Guangzhou Manchu

"hair crown" and "flag shoes"

the costume of manchu

Great changes have taken place in Manchu economy and culture since the 20th century, and many traditional costumes are very rare. But from movies, TV series and museums, you can also see the appearance of the old national flag dress. Among them, the female head is wide and long, like a fan, like a crown and not like a crown-a crown.

In the past, Manchu women, like boys, shaved off the hair around their heads when they were young, leaving only the hair behind their skulls, braided it and hung it behind their heads until they grew up, which was called "suncus murinus tail". After marriage, I began to wear a big pot head, a shelf head and two first-class steamed buns, two of which are typical. At both ends, the hair on the top of the head is tied up and divided into two locks, each lock is made into a bun, and then the rest of the hair at the back is made into a "dovetail" long flat bun. Usually, a hairpin with a length of 20-30 cm and a width of 23 cm is inserted horizontally in the bun, so it is necessary to wear a crown when celebrating auspicious days or receiving distinguished guests.

Qitou

The hair crown is a fan-shaped crown with a length of more than 30 cm and a width of more than 10 cm, with iron wire or bamboo rattan as the hat frame and green satin, green velvet or green yarn as the surface. It can be fixed on a bun when worn. Often embroidered with patterns, inlaid with jewels or decorated with various flowers, decorated with long tassels. This kind of headdress is mostly used by upper-class Manchu women, and it is only used when ordinary women get married. Wearing this wide and long hair crown limits the distortion of the neck and makes them straight. Coupled with the long cheongsam and high-grade flag shoes, their walking pace is very delicate, which is particularly stable and elegant.

Horseshoe shoes

In addition to "cheongsam" and "crown", Manchu women's "flag shoes" are also very distinctive. This kind of embroidered flag shoes is made of wood, which was called "high-top shoes" in history, or "flowerpot bottom" shoes and "horseshoe bottom" shoes. Its wooden heel is generally about 5- 10 cm high, some can reach 14- 16 cm, and the highest can reach about 25 cm. Usually wrapped in white cloth, and then embedded in the middle of the soles of the feet. The heel bottom usually has two shapes, one is that the top is open and the bottom is convergent, showing the shape of an inverted trapezoidal flowerpot. The other is thin at the top and wide at the bottom, flat at the front and round at the back, with the appearance and landing marks like horseshoes. The "flowerpot bottom" and "horseshoe bottom" are named after this, and they are also collectively called "high-top shoes". In addition to embroidered patterns or decorative pieces such as cicada butterflies on the vamp, there are often embroidery or beading on the parts of wood that cannot follow the ground. Some toes are decorated with ears made of silk thread, which is as long as the ground. The high-heeled wooden sole of this kind of shoes is extremely strong, and the upper is often broken, while the sole is still intact and can be reused. High-grade flag shoes are mostly worn by aristocratic young and middle-aged women over the age of thirteen or fourteen. Older women's flag shoes are mostly made of flat wood, which is called "flat shoes". The front end of the flag shoe is slightly cut to facilitate walking. I don't even wear it now.

Manchu people have the custom of "chopping wood to make shoes" since ancient times. There are different opinions about the origin of this kind of high-top shoes. One view is that Manchu women used to go up mountains to collect wild fruits, mushrooms and so on. In order to prevent insect bites, they tied wooden blocks to the soles, and later made increasingly sophisticated shoes and developed them into high-top shoes. There is also a legend that in order to cross a mud pond and recapture the city occupied by the enemy, the ancestors of the Manchu Dynasty imitated the appearance of a white crane and tied high branches on their shoes, and finally won. In order not to forget those tragic days, but also to commemorate the contribution of stilt wooden shoes, women put on these shoes and passed them on from generation to generation, and this is what happened.

Historically, Manchu men like to wear blue robes and mandarin jackets, and their hair braids are left behind. The early hairstyle was "money mouse tail" style, leaving only a lock of hair the size of a copper coin at the back of the head; By the end of the Qing Dynasty, it gradually evolved into a hairstyle with only shaved forehead and braids hanging behind the head, commonly known as yin-yang head, which is the case in film and television dramas; Wear a dome and pants. Women, on the other hand, like to wear straight cheongsam, comb a bow or "bun", wear a ring, hang a handkerchief around their waist, and wear patterned shoes. However, today's "cheongsam" is not the dress of Manchu women in history, but a fashion that absorbs western clothing cutting methods. It is quite different from the dress of Manchu women in the past, but it still has distinct Manchu characteristics.

Shoes written by Manchu women are embroidered with beautiful floral decorations, and the center of the sole is padded with wooden heels with a height of 10 cm. Manchu women can walk with their heads held high and their waists swaying. The hairstyle of Manchu women has changed greatly. When they were girls, they simply pulled their hair back. When you grow up to get married, you should braid your hair and tie it in a bun. There are many kinds of hair styles after marriage, double bun and single bun. Double bun hairstyle combs the hair into two parts from the top of the head. The front bun is combed into a flat top for wearing a crown, and the back bun of the neck is combed into a dovetail shape, which is scattered behind the tibia to keep the neck straight all the time. Therefore, Manchu women walk better. Cheongsam is a costume worn by Manchu men, women and children all year round. Simple cutting, round neck, wide front and back, narrow sleeves, four pieces of cutting, long seam, easy to get on and off the horse. Narrow sleeves facilitate archery. Because the cuff is attached with horseshoe sleeves, it is also called horseshoe sleeves. After the Manchu gradually got rid of riding and shooting career, horseshoe sleeves have become decorations, and putting down horseshoe sleeves is still the etiquette of Manchu to pay tribute to the elderly and respected people. Women's cheongsam is more decorative than men's cheongsam. The collar, front and cuffs are embroidered. With the changes of the times, the style of cheongsam has also changed greatly, and the four-piece cutting system has also been changed into a two-piece cutting system. Cheongsam can show women's figure and curve well. The picture shows the vest worn by Manchu women when wearing cheongsam coats. Embroidered with exquisite patterns. Manchu women dancing in the court in cheongsam. Men wearing traditional Manchu cheongsam include arrow sleeve robes and vests, as well as Manchu men's hats.

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custom

Manchu people used to respect their elders and pay attention to etiquette. When you meet an elder on the road, you should bow sideways and pay your respects until the elder passes by. Not only the younger generation should greet the elders, but also the younger generation should greet the elders. When relatives and friends meet, in addition to shaking hands to say hello, some people will also say hello. During the Spring Festival, we should worship once every two years, once on the evening of the 30th, once on the New Year's Day, which is called welcoming the new year. Indoor Xikang is not allowed to sit and lie down and pile up sundries at will; Avoid beating, killing and eating dog meat; Guests who don't wear a dog skin hat or a dog skin mattress are forbidden to wear a dog skin hat or a dog skin sleeve.

Manchu people regard the Western Wall as a sacred place to worship their ancestors, and are not allowed to hang clothes and paste New Year pictures here. Xikang, commonly known as "Fokang", has an "ancestor board". It is forbidden for people, especially women, to sit and lie down casually. At ordinary times, Xikang does not allow guests to rest, and it is not allowed to put dog skin hats or whips here. Avoid beating, killing and eating dog meat; Guests who don't wear a dog skin hat or a dog skin mattress are forbidden to wear a dog skin hat or a dog skin sleeve.

Don't cross the tripod of the stove and fireplace, don't trample or sit down on the stove or fireplace at will; Do not bake feet, socks, shoes and boots on the stove mouth or pond; It is forbidden to throw leftover food, bones, fishbones, etc. Put it in a cooker or fireplace.

Manchu used to believe in Shamanism. Every year, according to different festivals, they worship heaven, gods and ancestors, mainly pigs and pig heads. When offering sacrifices to ancestors, pigs should be killed, especially when offering sacrifices to ancestors. Black pigs should not have miscellaneous hairs (some must choose black pigs), and wine should be injected into pigs' ears before slaughter. If the pig's ears shake, it is considered that God has collected it and can kill it. This move is commonly known as the "collar sacrifice." In some places, pig intestines and pig bladders should be put in barrels and hung on poles for crows to eat. It will be lucky if they are eaten within three days. Then cut the whole pig into eight pieces, put it in a square plate as it is, and put it under the ancestral tablet on the western hill wall in the house. The family kowtowed bareheaded three times according to their generations, then chopped the meat and cooked it in a pot. The family sat together and ate it with salt. At this time, if there are guests, as long as they kowtow three times in front of the ancestral tablet, they can sit down and have dinner together. You're welcome after eating. Manchu people also have the habit of inviting neighbors and friends to taste the first bite of pork when they kill pigs. In the past, when the crops were ripe, Manchu people still had the habit of "recommending new crops" for sacrifice. Now it has been replaced by the custom of "tofu on the field", that is, when the grain field is over, new beans are used to make tofu, and when the field is over, they are used to make rhubarb rice or bean noodles to celebrate the bumper harvest. When young Manchu men and women get married, the bride must sit on Nankang first, which is also called "sitting on the blessing". It was not until the evening that a table was placed on the ground. The bride and groom walked around the table hand in hand for three times and then had a drink.