![]() ![]() Their feathers were of the five fundamental colors: black, white, red, green, and yellow. This was portrayed through a male and female facing each other. Also during this period, the fenghuang was used as a symbol representing the direction south. Later, during the Yuan dynasty the two terms were merged to become fenghuang, but the "King of Birds" came to symbolize the empress when paired with a dragon representing the emperor.Ī vase with a phoenix-headed spout, gray sandstone with celadon coating, Song Dynasty, last half of 10th century.įrom the Jiajing era (1522–66) of the Ming dynasty onwards, a pair of phoenixes was differentiated by the tail feathers of the two birds, typically together forming a closed circle pattern – the male identified by five long serrated tail feathers or "filaments" (five being an odd, masculine, or yang number) and the female by what sometimes appears to be one but is in fact usually two curling or tendrilled tail feathers (two being an even, feminine, or yin number). In the Han dynasty, an imperial edict decreed that the phoenix hairpins had to become the formal headpiece for the empress dowager and the imperial grandmother. ĭuring the Han dynasty (2,200 years ago) two phoenixes, one a male ( feng, 鳳) and the other a female ( huang, 凰) were often shown together facing one other. hairpins with fenghuang decorations) and shoes which were also decorated with phoenix designs were supposed to be worn by the Imperial concubines of the Qin Emperor. In Qin dynasty (221–206 BC), phoenix hairpins (i.e. One of such artifacts is the Silk Painting of Human Figure with Dragon and Phoenix, which shows such combination of dragon and phoenix images. 476 BC) and the Warring States period, common form of unearthed artifacts are the combination of dragon-phoenix designs together. Origin Ī phoenix (top) and dragon (left), Silk Painting of a Human Figure with Phoenix and Dragon, Silk painting unearthed from a Chu tomb.ĭuring the Spring and Autumn period (c. It is believed that the bird only appears in areas or places that are blessed with utmost peace and prosperity or happiness.Ĭhinese tradition cites it as living atop the Kunlun Mountains in northern China. It is sometimes depicted with a fireball. It sometimes carries scrolls or a box with sacred books. Its body contains the five fundamental colors: black, white, red, yellow, and green. The fenghuang is said to have originated in the sun. The fenghuang's body symbolizes the celestial bodies: the head is the sky, the eyes are the sun, the back is the moon, the wings are the wind, the feet are the earth, and the tail is the planets. Today, however, it is often described as a composite of many birds including the head of a golden pheasant, the body of a mandarin duck, the tail of a peacock, the legs of a crane, the mouth of a parrot, and the wings of a swallow. According to the Erya's chapter 17 Shiniao, fenghuang is made up of the beak of a rooster, the face of a swallow, the forehead of a fowl, the neck of a snake, the breast of a goose, the back of a tortoise, the hindquarters of a stag and the tail of a fish. Image of the fenghuang opposite the dragon on the Twelve Symbols national emblem, which was the state emblem of China from 1913 to 1928Ī common depiction of fenghuang was of it attacking snakes with its talons and its wings spread. In the Western world, it is commonly called the Chinese phoenix or simply phoenix, although mythological similarities with the Western phoenix are superficial. It is known under similar names in various other languages ( Japanese: hōō Vietnamese: phượng hoàng or phụng hoàng Korean: bonghwang). The males were originally called fèng and the females huáng, but this distinction of gender is often no longer made and they are blurred into a single feminine entity so that the bird can be paired with the Chinese dragon, which is traditionally deemed male. ![]() Fenghuang sculpture, Nanning city, Guangxi, Chinaįènghuáng ( Chinese: 鳳凰 Jyutping: fung6 wong4 Cantonese Yale: fuhng wòhng, Mandarin pronunciation: ) are mythological birds found in Sinospheric mythology that reign over all other birds. ![]()
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