learning process,…

In a year and a half, this blogger has only updated 22 videos, but one of them has made him gain a million followers. He is the top blogger of Chinese style cosplay, Zhu Tiexiong (朱铁雄). He used the ultimate special effects to ignite the passion and romance in the hearts of all ancient style fans.     01 Chinese-style passion and romance Zhu Tiexiong inspires the emotions rooted in our heart with his moving stories. His first video is very short. He uses cheap cardboard to pretend to be Sun Wukong, guarding the dreams of sick children, but when he is mocked and belittled, he does a backflip and rises into the air, transforming into Qi Tian Da Sheng. "Those dreams that seem so ridiculous are the light we guard with all our might". He is also the majestic Zhao Yun, riding a white horse, heroic rescue. Behind his gorgeous chinoiserie costume transformation, is the heroic nature and chivalry. Through the constant reversal of the plot, it touches our emotions. But Zhu Tiexiong does not intend to let the audience stay only in the visual enjoyment, he hopes to convey more values. He began to try to add…

"Unchained Love" is the ancient romantic political drama which stars Dylan Wang, Chen Yu Qi, Peter Ho, and Zeng Li, and aired on December 27, 2022. The drama is based on the novel of the same name by You Si Jie, which tells the story of Xiao Duo, the leader of the powerful Zhao Ding Division, and Bu Yin Lou, a concubine of the previous emperor, who bravely defy fate and feudal rituals, and support each other through life and death to win their freedom. In the eleventh year of the Long Hua period, Da Ye Dynasty (fictional), all the concubines who had no children had to be buried together with the deceased emperor. As a newcomer to the imperial palace, Bu Yin Lou faces the threat of death as soon as she appears. Xiao Duo, the leader of the Zhao Ding Division, who is in charge of decides the list of concubines to be buried with. He noticed that Bu Yin Lou had saved herself in various ways from the beginning and thought she was actually quite intelligent. At the critical moment, Xiao Duo saved Bu Yin Lou. Although Bu Yinlu has not even seen the emperor once since…

On the evening of November 29, at the 17th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage held in Rabat, Morocco, the "Traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices in China" nominated by China were inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. "Traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices in China" covers the knowledge, skills, and practices of tea plantation management, tea leaf picking, manual processing, drinking, and sharing. Since ancient times, Chinese people have been growing, picking, making, and drinking tea. Using the art of tea making, tea makers have developed six major tea types, namely green, yellow, dark, white, oolong, black teas, and reprocessed tea such as flower-scented teas, and more than 2,000 kinds of tea products to meet the various needs of the people with different colors, aromas, tastes and shapes. https://youtu.be/Oe6kGFmFLnc   1 - The Origin of Chinese Traditional Tea Shennong used tea as an antidote for hundreds of poisons. Shu gave homegrown tea to the emperor of the Zhou Dynasty as a tribute. Since Lu Yu, the Saint of Tea, composed the "The Classic of Tea (茶经)", the status of tea has…

The thriving hanfu and its derivative culture are coming back into the public view in a creative, distinct, and diverse way, lending its light and color back to the energetic youth. In this article, follow "THE GREAT SHOKUNIN" and meet Hanfu makeup blogger @Xiao Zhuang (小庄).   Creative Ancient Hanfu Makeup The account @Xiao Zhuang is actually run jointly by two Hanfu enthusiasts, with makeup, appearances, editing and post generally handled by Qing Qing (晴晴), while photography and filming are done by Xiao Zhuang. They have collaborated on over 200 videos, the most popular of which is the series "The Beauty of China's Millennium", which has received nearly 10 million views. In this series, Qing Qing restored the history of the evolution of makeup, hairstyles, accessories, and hanfu clothing of the Tang, Song, and Ming dynasties. Before this, we mostly got a glimpse of ancient women's grooming, makeup and lifestyle from ancient TV dramas, but the style was mostly uniform, lacking in creativity and sophistication. On the contrary, in Xiao Zhuang's video, you can fully experience the changes of women's makeup and costume in different dynasties. Taking the Tang Dynasty makeup of this series as an example, the complete reproduction…

Summary Modern Hanfu, also known as New style Hanfu, originates from the traditional classical dress style of the Han ethnic group and retains its typical formal characteristics, but innovates by combining it with the diverse wearing situations and fashion aesthetics of the current public. The core features of modern hanfu are: innovation, openness, and contextual diversity. While retaining the basic forms and aesthetics of ancient hanfu, modern hanfu has gained more and more popular among consumers in recent years by innovating its design to fit modern people's dressing habits and aesthetics, making it an everyday look. With the return of traditional Chinese culture to the mainstream, there are more and more hanfu with new styles. From both the cultural and productive point of view, the future of the new style hanfu industry is very promising.   The basic situation of the modern Hanfu industry Modernization and daily use will drive the industry further The market size of the modern hanfu industry in 2021 is 1.4 billion dollars, up 6.4% year-on-year, slowing down relative to the past five years. This is partly because of the decline in the ability and willingness of consumers to purchase due to factors such as the…

In 2015, three post-80s, who love statues and model toys, founded Infinity Studio (开天工作室) together in Shanghai. Today, Infinity Studio has not only become the head brand of sculpture in China, but also led the niche circle to develop into a hot modeling industry, truly bringing love into reality and doing the best. Pu Xiang Industrial Design Studio recently interviewed the founder of Infinity Studio, Yu Guanglai, and talked with him about the first half of his life dedicated to the statues.   01 The bond with model toys Yu Guanglai has been associated with model toys for more than thirty years. Ever since he understood, most of his life has been closely connected with model toys. The first model toy in Yu Guanglai's life was the Transformers that his mother bought for him. But at that time, he was young and playful, and the toys he wanted were both numerous and expensive. Yu Guanglai repeatedly dreamed of going to various kinds of toy stores, and sometimes he would wake up with toys in his arms. When he woke up, he found that it was just a dream, and he was very disappointed. Once, the school organized a summer hiking.…

After thousands of years of history, Chinese Hanfu styles are extremely diverse. However, the Hanfu recognized today mainly refers to the costumes of powerful dynasties such as Han, Tang, Song, and Ming, and is also the main basis for contemporary Hanfu design. There is no longer to consider the hierarchy in wearing modern Hanfu, with a richer mix of colors, patterns, and fabrics. Modern Hanfu designs are more simple and more comfortable, incorporating more fashionable elements while not losing beauty. Hanfu enthusiasts can choose and match Hanfu according to their own style and preference. However, because of its distinctive national characteristics, following certain wearing etiquette will definitely make the wearer more elegant and confident.   The Origin of Hanfu Chinese Hanfu is the traditional costume of the Han people. How did the name originate? How is it worn? What is the relationship between Han Chinese costume and Chinese culture? These questions can not be explained in a few words. First of all, we need to understand the origin of the Han Chinese, the early Han Chinese set the tone for the dress of later generations. Hua Xia The Han originated from Huaxia. The term "Huaxia (华夏)" was first used in…

Chinese tea culture emerged in the Tang Dynasty. In the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties, tea culture was deeply developed on the basis of inheriting the tradition, and tea-drinking customs with different characteristics and styles emerged successively, such as Jian Cha (煎茶, tea cooking), Dian Cha (点茶, tea whisking), Dou Cha (斗茶, tea tasting), and Pao Cha (泡茶, tea brewing ). With the progress of society, tea culture is developing continuously.   The rise of tea culture in the Tang Dynasty According to historical records, as early as the Western Han Dynasty, it was common to drink and grow tea in Sichuan, China, and tea have already become an important commodity at that time. After the Six Dynasties, the trend of tea drinking rose in the south, and tea drinkers gradually increased in society. The establishment of the unified country in the Tang Dynasty, made it possible to have regular economic and cultural exchanges between the north and the south, which laid the foundation for the further popularization of tea-drinking customs and the continued development of tea culture. Tea drinking in China has a history of more than 4,000 years, and it was not until the Tang Dynasty that…

Holliday season is upon us! Many of you may already be shopping for gifts. If you have hanfu lovers amongst your friends and relatives, or if you need to come up with a list of your own to give ideas to your relatives, here are a few inspirations. My choices went to objects that are: versatile, so you can have a few of the item and use them interchangeably hard to make for yourself, so even if the person makes hanfu for themselves, they would be happy to have one ready-made hard to find in stores but available online useful, no matter how many you have   "Mother-child" metal buttons "Mother-child" metal buttons, also know as Zimukou (子母扣). They are so beautiful, there are so many shapes and sizes, and so hard to find in sewing supply stores, especially in Western countries. It adds greatly to the beauty of a Ming dinasty shan or ao, but can also be used on daily wear. Trimmings Especially enbroidered, ancient looking trimmings. They are no longer fashionable for modern sewing supply shops, you can almost only find them online. It adds style to your garment right away, and unless you weave, you cannot…

Winter hanfu dressing wear can probably be summarized as two different types. One is a short lining top + pants and skirt overlay, the other is to rely on a long coat or thick enough outerwear to keep warm. No matter which types is used, matching is the top priority, no one want to become dressed bloated in winter! Follow Hanfu Times to find your winter Hanfu inspiration.   Eye-catching Colors There are many color-matching principles that can be applied in winter hanfu. Clever matching can also make you more brilliant, such as color clash matching. Bright colors can choose peacock green, olive, treasure blue, and other blue and green cool shades. If choose warm colors, it will enlarge the sense of expansion. The middle color can be used as beige, light white, and more natural. The olive color is more suitable for wearing as a jacket, inside with black or khaki. If you wear it inside, it is recommended to add a belt. The lapel jacket + airplane sleeves + two pieces of skirt can be worn as a change of season in autumn and winter. Black with floral patterns, light series of solid colors with white, are bright enough.…

Hey everyone, long time no see! It's been a while and I promise I'm still working on the Song Dynasty sections of Hanfu Unearthed—in the meantime, enjoy this not-so-short cheat sheet to all of the most commonly used fibers and weaves in hanfu, whether historically or in the industry today. Fibers Fibers are the material from which threads are spun to be made into fabric. These include synthetic fibers made in labs or factories by humans, as well as animal fibers that are grown as fur or silk by animals, or plant-based fibers that we harvest from various fibrous plants. Tencel Rising in popularity, especially last summer, tencel is a kind of semi-synthetic fiber made from cellulose, also called lyocell, originally made to imitate silk. Made by dissolving cellulose into pulp and using dry jet-et spinning to reconstitute the fibers, it’s a clean process that creates a kind of synthetic fiber using natural materials: easier to dye than cotton, more breathable than polyester, moisture-wicking, and softer than linen. The one downside of tencel is that it’s easily wrinkled, but its smooth draping quality and breathability make it a first choice for hanfu manufacturers today. Other rayons are also used, but…

Even though there are many holidays being celebrated in China now, there are some important holidays that existed since centuries ago. Only now, their existence are fading and the meaning of them are no longer important. Besides learning about hanfu components, it's also interesting to learn about those holidays and what they mean in ancient China.