Tip: discount books, there was a slight imprint on the cover, be not to affect the reading.

Description: 32 format, IN BILINGUAL.

This is a very high quality book; the book is very good as shown from the photos.

China has a very long history in fan production and comes in various types. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, folding fan became very popular, because it could be easily folded and carried. Chinese fan grew beyond the realm of being ordinary household artifact as fan became integrated with traditional Chinese painting, calligraphy and carving to be come works of art. Replacing silk fan, it became the main style and the favorite of scholars and artists........

During the Ming Dynasty, folding fan reached a period of great prosperity. In Yongle period (1403 to 1424) of the Ming Dynasty, emperor Zhudi loved it very much, with which many ministers were rewarded. Fan gradually disseminated to local place. It was recorded in "Zai Yuan Za Zhi" by Liu Tingji in the Ming Dynasty that emperor Zhudi liked folding fan for the reason of opening and closing easily. He asked workers to produce it, the first place of which was in the royal court and gradually became widely available among the general population. It was also recorded that folding fan began to be popular in the royal palace...... As we all know, the folding fan handed down to us with its fan-cover "reading under the pine" painted by Emperor Xuande in the Ming Dynasty was the earliest of all works of this type. Since then, the folding fan with calligraphy and painting rose and was not real prosperous until emperor Chenghua. Fan and calligraphy and painting had a close relationship. Most famous artists had the best works of the painting and calligraphy on the fans handed down, which were Shen Zhou, Wen Zhengming, Tang Yin, Qiu Ying, Dong Qichang in Ming Dynasty, and Wang Jian, Wang Shiming, Yun Shouping, Liu Yong, Wu Changshuo, Ren Xun, Qian Hui'an in Qing Dynasty.

The development of folding fan got into its golden age in the Qing Dynasty. It could be used by people of all classes, at the same time it was not only waved for cooling or art works but also had become known as a symbol of social status and identity. Emperor Qianlong once asked painter Zhang Ruo'ai to compile a book "Yan Yun Bao Ji" from 300 folding fans of Yuan and Ming Dynasties in the royal court's collection.

With the development of the Ming and Qing dynasties, the manufacture of fan became more and more excellent and exquisite with a lot of famous masters. Meanwhile, fan had become a unique craft and had some accessorial works of cragt like bag for fan, fan-pendant and case for fan. The peculiarity of the shape of a folding fan determined the special style of painting and calligraphic works that go on it. A folding fan which was the combination of various arts such as calligraphy, painting, mount, engraving, plait, inlaying, lacquer and so on eventually became a dazzling pearl in the Chinese art heritage.

Name of book: Folding Fans of The Ming and Qing Dynasties - Photo/Reference Book

Size: 140 mm X 200 mm Total 107 Pages & 87 Photos

Editor-in-Chief: Jun Yan Yang Publisher: Bei Jing Publishing House (Group)

Language: Chinese & English Condition: Excellent

Happy Bidding !!!
Shipping cost: Combined shipping is welcome!