Chinese lanterns are more than just decorative pieces. Since 250 B.C. they have symbolized everything from birth to death, social status to imminent danger. At one point they were even banned in China during the Cultural Revolution. Today, however, Chinese lanterns are once again the aesthetic companions of ceremonies and celebrations of all types and their popularity has grown not only in China but around the world.
One product of the lanterns' renewed popularity is that new decorative uses have been found for them. Chinese lanterns are now a coveted home decoration item used to enhance the ambiance of any interior space. Generally made of delicate rice paper and bamboo ribbing, the lanterns are hung from the ceiling and lit from the inside to create a warm glow. Nowadays they're sold in a wide variety of colours and sizes, allowing you to match the lantern to your room and the desired mood.
One of the more unique colours chosen for Chinese lanterns is black. Among the standard colours defined by traditional Chinese art and culture, black corresponds to the element of water according to Chinese physics. The other four colours include red, blue-green, white and yellow, associated with fire, wood, metal and earth, respectively. Chinese emperors relied on the so-called "theory of the five elements" to select colours throughout the Tang, Zhou and Qin dynasties.
Chinese culture defines black as a neutral colour. In the I Ching, or Book of Changes, it is regarded as the colour of heaven. In fact, there is a saying that goes "heaven and earth of mysterious black", which originated in the observation that the northern sky was very dark for a long time. The Chinese believed that the dwelling place of Tian Di, the Heavenly Emperor, was in the North Star.
The well-known Chinese Taiji symbol uses black and white to symbolize the unity of yin and yang while in ancient China black was revered as the king of all colours. According to Laozi, an ancient Chinese mystic philosopher and major Daoist figure, five colours make people blind, which led the Dao School to choose black as the colour of the Dao.
Author Resource:-
Rob Payne is the founder of Hanging Lanterns, suppliers of Black lanterns.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://article2008.com/images/feed-icon.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://article2008.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites