As we all know, Empress Dowager Cixi is very luxurious, eating 108 dishes in one meal, which is well known to everyone. And her luxury in addition to eating, her travel is also very exquisite and stylish, her Luan public opinion is a 16-person car, this car can be called the Rolls Royce in the car.
Interior furnishings
Cixi's palanquin was placed in the middle of a very comfortable chair, the two sides of the chair were covered with bright yellow satin cotton pads, and above this hand was a device similar to a small door, and after Cixi sat on the chair, this device could be lowered and straddled directly in front of Cixi, similar to our writing chair with a small table, and Cixi could rest on the cushion when she was tired.
The one in front of her was not just a soft pad board, this pad was several inches thick, could be opened, and could put Cixi's makeup box, which contained Cixi's puffs, small jade sticks, and all kinds of equipment needed for makeup.
There is a pair of golden vases in the two corners of the front of the palanquin, the vase is specially made, the size can be placed in the corner of the palanquin, the height is exactly the same as the height of Cixi's sitting, according to different seasons, the slaves who serve her will put different flowers in the vase, so that the whole palanquin has a fragrance.
The confidentiality of the palanquin
The royal family is most concerned about confidentiality, especially when traveling far away, the entire road except cixi's honor guard, absolutely not allowed any ordinary people to peep, so cixi's palanquin preservation confidentiality is also very good.
The interior of this palanquin is surrounded by yellow brocade, and the windows on both sides of the palanquin are equipped with double curtains inside and out, the inner layer is yellow silk, and the inside is cushioned with cotton, when this layer of curtains is closed, it can make people outside can not see inside, of course, people inside can not see outside. But in order to allow Cixi to see outside, the outer curtains are made of yellow silk, and if Cixi does not want to see through the curtains, she can also lean forward and pull a slit from the curtains to look out.
The entire interior of the palanquin, except for the curtains and the floor, is all covered with yellow satin curtains, and the most extravagant part of Cixi's palanquin is the yellow curtain in this palanquin.
Eight treasures in the car
The yellow curtain in the palanquin is composed of continuous patterns, similar to our wallpaper today, this pattern is called "eight treasures", each group is composed of eight pieces, each piece is about 2 inches in size, the pattern is arranged horizontally, continuously unfolded.
The eight treasure patterns are "he box, drum board, dragon gate, jade fish, crane, ganoderma lucidum, chime, pine branch", this eight treasure pattern can only be used by the emperor and the empress.
These patterns are all embroidered by the most skilled embroiderers, needle by stitch, thread, even the cheapest labor, this is also a costly project, some may take a week, some may take several years, perhaps these weavers in the weaving for Cixi these patterns, some people may be tired and blind.
According to the estimation of Princess Deling, who was waiting by her side, the price of this "Eight Treasure Yellow Mantle" alone was at least more than 70 million taels, and there were two such palanquins.
Cixi was a relatively conservative diehard, and in her later years she began to slowly accept modern Machinery and Equipment in the West, but she was still stubborn in travel. Cixi once took a train trip to Fengtian, and during this trip, she took her palanquin with her on the train and took a carriage alone to put her palanquin.
Cixi's palanquin is made of rattan, like a small hut, with two long rods fixed to the sides of the palanquin on the periphery, and two horizontal rods at each end of the two rods cross it vertically to form a 16-lift palanquin.
These people carrying the palanquins are all wearing red coats, blue silk pants, and black cotton boots, which have no heels, so they will walk smoothly.
These 16 sedans are strong and steady, and when they go up the stairs, in order to maintain the stability of the palanquins, the people behind them will lift the sedan above their heads and keep the sedan as high as before and after, and similarly, when they go down the stairs, the sedan in front of them will also do this, so that the entire palanquin can always remain stable, just like walking on the flat ground.
Cixi's palanquin is a status symbol and a manifestation of the supremacy of imperial power, and even if Cixi does not sit on it, people must treat it respectfully, just as they treat Cixi herself. From the luxury of Cixi's palanquin, we can know that the decline of the late Qing Dynasty is inevitable, and the demise of a dynasty is not accidental, but the inevitable development of countless small things.
Resources:
"Royal Smoke Clouds" - Deling
"The Second Year of the Qing Palace" - Deling