The Study Of Holy Tree Image Of China

This article studies the evolution of holy tree images which appear in the Chineseancient design art, including their design methods, art characteristics, image forms andcultural connotations. This article is divided into two parts. The partⅠ,divided into fourchapters according to the Times from the Pre-Qin period to Qing dynasty, focus oncombing and grasping the origin and development of Chinese holy tree images. The partⅡ,consisting of the next three chapters, chooses four holy trees for the study and research intotheir development and evolution. The four trees include Xi Wang Mu’s immortal peachesand Moon Palace’s immortal laurels, which are enduring in China, grapes andpomegranates, which come from the outside and eventually integrate into Chinesetraditional culture.In the Pre-Qin period, holy tree images, usually found in sets, were the product ofprimitive belief remains and form a tight symbolic system. Holy trees in Sanxingduistrengthen systemic unity and grade difference through their unity and difference in form.There is “Simu” combined mode in Eastern Zhou dynasty, but it no longer strengthensgrade difference.The immortal belief and the idea of Xiangrui were extremely flourishing in Handynasty. Under the influence of this trend, holy trees in Han dynasty mainly contain twotypes of wonderland holy tree, related with Xi Wang Mu’s Kunlun wonderland closely, andXiangrui holy tree. The two types sometimes merge together. And other types of holy treesalso present in small amounts. The form of evergreen tree is used more often in WesternHan dynasty, replaced by the form of twin branches in Eastern Han dynasty. The images oftwin branches, found on painted stones and painted bricks usually, are colorful and tend tobe complicated in connection.The holy trees with extraterritorial style sprang up in the period from Three Kingdomsto Tang dynasty because of the extensive exchanges between Chinese and foreign culture.Their cultural origin is extremely complex and there are many variations on their forms,showing a variety of styles’coexistence and blend in the design art mainly from gold andsilver ware and textiles. The period from Song dynasty to Qing dynasty is the time when secular culture in theancient China was prosperous, and Chinese holy trees joined auspicious patterns of folk artin this period. Cash trees, peaches, grapes, pomegranates, etc. become important themes inthe design art with the pursuit of “Fu”, meaning blessing, such as wealth, longevity, morechildren, and so on. Besides continuing to be a symbol of the Moon Palace, the laurel isused more because of the symbolic meaning of its euphony such as “Gui”, meaning noble,and “Gongming”, meaning official rank. On the form of design art, the fruit and partialbranches become the main form of holy trees’existence, and there are many broken branchpatterns. In addition the complete holy tree is rare, that is significantly different from thedesign art before Song dynasty in which the majority of holy trees are complete. Togetherwith gods, animals, plants, etc., holy trees also form many fixed combinations, appearingon different materials often and becoming constant decoration in a folk art of a certain kindof material.In short, the connotations and external forms of holy trees images in the Chineseancient design art have been changing along with the change of people’s idea. Even thoseholy trees which were extremely holy or those forms which were fashionable at one timelost the cultural soil gradually due to the transformation of people’s viewpoint about lifeand death, and were finally forgotten in the depths of history. In Chinese local holy trees,only Xi Wang Mu’s immortal peaches and Moon Palace’s immortal laurels can pass downand continue to innovate with lots of images of new forms. The collision between Chineseand foreign culture once injected images of holy trees with many fresh blood. After theextraterritorial holy trees were introduced to China, some gradually became importantdecorations of Chinese ancient design art through being absorbed, transformed anddeveloped in their localization process, having been merged into Chinese traditionalculture. Others, however, were short-lived and disappeared finally. Only those closed toChinese cultural characteristics and being able to meet the secular psychological needs ofpeople could be so widespread and integrated into Chinese traditional culture.