The ancient way of dressing in China

History is a mirror of society, which completely reflects the rise and fall of society and records people's living conditions in different periods without reservation; Clothing is also a mirror of history. This mirror is unique because clothing itself is a part of history. If you carefully observe the clothing form and style of a certain period, you will find that it reflects the history exactly. Clothing is undoubtedly a beautiful and interesting historical mirror. We know the evolution history of costumes in the great motherland, and know that costumes not only meet the needs of people's material life, but also are closely related to social and economic foundation, political system, ideology, fashion customs and aesthetic concepts.

First, the costumes of primitive times (the embryonic stage of China traditional costumes)

Primitive people spliced animal skins into clothes to keep out the cold, mostly made of animal skins, decorated with animal teeth, fish bones, stone beads, seashells and so on. In ancient times, under the condition of primitive economic base, people tied fur around their lower abdomen, perhaps to keep out the cold, perhaps to hide shame and decorate. Whatever the reason, primitive clothes have begun to appear. Thus, the history of China's clothing was opened. Primitive costume culture and its characteristics: firstly, the costumes in primitive society show obvious cultural characteristics of worshipping heaven and earth; Secondly, the primitive society formed a typical dress pattern of standing collar, straight lapel, lace-up and coat; Third, the primitive society initially formed a coronation system with five colors as the service and rank as the core; Fourth, the raw materials for clothing production in primitive society have been diversified.

Second, the costumes of the Qin and Han Dynasties (stereotypes of traditional costumes in China)

It was stipulated in the Han Dynasty that people were not allowed to wear clothes of various colors, but only natural linen. It was not until the end of the Western Han Dynasty (BC 13) that civilians were allowed to wear green clothes. The ban on businessmen is stricter. But there seems to be no strict system in the style of clothing. From the unearthed pottery figurines and portrait bricks of Han Dynasty, it can be seen that the laborers wore buns, hats, towels and hats, and almost all the clothes they wore were lapels, knee-length, narrow sleeves, scarf belts around their waist, boots and shoes, and many barefoot people, which reflected the living conditions of the working people in this period.

Although Qin and Han Dynasties are not the most magnificent page in the evolution history of China's clothing, they are definitely the most powerful page. Many of its styles have had an important impact on later generations, and it is a pioneering generation that absorbs foreign cultures. China's ethnic exchanges began to develop on a large scale only in the Han Dynasty. China's clothing, including clothing materials and even pictures and texts, is richer and more integrated with the multi-ethnic cultural connotation and artistic spirit. To sum up, the main features of Qin and Han costumes are:

First, the types and styles of clothing are more abundant. For example, headgear mainly includes crown, towel, crown, pole and win. Body clothes include clothes, petticoats, skirts, deep clothes, robes, brown clothes, medium clothes, underwear, shirts, furs, leather clothes and so on. Tibial clothing includes quilts, coats, shoes, etc. In addition, dresses, sacrificial clothes and accessories are also increasing day by day.

Second, a strict hierarchy is embodied in clothing. Mainly reflected in the style, color and accessories of clothing.

Third, establish a relatively complete clothing system.

Fourthly, with the further development of textile printing and dyeing industry, the brown organization of clothing officials began to appear.

Third, Wei and Jin dynasties costumes

Wei and Jin Dynasties were a period of political and economic turmoil, and the literati class formed a negative social atmosphere, pursued hedonism of "drinking as a song and life geometry", indulged in a decadent lifestyle, and took Laozi, Zhuangzi, Buddhism and Taoism as fashion, which was also directly reflected in people's clothing. The most representative is the "Seven Sages of Bamboo Forest" at that time. Take off your coat. Dai Bo is the fashion of this period. Men wear topless clothes and shawls, pursuing relaxation, nature and randomness; Women's wear is a long skirt, big sleeves, layered ribbons, elegant and generous.

Fourth, the costumes of the Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties

During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the patterns in the Tang Dynasty not only inherited the tradition, but also absorbed the western art forms. Coupled with the opening to the outside world, the Silk Road was reopened, and the Chinese and Western styles were combined. The costumes of the Tang Dynasty were gorgeous and fresh. Women in Sui Dynasty wore narrow round neck or collared coat, long skirt with high waist and two streamers around the waist.

Verb (abbreviation of verb) Tang Dynasty clothing

In 62 1 year, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan officially promulgated the "Dong Yu Clothing Order", which made detailed provisions on the clothing, color and dress of emperors, queens, officials, ladies-in-waiting, local people and other people at all levels, and the clothing system in the Tang Dynasty was formally established.

For example, the Tang Dynasty stipulated that only the emperor and the relatives and nobles of the royal family could wear yellow, and it was a crime for others to wear it, so yellow was a special symbol of imperial power. In addition, the official grades are distinguished by the color of the clothes: purple is more than three, scarlet is more than five, green is six, and cyan is seven.

Women's dresses in the Tang Dynasty are the best in all previous dynasties. The material is exquisite in texture, elegant in shape and gorgeous in clothing accessories. Chang 'an, Tang Dou was not only the political, economic and cultural center of China at that time, but also the center of cultural exchanges between the East and the West. Trade and cultural exchanges with Korea, Japan, Persia and other countries are frequent. Clothing in Tang Dynasty formed a unique open and romantic style. Topless and bare arms, veils and long sleeves are the most typical dress images of women in Tang Dynasty. Young women in the Tang Dynasty were not bound by conservative traditions. They can not only wear wide-necked clothes with bare breasts and bare arms, but also ride horses and whip in the street in Hu clothes and men's clothes. The government and society also allow women to freely choose their spouses and divorce. Women in the Tang Dynasty mainly wore tops, skirts and shirts, as well as short-sleeved half-length shirts (worn outside robes). The most fashionable women's clothes are skirts, that is, tops and long skirts. The waist of skirts is tied with ribbons, almost to the armpits.

Sixth, the costumes of the Song Dynasty.

The rulers of the Song Dynasty paid attention to the rule of culture, strongly advocated Neo-Confucianism, and advocated Zhu's thought of "preserving heaven and destroying human desires" as the theoretical basis for maintaining feudal rule, with the aim of getting rid of people's rebellious consciousness. This view of Neo-Confucianism influenced people's clothing and changed the characteristics of the Tang Dynasty clothing, such as broadmindedness, luxury and style. The clothing style is closed, the color is serious and elegant, and the tone tends to be single.

In Song Dynasty, women wore a short jacket with narrow sleeves and a long skirt. Usually, they wear small long-sleeved coats and double-breasted jackets, much like vests today. The neckline and front of the coat are embroidered with beautiful lace. Influenced by feudal ethics, the bad habit of foot-binding appeared in Song Dynasty, which was called "foot-binding".

Men's wear in the Song Dynasty generally followed the style of the Tang Dynasty. Most people wear a robe with a collar or a round neck, and they put their clothes on their belts when they do things. The clothes are black and white.

Seven, Ming Dynasty costumes

After Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself emperor, in order to restore the etiquette of the Han nationality, he formulated a new dress system based on Tang Song and Zhou Han. Official clothes are mainly official clothes, and official clothes are supplemented by uniforms, wearing official clothes and round neck shirts. The so-called auxiliary service refers to the official service with square embroidery pattern in front of the robe. The picture of a civilian is a bird, and the picture of a military attache is a beast. Grades are distinguished by the colors and patterns of robes. Usually, T-shirts are distinguished by the length of clothes and the size of sleeves, and the old ones are the most respected.

The most distinctive official costume in Ming Dynasty is the black hat, whose wings change with the official position and identity of the wearer. Its shape is low in the front and high in the back, with one wing inserted on each side, and its whole body is round. Another net towel is used in the hat to tie the hair.

In Ming Dynasty, Confucian scholars and scribes mostly wore long, wide sleeves, round neck or inclined collar and square nipple. Most of the ladies in the Ming Dynasty wore red robes, while most women could only wear some light colors. Skirts are very wide and have many styles.

Eight, the Qing Dynasty clothing (China traditional clothing reform stage)

After Manchu entered the customs, the Han people were forced to wear Manchu clothes, and gradually formed a set of clothing system different from that of the Ming Dynasty. The Qing Dynasty was the most changed dynasty in China's clothing history. The Qing Dynasty was an era when Manchu and Chinese cultures blended, especially the costume culture, and it was also a non-Han dynasty that retained the most primitive costume tradition after entering the Central Plains.

The whole set of clothing has changed the basic form of ancient Chinese clothing formed for thousands of years. Qing Zhuang is the combination of ancient and modern clothing in China, and its existence is the premise of the development of modern men's mandarin jacket robes and women's cheongsam.

Qing dynasty men's wear

Robes and mandarin jackets were the most common clothes worn by men in Qing Dynasty. A jacket is a short jacket worn outside a robe, which is only waist-length and the sleeves only cover the elbows. Jacket with short sleeves is convenient for riding, so it is called "jacket". The hat worn on weekdays is a melon hat, and the color is black outside and red inside.

Manchu Women's Clothing in Qing Dynasty

Women's clothing in Qing Dynasty can be described as the coexistence of Manchu and Han costumes. Manchu women mainly wear cheongsam, which is slender and short-sleeved, in sharp contrast to China's clothing which has lasted for thousands of years. It is luxurious, elegant and delicate. Flag clothing has replaced ancient costumes because of its saving materials, simple manufacture and convenient wearing, which is the main reason why it is easily accepted by future generations.

Women's Clothing of Han Nationality in Qing Dynasty

After the Qing army entered the customs, the rulers of the Qing dynasty forced the Manchu people's hairstyles and clothing styles. This policy of national oppression aroused strong resistance from the Han people. In order to alleviate the resistance struggle of the Han people, the Qing Dynasty had to implement the policy of "men obey women", that is, strictly demanding that Han men obey the Manchu clothing system, while Han women's clothing still followed the Ming Dynasty clothing style.