Mao's meaning

"Mao" refers to a traditional water vehicle, also known as "three-boat". Sampan is usually used in southern water towns, such as Suzhou, Jiangsu and Huzhou, Zhejiang. Unique shape, half moon shape, can be used for carrying people or goods.

The sampan is made of wood or bamboo, so the material is relatively light, and it is relatively easy for the sampan to travel on water. The boat hull is about 8-20m long, 4.5-5m wide and1.5m high. It is usually driven by one or three helmsmen. The boat is equipped with wooden stakes and paddles, which are pulled by three paddles together, so the sampan is also called "three-clip boat".

The advantages of sampan are simple operation, large cargo carrying capacity and safe and reliable transportation, so it was widely used in ancient Jiangnan water towns. Nowadays, with the popularization of modern means of transportation, the sampan has gradually withdrawn from people's field of vision.

In addition to the traditional transportation function, sampan is also widely used in literature and art in China. For example, in literary works, sampan is often described as a beautiful and poetic means of transportation. In the novel A Dream of Red Mansions in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the cabin was described as "singing in the depths of the reed flowers and smelling the frost fragrance", which shows the agility and poetry of the sampan. In poetry and songs, the sampan is often described as a place of music and dancing on the water, such as "the sampan listens to the flute in the rain at night, and the wind shakes the boat" (the Tang Dynasty poet Bai Juyi's Pipa Trip).

At the same time, the sampan was once an important performance place for China traditional opera and Quyi. For example, there is a classic scene of sampan in the Peony Pavilion of Kunqu Opera. The bottom of the sampan is higher than the water surface and protrudes back and forth, which can be used as a natural stage for actors to perform freely on the water.

Although sampan, as a traditional means of water transportation, has been less and less used due to the development of modernization, it is still a part of China traditional culture. At present, some areas have begun to protect and develop the sampan, and some sampan sightseeing routes have been launched to let tourists enjoy the unique customs and cultural values of the sampan.