What did the ancients collect in the cold season?

During the severe cold, the ancients collected ice cubes.

In ancient times, there was no ice-making technology. In ancient times, wealthy families and royal families had special ice rooms to store ice cubes. When it freezes in the cold river, they ordered people to collect ice cubes for summer use. In hot summer, ice cubes are needed to cool off the heat.

In addition, An Deming, deputy director of the Institute of Literature of China Academy of Social Sciences and vice chairman of China Folk Writers Association, said that the Great Cold is the last of the 24 solar terms, which is close to the Lunar New Year, and there is also a saying that "the Great Cold welcomes the New Year".

The custom of picking ice in cold weather lasted from Shang and Zhou Dynasties to Ming and Qing Dynasties. The Zhou dynasty picked ice at the beginning of the twelfth lunar month, and the Ming and Qing dynasties picked ice three or nine days before and after the great cold. According to the "Yanjing Times" written by Fu Cha Dunchong in Qing Dynasty, "it is difficult to meet March 9 in winter. When it is chiseled at night, it sounds like stone, which is called ice. After March 9, although the ice is hard to use. " As the saying goes, "the cold is in the March 9th", and it is the hardest to freeze at this time, which is in line with the requirements of the royal family.