What dynasty originated the history of kites in Weifang, Shandong?

Kites originated in China, and the earliest kites were made by the ancient philosopher Mo Zhai. According to "Han Fei Zi - Foreign Reserve", Mo Zhai lived in Lushan (the area of present-day Qingzhou, Shandong Province) and "hacked wood for harrier, three years and became a fly one day and failed. It is said that Mozi studied for three years, finally made a wooden bird with wood, but only flew a day on the bad. Mozi made this "wood harrier" is the earliest Chinese kite.

After the introduction of Chinese kites, they were soon used for military purposes, such as measuring and transmitting information and leaping over dangerous obstacles. During the Tang and Song dynasties, due to the emergence of paper-making industry, kites were made of paper mache, and soon spread to the people, and became toys for people's entertainment.

Kites have been widely popular in the folk in Song Dynasty. With the increase of international communication, Chinese kites spread to all over the world. First to Japan and Korea and other near neighboring countries, and then across the sea, to Burma, Malaya, Indonesia and New Zealand to the farther east of the island; another line is along the "Silk Road" or the Mongol conquest route into Arabia and Western Europe. Marco Polo, an Italian who had been an official in China for 17 years during the Yuan Dynasty, also took the Silk Road to Arabia and Western Europe. Marco Polo, an Italian who spent 17 years as an official in China during the Yuan Dynasty, also introduced kites to the West after his return to China.

Weifang, Shandong Province is a famous kite producing area in China, and kite-making artists have appeared in the folk in the Ming Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, with the popularity of kite-flying, the art of kite-flying also reached its heyday. During the Daoguang period, Guo Lin Yin Qingming's bamboo poem depicted: "A hundred and four days of small cold food, Yelp swims on the White Wave River, paper kite son of the swing woman, chaotic than the new spring swallows more." Zheng Banqiao has a poem that says: "Paper flowers like snow flying all over the sky, the delicate girl swing playing all around, flying colorful skirt wind swinging, good butterfly fight spring return."

"Weifang County Records" also recorded: "Qingming, children make paper Yuanyuan, swing play, paper Yuanyuan its system is different, in the cranes, swallows, butterflies, cicadas all kinds of outside, and make all kinds of characters, not only exquisite and exquisite. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Weifang has formed a fixed kite market, many parts of the country merchants come to Weifang to buy kites, a time of fancy new inviting patron, double butterfly kite into line", emerged a large number of highly skilled kite artists.

Weifang kites mainly have three basic shapes: string, hard wing and simple shape, among which the dragon centipede is the most prominent. It is said to have been inspired by the keeled waterwheel. Now it has developed into many varieties, the small ones can be put on the palm, the big ones are several hundred meters long, and the shapes and colors are different, from the very simple white paper pasted body, red paper pasted head, not drawing a stroke, not dyeing a color of the centipede kite, to the colorful, painted gold and silver kites of the nine divine dragons. From the marvelous idea of two dragons playing with pearls to the three dragons flying in the air in the shape of "y", "Nezha", it is really ever-changing and "strange and clever".

Weifang's long string kites have different themes besides centipedes. Such as "Liangshan one hundred single eight generals" is the Liangshan one hundred and eight heroes do each different forms, vivid, put up to the sky to form a line, each holding the blade, floating with the wind, then you may vaguely feel the war drums, as if they are about to set off to fight the Song dynasty court... ...

April 1984, in Weifang, the north beach put up a giant dragon centipede, head height 4 meters, 4 meters long, waist section diameter 1.2 meters, this kite **** 320 meters long, at that time in the country is the largest. Now Weifang has become a fixed place for the International Kite Festival. On the basis of inheriting the traditional essence, modern kites are constantly renovated, winning the reputation of "kite art, Weifang first".