Insights

Silk from the Tang Dynasty is not only colorful and lustrous, but also very rich and beautiful in pattern. Birds were often used, including the phoenix, peacock, parrot, mandarin duck and hoopoe in embroidering, printing and dyeing.

In the early Tang Dynasty, women’s short blouses were tight-sleeved and paired with close-fitting long skirts. The skirts were waist-length, tied above the waist or below the armpits. The half sleeve was born out of short blouses.

Wild ginseng is found in northeastern China. The remote Changbai Mountain in Jilin Province is especially well-known for growing wild ginseng roots that are hundreds or even thousands of years old. But the legend has it that the real hometown of ginseng is Shandong, not northeastern China. Here is the story:

There are many Chinese herbs that can be used for anaesthesia. Besides mandrake, there are more than forty other different kinds of herbs that can be used as an anaesthetic.

Throughout the centuries, prophets, oracles, nymphs and other mystical entities from all over the world have left revelations, prophecies, myths and legends to the modern world. Prophecies were provided, for example, in Chinese society in the I Ching or “Book of Changes,” which is at least 5,000 years old.