Usually we talk about culture and art.
Coinciding with the Year of the Tiger,
Naturally, we will not let go of this opportunity to popularize "tiger culture"!
Today I will not talk about how the king of the hundred beasts has sharp teeth,
How to be majestic in nature
Instead, start with the "tigers" around us
Take a look
From literature and drama, cultural relics and treasures, traditional folklore...
The "tiger" that surrounds our lives
Chinese have a special complex for tigers, and our ancestors have greatly worshipped and revered tigers since primitive times, seeing them as the embodiment of strength and courage. "Eastern Green Dragon, Western White Tiger, Southern Suzaku, and Northern Xuanwu", these four spirit beasts represent the four guardian gods and protect the peace of the people. The Zhou Yi Qiangua Wen says: "The clouds are from the dragon, the wind is from the tiger", the dragon flies in the sky, the tiger travels on the ground, and the dragon and the tiger merge to become a symbol of strength and prosperity.
From Paleolithic and Neolithic rock paintings, to the oracle bones of Yin Ruins, the bronze of Shang Zhou, the stone carvings of Qin and Han, and the murals of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, there are many traces of tigers. Bronze, iron, jade, porcelain, gold and silver ware shaped like tigers in the past dynasties are colorful and lifelike.
1
Shi Hu
- Maoling Shihu
This stone sculpture from the Mao Mausoleum in Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, is 2 meters long and 0.84 meters wide. The tiger's demeanor is alert and powerful, like a large white-fronted tiger with a hanging eye, its neck skin is very tight, its limbs and claws are strong and powerful, its long tail is rolled on its back, calmly hidden, highlighting the most prominent features of the tiger in front of its prey, which belongs to the fine works in Maoling stone carvings.
2
Bronze Tiger
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Western Zhou Bronze Mother and Child Tiger Collection of Baoji Bronze Ware Museum
The Baoji Bronze Ware Museum, the Bronze Mother and Child Tiger of the Western Zhou Dynasty, allows us to see the other side of the tiger. It can be seen that the Zhou people pushed the ancient Chinese bronze civilization to the peak, and the craftsmen of the Zhou Dynasty recorded the dynamic picture of the tigress picking up the baby tiger with superb skills and keen observation in bronze. Unearthed in 1988 at the Baoji Bridge Factory, this cultural relic shows the deep and vivid love between mother and child, blends the mighty and tender feelings of the tiger into one, and condenses the momentary picture of the natural world into an eternal bronze, which is a rare art treasure.
3
Jade Tiger
- Hanru Wang Tiger Rune
This gilded Lu Wang Tiger Charm collected by the Xianyang Museum resembles a small tiger lying down, with a cute and tiger tiger, and the small seal character "Han and Lu Wang is a tiger symbol" cast on the back is half a word, and the tiger symbol is the left half of a complete tiger symbol. According to the "Records of History", this tiger charm should be the object of Liu Yu, the king of Lu Gong during the Han Jing Emperor, and it is a tiger charm of the princes.
4
Painted tigers
- Tiger figurines of the Zodiac
This group of Tang painted pottery zodiac figurines is located in the third exhibition hall of the Shaanxi History Museum, they were unearthed in a Tang tomb in the southern suburbs of Xi'an, all of which are animal heads, twelve animal figures, the body is humanoid, wearing an open-collared and wide-sleeved robe, the length of the robe hangs down to the feet, the hands are arched in front of the chest, and there are some humble attitudes in the elegance.
As one of the zodiac figurines, the tiger figurines are loved by everyone.
The image of the tiger appears in various fields of traditional culture such as poetry, novels, paintings, operas, and sculptures. In traditional cultural works such as gongbi painting, freehand painting, New Year painting, clay sculpture, shadow puppetry, and paper-cutting, the tiger is no longer a ferocious beast or a symbol of power, but incarnates into a cute and spiritual animal.
Dramatic image
- Tiger Face
The names, characters, faces, and nicknames associated with tigers in the opera are numerous. In the opera, the characters who sketch the pictographic face to show that they are tigers are: the white tiger in the Haunting Heavenly Palace, the tail fire tiger in the "Ten Thousand Immortals", etc.; the characters who sketch the tiger characters in the face are: Yang Qilang in "Golden Beach", Hu Yanzan in "Dragon and Tiger Fighting", and Wu Xin in "Father and Son Circle". The face on the picture is the black tiger image transformed and processed by the author on the basis of the Huyanzan face of the Shao opera "Dragon and Tiger Fight", which is a pictographic face. The tips of the eyebrows are painted with an inverted pattern of hair, which adds to the tiger's might. The word "king" is ticked to conform to the statement that the tiger is the king of the mountains. The gold pattern is a representation of the god identity of the zodiac tiger.
Wellness symbol
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The tiger is a symbol of health and strength, and the "Five Birds Play" founded by Hua Tuo for physical fitness is headed by "Tiger Play". The tiger is the head of the hundred beasts, the king of the forest, in the field of Chinese medicine, the tiger corresponds to the kidney, the main bone of the kidney, the tiger belongs to the outer yin and the inner yang, the water in the kan, the true yang in the kidney, which embodies the five elements theory of Chinese medicine.
Literary imagery
—— "Chatting with Zai Zhiyi" Miao Biochemical Tiger
In the 7th story of "Liaozhai Zhiyi" volume 23, "Miao Sheng", it tells a series of stories that happened after Gong Sheng, a scholar from Minzhou, Shaanxi Province, went to Xi'an to take the imperial examination and met Miao Sheng, who was transformed into an adult, and Mr. Pu expressed such a phenomenon through this story; at the so-called literati gathering in ancient times, some people without ink on their chests pretended to be posture and forced others to listen, most of them also echoed it, Mr. Pu was very disgusted with this phenomenon. Hence the story of Miao Sheng transforming into a tiger and eating these nasty people.
Collectible value
- Stamp Tiger Painting
The image of the tiger was also used in the postal service, made into a stamp and issued, and exchanged after people's letters. With the passage of time, today's stamps still have a certain collection value, and the tiger images on the tiger stamps are different, vivid and interesting, and it is worth picking up and appreciating.
After a long period of cultural filling, the image of the tiger has been symbolized by complexity and simplicity: exorcism and blessing - this is the folklore connotation of the tiger image. Tiger elements gradually penetrate into folk daily life, such as flour flowers, paper cuts, embroidery, furniture, cloth toys, etc., often with the theme of "tiger".
Painting of the Year of the Tiger
The Han Dynasty Chinese New Year's Eve the custom of painting tigers at the gate, which opened a precedent for Chinese folk New Year paintings. Later, the folk custom of painting tigers to ward off evil town houses became a tradition in the folk and has continued to this day.
During the New Year's Festival, in order to ensure the safety of their homes and ward off evil spirits and avoid disasters, people will also hang New Year paintings of tiger elements on the door.
Tiger face flower
Many of the face flowers are particularly exquisite, which not only shows the superb skills of the locals, but also fully shows the close relationship between the Chinese "tiger culture" and the local ethnic art.
Tiger steamed buns
During the Spring Festival, in some places such as Shaanxi, tiger steamed buns are steamed at home in preparation for visiting relatives and friends.
There is also a saying that "on the second of February, the dragon looks up and the tiger opens its eyes", and the steamed dragon and tiger and other steamed buns can be "five poisons and strong spirits".
Tiger paper cuts
Paper-cutting is a traditional decorative art that people use to paste in various parts of the home.
In the Year of the Tiger, the paper-cutting boom with tigers as elements has quietly risen, and exquisite paper-cutting has not only deepened people's understanding of traditional culture, but also pinned good wishes for the New Year.
The protector of children
In China, the relationship between children and tigers is not small, and history has handed down such a custom - elders should wear tiger head shoes, wear tiger head hats, and sleep tiger head pillows for children, on these items, the image of the tiger is shaped to be both powerful and cute, implying that children can also grow tiger heads, strong and lively.
5
Tiger name
Because the folk regard the tiger as the protector of children, in order to let their children grow up to have a career, avoid disasters and drive away disasters, give children the name with the word "tiger", tiger baby, tiger child, little tiger ... Are these names already familiar?
6
Tiger toe shoes
Tiger head shoes are one of the traditional Chinese handicrafts, is a kind of children's shoes, because the toe is in the shape of a tiger's head, so it is called tiger head shoes.
Tiger head shoes are complex, only on the tiger's head need to use embroidery, plucking flowers, seeds and other stitches; the color of the upper is mainly red and yellow, and the tiger's mouth, eyebrows, nose, eyes and other places often use thick lines to outline, exaggerated performance of the tiger's might. The art of making tiger-toe shoes has been included in the intangible cultural heritage.
7
Tiger hat
Tiger head hat is a typical style of children's hat in Chinese folk children's clothing with the tiger as the image.
Tiger head hats and tiger head shoes, tiger bibs, tiger face belly pockets, etc. have become an important part of Chinese children's clothing, with distinctive characteristics.
8
Tiger headrest
The tiger head pillow is a type of Chinese folk embroidery. The method is basically similar to making a pillow, and the shape of the pillow is modeled after the traditional tiger.
These pillows are superbly sewn, decorated and shaped. Tiger pillows are divided into double-headed tigers, human-faced tigers, tiger heads and fish tails, etc., which mean auspicious and peaceful, and are generally used by children. Children can use it as a pillow when sleeping and as a toy when they wake up.
Material source: People's Publishing House, Shaanxi History Museum, Shaanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau Hantang Network, Baidu, etc
Article finishing: Liu Zhilin
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