What is an ancient door jam stone?

Is it Mendang stone?

Mendang stone is generally placed on both sides of the door of ancient traditional buildings, used to show the ancient sign of the master's rank and status of the door decorative artwork, with the door hairpin, threshold, door, door together with the door frame to produce a simple and elegant overall artistic decorative aesthetics, with good luck, praying for blessings, and to avoid the evil spirits of the symbols. And with the buildings reflect each other, harmony and unity, play the role of the gate court finishing touch, become an indispensable part of the traditional residential architecture.

The pillows of the main gate, commonly known as mendun, are placed at both ends of the gate tower of the courtyard. The inner part of the pillow stone is to support the gate, while the outer part is often carved with birds, animals and flowers, and is also called a drum stone. There are also two types of stones: square and round. The carvings of the stone are quite elaborate, with the materials being well chosen, the craftsmanship being exquisite, and the carvings being lifelike. The two sides of the round stone drums are most commonly decorated with corner lotuses, and those that are more elaborate can be made into other designs, such as the unicorn lying in the pine, the rhinoceros looking at the moon, the butterfly entering the Orchid Mountain, and some are made into the five lions (the five lions) design. Drums above the general animal-shaped, above the standing lion, squatting lion or recumbent lion (commonly known as poodle), square drums are also more carved.

On the time of the earliest appearance of the door pier, it is not possible to make a definitive answer. Door pillow stone as early as the Han Dynasty (206 BC ~ 220 AD) early in the formation of the courtyard began to use. Perhaps from then on, through gradual evolution, to become the door pier now see it. Carving ornaments on the outside of the door pillars seems to have been done a long time ago.

The door is the doorway of traditional Chinese architecture and placed opposite a flat pair of stone piers or drums (because the drums sound broad and majestic, severe as thunder, people think it can avoid ghosts to promote). Including drum stone and general door pillow stone, in ancient times, different levels of the family when the level of the door is also very strict.

Hierarchical division

Royal or official door with a lion-shaped drum stone; senior military official's door with a drum-shaped lion drum stone, low-level military official's door with a drum-shaped drum stone with the head of a beast drum stone; senior civil official's door with a box-shaped drum stone with a lion, the low-level civil official with a box with a carving of the drum stone; the door of the rich and powerful with a box-shaped without carving of the drum stone, the rich and powerful is used in stone to hold a drum stone! And for ordinary people's homes, can only be replaced by wooden square door piers or door pillows. Also on the rank of the official residence house door, grade frame made clear provisions: "one or two items of the main door three five frames, three to five items of the main door three three frames, six to nine items of the main door a three frames."