Ancient architectural complexes often use plaques hung on door screens as decoration, which can reflect the name and nature of the building, what is its origin?

In the decorative behavior of traditional architecture, plaques are indispensable materials. A properly hung plaque with the right words is enough to show the talent and literary style of the writer, and to shape the style of the space through visual and conceptual communication.

The temples in the capital city have many ancient plaques with great historical value; however, the ancient plaques, with the idea that wood is perishable and out with the old, are either mottled and peeling off with age, making them difficult to read; or they have been repaired and lost their true meaning; or they have been reduced to desktops, destroyed by firewood, and their whereabouts are unknown.

The meaning of the plaque is very diverse, there is a name labeling, such as the Confucian Temple East Dacheng Square, "the whole of Taiwan's first school" plaque has a role in signaling. Some are imperial plaques, such as the Confucian Temple in the Qing Emperor Kangxi gave the "World Teacher's Table" and the Yongzheng "people have not been" plaque. Some for the praise of God's virtue, such as the ceremony of the Temple of the Wu have been inscribed by the Xianfeng Emperor, "the world's people pole" plaque. Some of them are historical allusions, such as the plaques of "praise and loyalty" and "righteousness and sincerity and loyalty" of Miaoshou Palace, which were inscribed by Emperor Qianlong at the Temple of the King of the Three Mountains. Some of them are for the purpose of cautioning the world, such as the plaque of "Er Lai" at the Fu Cheng Huang Temple, which strongly conveys the eerie and intimidating atmosphere necessary for a Cheng Huang Temple. Some of them only represent the geographical location, such as the plaque of the Arctic Temple "Wushi Ling", which confirms that the topography of the city is high in the east and low in the west.

Plaques are usually placed on the lintel, shou-liang and fang-liang, and they are usually in the form of long horizontal and vertical ones.

The words and phrases on the plaques are of the following types:

The first type is the name, such as "Nankunshen Daitianfu".

The second category is for the status, such as 'Jinshendi'.

The third category is for the tribute, e.g., "Eternal Protection of Peng Ying".

The fourth category is to warn the world, such as 'Er came'.

The fifth category is for congratulations, such as a birthday plaque.

The sixth category is for family names, such as 'Xingyang Shize'.

Besides the main text, most plaques have the donor's title, the date of the inscription, and sometimes the emperor's seal, which is used to date the founding of many temples.

Plaque

Open Category: Culture, Tradition, Carving, Plaque

Plaque is a necessary part of the ancient architecture, equivalent to the eyes of the ancient architecture. Plaques in the "plaque" character ancient also as "flat" character, "Shuo Wen Jie Zi" on the "flat" explained as follows: "flat, the Department is also, from the Household Register. Household book, the Department of the portal of the text." The character "额", "Shuowen Jiezi" as "额 "字. That is, it is a plaque hanging on the door screen. That is to say, to express the meaning of the scriptures, feelings and so on belongs to the plaque, while to express the name and nature of the building and so on belongs to the forehead. Therefore, together can be understood in this way the meaning of the plaque: hanging in the door screen for decorative purposes, reflecting the name of the building and the nature of the expression of people's righteousness, emotions and other forms of literature and art that is the plaque. But there is also a saying that the horizontal called plaque, vertical called amount. Plaque is generally hung above the door, under the eaves. When the building on all sides of the door, all sides can hang plaques, but the front of the door is necessary to have a plaque, such as the royal gardens, temples, and some celebrities House is not so. Many plaques around the border, carved with a variety of dragons and phoenixes, flowers, patterns. Some inlaid with jade, extremely ornate thing.

Plaque is the Chinese nation's unique folk culture boutique. Over the past thousands of years, it is the ancient Chinese culture in the flow of rhetoric and poetry, calligraphy and seal cutting, architectural art into one, set the word, printing, carving, color, with its condensed poetry, calligraphy, far-reaching meaning, pointing to the mountains and mountains, commenting on the characters, become a Chinese culture in the garden a wonderful flower. As a symbol of national culture, plaques used to be very common in both cities and villages, but due to historical changes and other factors, it is very difficult to see old plaques with cultural relics value in the cities nowadays. Because of this, the old plaque is very precious. Plaques according to its nature, the more common can be roughly divided into five categories: a class of plaques is the hall, like Ji Xiaolan's read Wei Cao Tang, etc.; a class of plaques, this class is usually as a recognition, such as recognition of the rich to keep the norms, in recognition of the township teachers, etc.; a class of birthday celebration, this kind of plaques are very large; a class of plaques is a commercially developed areas of the name of the plaques, such as Beijing's Rong Bao Zhai, Tong Ren Tang, etc.; and then another class of literati The inscription of the plaque, with literary color or motto-style plaque. At present, the more popular are the literati inscription plaques, name plaques and motto plaques. Historical plaques are among the first to bear the brunt of the destruction of cultural relics, because it is hanging in the open, so it is rare to see old plaques in the city at present.

Plaque on its construction materials, can be broadly divided into stone plaques and wood plaques and gray plaques.

Since the plaque, it is inseparable from the cultural life of our people, and architecture, folklore, literature, art, calligraphy, in-depth to all aspects of social life, the writing of the landscape, the expression of emotion, meaning profound, with great literary and artistic infectivity. Hanging in the door of the house is dignified and elegant, hanging in the hall is flamboyant, decorative attractions is ancient, depicting the rivers and mountains is the color of the rivers and mountains. Although a few words of ink is not much, look at it but the lofty view, people respect.

Throughout the various plaques, whether it is the decoration of the house, or landscape decoration, all express the will of the working people to aspire to, the pursuit of a better life. Such as the content of the residential plaques are: Zhilan into the room, loyalty to the family, Anle, Guifu, etc.; reflecting the natural landscape, such as: mountains and beautiful water, blue water, etc.. All these words indicate auspiciousness, tranquility, peace, since ancient times has been regarded as a blessing and celebration, all things go well words and phrases, fully expresses our people's desire for good luck, the pursuit of happiness, the concept of beauty and appreciation of the fun.

Secondly, China's various plaques, especially ancestral halls and mansions, residential plaques, although most of them reflect the traditional ethical concepts and moral concepts, but many of them also have a certain positive significance. Such as "Shide Liuxin", "Shide Liufang", "Wu Ma Liufang", etc., flaunted the character of the ancestors of the family, inheriting the excellent character, intelligence, glorious tradition of previous generations, so that the family name to stay for generations. Family name for generations to stay, and therefore has a certain role in education and enlightenment.

In addition, a variety of plaques text to seek celebrities or literati for the ink writing, this kind of old plaques on the market today is very difficult to find, these plaques set word, print, carving, color in one, most of the rhetoric is beautiful, calligraphy exquisite, concise and concise, reflecting the political, economic, cultural, artistic, folklore and folk customs, and so on, played a complementary history of the significance of the history of the positive. "To plaque research history, can be ZuoWang; to plaque research Tao, can get Tao eyes; to plaque learning book, can get the essence of the pen". Plaque because of its historical value, academic value, heritage value and artistic value and become today we study the development of national culture of physical examples. If these plaques topography collection, is undoubtedly a rare calligraphy, calligraphy enthusiasts have a certain reference and appreciation value, but also for the study of local history, is also a very valuable research materials. When the literati would not have thought that they feel, inadvertently left the ink, will become a later study of history, appreciate the calligraphy of cultural relics and favored. With the development and progress of society, whether for the song of praise and virtue, or for the sign of the mark; no reduced to decorate the facade, or for the embellishment of the river, the plaque as a phenomenon will become history, the plaque collection will become necessary and inevitable.

Generally, the plaque writing text is very little, there is no complex structure style, mainly for the appropriate situation, the rhetoric is pure. The inscription requires a high level of calligraphic art, the upper and lower paragraphs of the writing position is appropriate, the size of the word is appropriate.

Plaque is broadly divided into the following types of subjects:

(1) the name of the hall and pavilion. Such as "Tengwang Pavilion", "Palace of Eternal Life", "Moon Pavilion", "Wangjiang Tower" and so on.

(2) business name. Such as "Tong Ren Tang", "Nei Lian Sheng", "Lao Feng Xiang", "Rong Bao Zhai" and so on.

(3) the inscription of praise. Such as "peach and plum full of garden" "love the people as children" "high mountains" and so on.

(4) painting scenery lyric inscription. Such as "the breeze to come," "beautiful water," "a blue ten thousand," "spring and scenery," and so on.

(5) the description of the aspiration of the inscription. Such as "Heaven's way to reward hard work", "Hai Nai Bai Chuan", "advancing with the times" and so on.

(6) celebration of the opening of the inscription. Such as "Great Exhibition", "prosperous business", "prosperity" and so on