Lantern, also known as lantern color, is an ancient Chinese traditional handicraft. Originating in the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, red lanterns symbolizing reunion were hung around the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month to create a festive atmosphere. Later, lanterns have become a symbol of happiness for the Chinese people. Through the succession and development of the lantern artists in the past dynasties, a variety of varieties and superb technology have been formed. From the kind of: palace lamp, gauze lamp, chandelier, custom snow globe lantern and so on. From the modeling, there are figures, landscapes, flowers and birds, dragons and phoenixes, fish and insects, and so on. In addition, there are special for people to enjoy and play.
Lantern, is a kind of ancient lamps, as early as the eighth century in the Tang Dynasty recorded the use of lanterns. It was not until after the Qin and Han Dynasties that lanterns appeared in China, and paper lanterns were probably invented in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The custom of Lantern Festival viewing lights originated in the early Han Dynasty, but there is also legend in the Lantern Festival in the Shang Yang Palace Chen Dengying, is to celebrate the peace of the people, just tie the lantern, by flashing lights, symbolizing the "dragon Zhaoxiang, people rich and strong", lantern culture is still widely popular.
There are many theories about the origin of lanterns, one of the more widely spread is: the Lantern Festival custom began in the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Eastern Han Dynasty Ming Emperor Liu Zhuang advocated Buddhism, heard that Buddhism on the fifteenth day of the first month monks view Buddha serra, light lanterns worship Buddha practice, ordered this day night in the palace and temple lights worship Buddha, so that the common people are hanging lights. After this kind of Buddhist ritual festival gradually formed a grand folk festival. This section has experienced the development process from the court to the people, from the Central plains to the whole country. During the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, in order to celebrate the prosperity of the country and the peace of the people, people tied lanterns. With the flickering lights, the lanterns symbolized "the colorful dragon is auspicious, the people are rich and the country is strong".
There is an interesting folk story about the origin of playing lanterns. It is said that a long time ago, there were many fierce birds and beasts that hurt people and livestock everywhere, so people would organize to fight them. There was a divine bird that got lost and landed on earth, but was shot to death by an unwitting hunter. When the emperor of Heaven knew this, he was very angry. He issued a decree and ordered the soldiers of Heaven to set fire to the world on the fifteenth day of the first month. The kind-hearted daughter of the Emperor of Heaven could not bear to see the innocent suffering of the people, so she secretly came to the earth and told the people the news. A wise man came up with a plan. On the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth days of the first lunar month, he asked people to decorate their homes, light firecrackers and set off fireworks. In this way, the Emperor of Heaven would think that the soldiers of heaven had set fire to them. On the evening of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the emperor of Heaven looked down and found that the earth was glowing red with a loud noise, which had been the same for three consecutive nights. He gave up thinking that it was a fire burning. In order to commemorate this success, every family will hang lanterns on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month to commemorate this day.
There is also a saying: During the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, there was an old man in Hebei Province. This man was skillful and fond of folk craft. He had a set of lantern making skills. One year, the old man made several pairs of lanterns to Gaocheng set up to sell, happened to be the travel of the center of the county Lord saw, he bought all the lanterns, hung in the mansion all day long. Lantern workmanship chic, magnificent, the county magistrate as treasures, love. It was the time to pay tribute to the emperor again. The county magistrate was thinking hard about what items to send to please the emperor. Someone advised him to send a few pairs of lanterns. County magistrate although a little reluctant, but in order to please the emperor had to bear the pain. Sure enough, the emperor took a fancy to, Longyan big Yue, Gaocheng magistrate, and the lantern as a tribute. Then red lanterns were hung up everywhere inside and outside the palace. Hebei lanterns were designated as tributes and became special products of the imperial palace. Later, people changed the word "gong" to "Gong" and it became "palace lanterns".