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Belts are indispensable daily necessities for men and women, young and old, but for men with small achievements and some social status, belts have never been just belts, but symbols of men’s identity, taste, and even, known as “a man’s second face”.
For this “face”, many men would rather wear 300 pieces of pants and a belt of 3000 pieces! This is often difficult for ladies to understand, but helpless. In fact, this little pursuit of men is not for comparison, nor is it vanity, but the genes flowing in their bones are at work, because they are old and old… Old ancestors, that’s what they did.
Rabbit monkey copper band hook, han, length 16.2 cm. With hooks and gilts throughout, the animal decoration is made in high relief.
In ancient times, people liked to use silk belts (and there were also leather belts) because they were soft and could be tied into knots to bundle clothes or decorate. However, such a belt often has the hidden danger of being unstable and slipping away without paying attention. If the belt is loosened in public, wouldn’t it be embarrassing for a manly husband? Don’t worry, the ancients were very clever, they invented a thing to tie leather belts, called belt hooks, similar to modern belt buckles.
Seven-star pattern silver belt hook Western Han Nanyue King Museum
In 2007, a nine-set belt hook known as “China’s first hook” appeared on the auction market, with an estimated value of 10 million, but on the eve of the auction, it was urgently stopped by the cultural relics department. This belt hook is made of iron, but it is inlaid with jade and gold, which is very gorgeous and belongs to the national treasure level.
Sengoku Nine with a hook
The hook was popular in the Warring States, Qin, Han, Three Kingdoms, Two Jin Dynasties, and was still used during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Since then, a new type of belt “hoof belt” replaced the hook strap, instead of a hook, it switched to a buckle, and the hook effect of the hook gradually disappeared.
Eight-section iron-core dragon tiger jade belt hook Han dynasty
In “Huainanzi”, when talking about the hook, the following words are used:
“The seat of the hall is different, the hook is different, in the ring, with one.”
This means that when you look at it, the waist belts of the guests are full of luxurious hooks, which are not the same. And it is in this “different hooks”, people’s identity, status are fully revealed, the hook of princes, the hook of officials, the hook of the people, can be clearly distinguished, presumably those who wander between the princes of various countries, whether they are proud or frustrated literati, will naturally be like today’s famous men, wearing romantic hooks with unique aesthetic taste and strong artistic temperament.
Tiger head gold hook buckle dragon-shaped jade pei han
There is an idiom that everyone is familiar with and still used today, called:
Those who steal hooks are cursed, and those who steal the country are hou
This is the words of the sage Zhuangzi, it turns out that I have always been a little puzzled, stealing a small hook can kill the head? I thought that Zhuangzi’s metaphor was intended to make a strong contrast and make people impressed, and the “hook thief” was just an exaggeration and irony. Now it seems that there is really a hook that can be convicted of murder, and it is the hook of the prince.
Wrong gold and silver geometric strip hook late Warring States period
Although the hook is small, it is an important part of traditional Chinese clothing culture, and in ancient China, which is very particular about etiquette hierarchy and disrespectful disrespect, the hook is a big thing, it reflects the identity and status of the wearer, and represents the modernity and fashion of that period. It can be said that all kinds of the most luxurious materials, the most advanced craftsmanship, and the most fashionable designs are all used in the production of hooks, competing for beauty, in order to highlight the nobility of its status.
Dragon and tiger and jade with hook Han
There is also a long-standing story about the belt hook.
During the Warring States period, Guan Zhong, in order to help his master ascend to the throne of the country, tried in every possible way to prevent Xiaobai from returning to the Qi kingdom to become a king. On Xiaobai’s way back to attend Qi Xianggong’s funeral, he dared to shoot Xiaobai’s arrow. Guan Zhong and Guo both thought that Xiaobai was dead and that no one was fighting for the throne, so they slowly returned to the Qi state.
Who knows, as soon as they arrived in the Qi Kingdom, the two were dumbfounded, and Xiaobai had already sat on the throne of the monarch.
Xiaobai is not dead? What saved his life? How would Xiaobai, who ascended to the throne of the monarch, treat Guan Zhong?
The answer lies in tomorrow’s “Treasures Have Stories” updated with the headline number of “Guangxi Satellite TV Collection Ma Weidu”.
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