Chinese oil paper umbrella, mostly seen in ancient Chinese TV dramas and seldom seen in real life, is one of those rare, less well-known products that have great, authentic values, but are mysteriously overlooked by most people, including Chinese themselves. A wonderful cultural product that is often used to symbolize feminine beauty, it is also a practical item designed to function well in different weather conditions. An extraordinary invention from southern China, it was developed from a thousand-year-old umbrella-making practice. There are many shops in Beijing that offer exquisite Chinese oil paper umbrellas, go on a Beijing day tour with a Beijing guide to discover these amazing products.

Holding an exquisite oil paper umbrella, a delicate, breathtakingly beautiful young woman walks in the rain – such is the ideal image of ancient beauty depicted in the Chinese literature. The dainty flowers, auspicious animals, and gorgeous landscapes displayed by the paintings on the shades can blend in nicely with the environment, which make the woman appear even more beautiful.

An oil paper umbrella often looks simple in design, with only a few pieces of bamboo serving as the ribs and handle, and a large piece of oil paper placed on the ribs as shade. But in fact, such umbrellas are made from a difficult, complicated process that involves more than 80 steps. To ensure the quality, the bamboo must be careful selected to withstand strong force, and the paper needs to be covered with a layer of glutinous oil before it can be painted with images.

Umbrella is one of the inventions of ancient Chinese. It is believed to have been invented during the late Spring and Autumn period, by the wife of the famous Chinese carpenter, Lu Ban. Paper was not invented then, so the materials used were mostly leather, feather, and silk.

The origin of oil paper umbrella remains a mystery to this day. It is believed by some to have been first made in the Tang dynasty. It is understandably an invention from southern China, a region known for its humid, rainy climate that must have been the reason for the wide use of such umbrellas. In the Ming dynasty, such umbrellas became immensely popular.

Umbrella industry spread out across different regions in China, many of which have their own unique types of oil paper umbrellas. The most well-known include Yuhang umbrella from Zhejiang province, Luzhou umbrella from Sichuan province, Jialu umbrella from Jiangxi province, Chuangsha umbrella from Hunan province, Hankou umbrella from Hubei province, Xingyang umbrella from Yunan province, and Fuzhou umbrella and Yangkou umbrella from Fujian province.

Hakka people, a branch of the Han Chinese people, have an age-old tradition of giving a woman two oil paper umbrellas as gift for her marriage. In Chinese, the character for “umbrella” is “San”, which consists of four smaller characters “Zi”, which means son. “You”, the Chinese character for “oil”, is pronounced like the character for “have”. Hakka people hope that, by having two oil paper umbrella, a woman can give birth to a lot of sons in the future.

In Beijing, remember to find a personal shopper to help you shop for some exquisite Chinese oil paper umbrellas in the city’s mesmerizing local shops.

Related posts

• Shop For Exquisite Beijing Opera Masks In Beijing (0)

Worn by the Beijing Opera performers to represents characters with unique traits, Beijing Opera masks provide a kaleidoscopic views of the anicent Chinese psyche. Beautiful, unique patterns on a mask are filled with brilliant, complex colors to symbolize personality, emotion, and virtue of a character as interpreted by the designer. While Beijing Opera itself is only 200 years old, the traditon of wearing elaborately-designed masks in plays has a history of at least 4,000 years. It’s a great idea to go on a Beijing China tour with a personal shopper in Beijing to buy some exquisite Beijing Opera masks in the amazing local shops.

The countless famous figures from China’s long history are often grouped by Chinese into several broad, contrasting categories: good vs. evil, uprightness vs. foxy, loyal vs. unloyal, impulsive vs. cool-headed, and naive vs. sophisticated. These dispositions are all represented in the designs of facial makeups for Beijing Opera, with only small variations. Watching a play, one can judge the personality and role of a specific character from the mask he/she wears, without knowing anything about the story being told.

The colors of a Beijing Opera mask is the main clue that gives away the character. Patterns may vary among facial makeup designers, but there is a universal rule that governs the use of colors. Below is a short list with the major colors used for Beijing Opera masks and the characters they represent.

Red – uprightness, courage, loyalty

Green – impulsiveness, violence, lack of self-control

Black – boldness, fierceness, impartialness

White – evil, craftiness, treacherousness

Yellow – ambition, cool-headedness, fierceness

Blue – wildness, stauchness, shrewdness

Purple – sophistication, nobleness, uprightness

Gold/Silver – representing gods, spirits, and fairies.

Masks used for performance may have originated from masks worn by ancient dancers to expel ghosts and evil spirits in ceremonies. Many people believe that masked used by performers from the Tang dynasty had a great influence on the designs in later periods. The legendary Prince Lanling from the Northern Qi period was a fearsome warrior but with a handsome, feminine face that looked less than frightening. In order to frighten and overwhelm his enemies, Lanling wore a ferocious-looking mask every time he went to the battlefield. This is also believed by some to be a possible origin of performance mask.

The roles of actors in traditonal plays were formalized during the Ming dynasty, and so were the facial designs worn by the actors. Beijing Opera was created and rose to prominence in the late Qing dynasty, and it was during this period that the major facial designs were improved to a high level of sophistication and finalized.

There are 14 basic facial designs for the Jing and Chou roles in Beijing Opera, the only two roles allowed to wear a variety of makeups. They include: “whole face”, “three tile face”, “quartered face”, “six division face”, “tiny flower face”, “lopsided face”, “monk face”, “eunuch face”, “shoe-shaped gold face”, “spirit resonance face”, “deity face”, “clown face”, “elfin face”, and “hero face.”

In recent years, Beijing Opera masks became increasingly popular as a form of gift. Beautiful, unique masks, in different sizes, colors, and designs, are a popular product in almost all local gift shops in Beijing. This makes a sharp contrast to the art of Beijing Opera itself, which, due to a lack of funding and a diminishing audience, is thought to be on a general decline.

When shopping for Beijing Opera masks in Beijing, you need a Beijing guide to help you find shops with products made by the best local artisans.

Related posts

• Wall Painting Designs (0)
• Try Candle Making For Kids (0)
• True Beauty Of Beijing: Take A Beijing City Tour To Find Exquisite Chinese Calligraphy (0)
• Take A Beijing Day Tour To Find Unique, Exquisite Chinese Oil Paper Umbrella In The Local Shops (0)
• Spectacular Beijing Artwork: Take A Beijing Day Tour To Find Chinese Silk Figurines (0)