Chinese Decorative Elements

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Chinese Decorative Elements

• Symbols of happiness, wealth, and long life

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Daoist symbols

• Xiwangmu--mother of the West has magic peaches
  (party with 8 Immortals)
• Three Star Gods--happiness, wealth and long life
• Fuxing-God of Blessings and Happiness especially
  wishes regarding marriage and the birth of sons
  holds a scroll often accompanied by children
• Luxing- God of a good salary and rank carries
  Jade badge of office (dresses in court official
  cloth)
• Shouxing-God of Longevity and immortal carries
  the peach of immortality which came from Xiwangmu
  and a staff with scroll attached

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Celestial Worthy of Numerous Treasure
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The Immortals
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Daoism

• Eight Immortals (flower basket, flute of the
  youthful, castanets, fan, bamboo, fish drum with
  metal beaters, the lotus, the sword, and the fly
  whisk, and a double gourd with iron crutch
• One hundred boys--were the 99 natural sons and
  one adopted son of the wise and benevolent King
  Wen of Zhou (for wedding gift)

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Numbers

• 5 is important five directions, five elements,
  five blessings (long life, riches, health, love
  of virtue and a natural death
• 8 is an auspicious number it is an even or
  feminie yin number, which in the balance of
  things rules a mans cycles of growth and
  completion many groups of 8 8 trigrams, 8
  precious things, and the 8 Buddhist symbols

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Landscape painting

• Landscape paintings may not only represent
  particular places at particular moments but also
  symbolically combine mountains and water, or yang
  and yin, symbolized the primary forces that
  create the universe
• Chinese gardens are decorated carefully with
  rocks and water together with trees and flowers

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Dragon

• Dragon with five claws symbolized the Emperor
  yellow is the color associates with him
• Phoenix symbolized the Empress red is the color
  associates with her
• Qilin symbolized high ranking officials symbol
  of the bringer of babies
• Peonies can be used only by the royalty

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Flowers

• Flowers symbolized the four seasons
• Lotus symbolizes purity (growing out of mud)
• Lotus and cintamani or lotus and scepter meaning
  May your wishes come true
• Peonies-wealth and rank
• Magnolia (yulan) is a pun for jade (wealth and
  rank)

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Fruit

• Gourd-the emblem of the New Year
• Three Plenties (sanduo)-peach, pomegranate and a
  Buddhas hand citron
• Pomegranate--symbol of fertility (has many seeds)
• Peach--symbol of longevity
• Citron shaped like a Buddhas hand with long
  curving fingers, has the name foshou which makes
  it a rebus for blessing and longevity

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Animals

• In Tang period (618-916), pairs of birds, fish,
  and plants used to symbolize harmony and devotion
  in marriage the forms are full and rounded and
  the decorative element are elegant
• In Song Dynasty (960-1280), crane and deer
  symbolized longevity
• Ming Dynasty (1368-16440, plant and animals are
  popular symbols pomegranate, tiger and Five
  Poisonous Animals (snake, scorpion, centipede,
  spider and toad) Symbolism using a play on words
  was first systematically employed
• Riddles are used as part of the elaboration of
  annual holidays

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Animals

• Bats and coin--Blessing in front of your eyes,
  Blessings right here and now
• Bat in Chinese is fu which pronouced the same as
  a character for happiness or blessing coin is
  qian which means in front of you
• Bat and deer (immortality found immortal fungus)
• Bat and peaches--symbols of long life and
  happiness (commonly 8 peaches-8 immortals and 5
  bats for five Happiness)
• Red bats are especially auspicious, not because
  the color red wards off demons but also because
  hong is a rebus for enormous.

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Animals

• Butterfly and melon (wish for many
  sons)-continuous like a vine or everlasting
• Toad--symbol of wealth
• Cat (mao) is a rebus for 70-80 years old
• Butterfly (die) means aged 80
• Tiger-fights Five Poisonous animals
• Horse (ma or shang) means on top of or up
• Monkey (hou) is a word for high marquis
• Horse and monkey together means May you be
  elevated to the rank of marquis immediately

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Qiao Mansion
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Trees

• Evergreen symbolizes constancy and longevity
• Bamboo symbolizes gentle man because it always
  stands straight it is also part of the Three
  Friends of Winter, bamboo, pine and plum
• Persimmon symbolizes fertility

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Animals

• Elephant-rebus for strength and wisdom, and also
  associates with the Buddha washing an elephant
  means happiness and good luck riding an elephant
  meant good fortune and luck

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