The door is purple and angry, and the rabbit year is a new year. In 2023, the Year of the Rabbit in the traditional Chinese zodiac year is coming as promised. In traditional Chinese culture, "rabbit" is a highly reputable word, which is listed among the twelve zodiac signs, which is not only closely related to the future vision of human life, but also is said to be the genus of the moon god, and has auspicious meanings such as spitting spring and abundant food and clothing.
Time has passed, and long-term Chinese culture has become a new inspiration for life and art, and has been transformed into creative imagery or figurative objects. Behind the cultural relics national treasures born under artistic aesthetics and craftsmanship is the same era culture, which is the irreplaceable concentrated essence of cultural relics national treasures. On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, tell you the story of the zodiac rabbit cultural relics, tracing the imprint of the times behind the national treasure of the cultural relics.
The Chinese zodiac is not only integrated into the life of ordinary creatures, but its natural habits have been endowed with many cultural significances, from animals to godheads, and to be revered and worshipped. Only the combination of natural beings and cultural godheads constitutes a complete zodiac animal impression. From the time of its origin, the zodiac signs have been regarded as a symbol of people's prayers for peace and longevity. Each zodiac sign has a rich meaning and legend, of which the rabbit represents prudence.
Tang | painted zodiac figurines
It is now in the Tang West City Museum in Xi'an
The earliest known rabbit fossils were found in Mongolia about 55 million years ago, and after a long evolutionary process, they spread around the world, mostly in deserts, grasslands and forests. People often say that rabbits, in animal taxonomy, belong to mammals, rabbits, rabbit families, a total of 11 genera and 61 species, including hare, burrowing rabbit, and cottontail rabbit. The mainland is one of the earliest countries in the world to domesticate rabbits, and the Chinese ancestors loved rabbits, raised rabbits, hunted rabbits, and used rabbit fur products to depict the image of rabbits on living utensils, making them an important element in Chinese colorful life.
South China rabbit specimen
It is now in the Heilongjiang Provincial Museum
Northeast rabbit specimen
It is now in the Heilongjiang Provincial Museum
Snow rabbit specimen
It is now in the Heilongjiang Provincial Museum
The history of mainland rabbit culture has a long history, dating back to the ancient Neolithic period. In the eyes of Chinese, rabbits are the messengers of auspicious fortune from heaven, and the cultural elements that form this meaning are precipitated in historical texts and poetry works, and are manifested in various cultural relics related to rabbits, such as jade, porcelain, bronze, paintings, etc. The ancients also regarded it as a symbol of health and longevity through the imagination of "jade rabbit pounding medicine"; He created praise idioms such as "three caves of cunning rabbits" and "moving like a rabbit" to metaphorically compare human intelligence and agility. In Buddhist lectures, rabbits, as Buddha's life, also have important cultural meanings. Out of love and worship of the rabbit, people also included it in the Chinese zodiac, and the zodiac rabbit has become a link that maintains the emotions and culture of the Chinese nation.
Shang | Moyu rabbit-shaped pendant
It is now in the Tianjin Museum
As an important representative of traditional Chinese culture, jade has five virtues, which deeply affects the thinking and aesthetic concept of every Chinese, and rabbit is also one of the most common themes of Chinese jade. On the one hand, because rabbits have strong fecundity and are regarded as symbols of fertility, people express the worship of fertility through rabbit-shaped jade; On the other hand, the meek and gentle character of the rabbit, combined with jade, not only represents wealth and power, but also is endowed with the virtue of gentleness and benevolence, condensing the special spiritual connotation of the ancients for life.
Clear | Onyx rabbit
It is now in the Changsha Museum
Ming | White Jade Rabbit
It is now in the Tianjin Museum
Ming | jade rabbit ornaments
It is now in the Changsha Museum
Shang | Qingyu Rabbit
It is now in the Tianjin Museum
Rabbits are the messengers of auspicious creatures in the eyes of Chinese, and have been listed on the list of Rui beasts since ancient times. The ancients often incorporated the image of the rabbit into the utensils of life, hoping to bring blessings to themselves. The ancient rabbit-related utensils in the mainland can be divided into practical utensils and ornamental utensils, with rich and colorful shapes, although they rarely have the might of dragon and tiger artifacts, but they have a unique exquisite beauty. Whether it is a rabbit-shaped round carving or a rabbit-shaped ornament, it directly or indirectly reflects the social life and historical style of each era, giving people long-lasting spiritual strength.
Western Zhou | Rabbit Zun
It is now in the Poly Museum of Art
Western Zhou | rabbit-shaped bronze statue
It is now in the Shanxi Museum
Ming | copper rabbit button print
It is now in the Tianjin Museum
Modern | brown glazed rabbit pattern lid jar
It is now in the Liaoning Provincial Museum
Qing | pastel jade rabbit Mochizuki diagram flower mouth bowl
It is now in the Xiamen Museum
Ruitu is also presented on the blue and white glaze, which has evolved over many eras, and also presents different visual textures and cultural collection values, allowing people to truly feel the charm of national treasure cultural relics.
Ming Wanli | blue-and-white baby play picture jar
It is now in the Tianjin Museum
Ming | blue and white rabbit spinning dish
It is now in the Liaoning Provincial Museum
Yuan| Yuanqinghua rabbit pattern
It is now in the Pingxiang Museum
In many Chinese folk poems, myths and legends, rabbits often accompany the Queen Mother of the West in the image of "fairy rabbits", or live in the Moon Palace, constantly pounding the "medicine of immortality", becoming a symbol of health and longevity. In Buddhist stories, rabbits are also often used to represent the story of "Buddha's life". Through the meticulous observation of rabbits, the ancients summarized the characteristics of dexterity and agility, and at the same time, according to their living habits, they matched rabbits with rabbits, and together with "unitary chickens" formed the spatial orientation meaning of time and space interlaced in the twelve earth branches, which was included in the magnificent celestial myth. In addition, "卯" is like the shape of opening a door, so in traditional Chinese culture, it has always had the auspicious meaning of "opening the gate of heaven, rabbits welcoming all things".
Wall painting of Gaoyang tomb gate in Northern Qi | (facsimile)
It is now in the Hebei Museum
Ming | jade rabbit earrings
It is now in the Dingling Museum
Based on people's love, worship and auspicious longevity, the image of rabbits is favored by the world and has become an important theme in folk art creation. The most common folk crafts are paper cutting, painting, etc. At the same time, with the development of the times, while grasping the inherent spiritual characteristics of traditional folk images, through the re-creation of folk aesthetics, all kinds of popular elements are integrated with the image of rabbits, constantly giving rabbits new artistic shapes and cultural connotations, forming an interesting resonance with contemporary aesthetics, so that rabbit culture is endless and eternal.
Modern | "Jade Rabbit Troubles Spring" paper cutting
It is now in the Chinese Women and Children's Museum
Modern | "Jade Rabbit Welcomes Spring and Blessing" paper cutting
It is now in the Chinese Women and Children's Museum
Modern | zodiac family portrait - snake and rabbit paper cutout
It is now in the Chinese Women and Children's Museum
Memories of rabbits grow with us. From nature to culture, from heaven to earth, the Chinese has been created and accumulated over the generations of "rabbits", forming a splendid and colorful cultural meaning, which is deeply engraved in the historical process and cultural bloodline of the Chinese nation. Extract the cultural core, witness the spirit of the times, the charm of national treasures and cultural relics is constant, and the future looks forward to you and me exploring together.
Special Thanks:
China Cultural Heritage News Zodiac Culture Communication Alliance
Image source:
Da Zhanhong "Rabbit" - Lu Yu (Year of the Rabbit) Zodiac Cultural Relics Picture Group Exhibition