{"id":1704,"date":"2025-08-02T14:51:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-02T06:51:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/?p=1704"},"modified":"2025-08-02T14:57:42","modified_gmt":"2025-08-02T06:57:42","slug":"twelve-ornaments-%e5%8d%81%e4%ba%8c%e7%ab%a0%e7%ba%b9-symbols-of-clothing-rank-during-imperial-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/1704","title":{"rendered":"Twelve Ornaments (\u5341\u4e8c\u7ae0\u7eb9), Symbols of Clothing Rank during Imperial China"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Zhang<\/a>
Photo source: chinasilkmuseum<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At first glance, they are simply patterns\u2014sun, moon, mountains, dragons\u2014embroidered in gold and silk on imperial robes. But in the eyes of the ancients, these were not mere decorations.<\/p>\n

What Are the Twelve Ornaments?<\/h4>\n

In imperial China, ceremonial robes were not just clothing\u2014they were visual declarations of authority and morality. The Twelve Ornaments (\u5341\u4e8c\u7ae0\u7eb9 ; sh\u00ed’\u00e8r zh\u0101ng w\u00e9n), also known as Twelve Chapters (\u5341\u4e8c\u7ae0 ; sh\u00ed’\u00e8r zh\u0101ng) or Twelve Emblem Patterns (\u5341\u4e8c\u7eb9\u7ae0 ; sh\u00ed’\u00e8r w\u00e9n zh\u0101ng), adorned the highest-ranking ceremonial robes worn by emperors and top officials.<\/p>\n

The Twelve Ornaments include:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Zhang<\/a>
Photo source: \u767e\u5ea6\u767e\u79d1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
    \n
  1. Sun (\u65e5),<\/li>\n
  2. Moon (\u6708),<\/li>\n
  3. Stars (\u661f\u8fb0),<\/li>\n
  4. Mountains (\u7fa4\u5c71),<\/li>\n
  5. Dragon (\u9f99),<\/li>\n
  6. Huachong (\u534e\u866b)\u2014Sometimes separated into Flower (\u82b1) and Bird (\u9e1f),<\/li>\n
  7. Zongyi (\u5b97\u5f5d)\u2014Before the Southern Song represented by Tiger (\u8001\u864e) and Monkey (\u7334\u5b50),<\/li>\n
  8. Waterweed (\u85fb),<\/li>\n
  9. Fire (\u706b),<\/li>\n
  10. Millet\/Grain (\u7c89\u7c73)\u2014Before the Jin dynasty separated into Powder (\u7c89) and Grain (\u7c73),<\/li>\n
  11. Fu (\u9efc), and<\/li>\n
  12. Fu (\u9efb).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Origin of the Twelve Ornaments<\/h4>\n

    The origin of the Twelve Ornaments can be traced back to the era of Emperor Shun and was continued by later generations.<\/p>\n

    During the Zhou dynasty, Zhougong Dan (\u5468\u516c\u65e6 ; Zh\u014dug\u014dng D\u00e0n) established the Zhou Li (\u300a\u5468\u793c\u300b), stipulating that the three patterns of the sun, moon, and stars were painted on flags, while ceremonial clothing retained only nine patterns, with the dragon as the first pattern, thus called \u201cLong Gun \u9f99\u886e\u201d (l\u00f3ng g\u01d4n, Dragon Robe).<\/p>\n

    Later, when Qin Shihuang ascended the throne, he abolished the ornament system, and ceremonial sacrificial clothing became plain black, called \u201cJunxuan \u8880\u7384 (j\u016bn xu\u00e1n).\u201d It was only during the Eastern Han dynasty that the Twelve Ornament system was restored.<\/p>\n

    The Twelve Ornaments were not merely decorative motifs for imperial robes; more importantly, they symbolized the emperor\u2019s virtues and authority. Each emblem represented a particular virtue, and together the twelve emblems formed the perfect image of the emperor. In addition, the Twelve Ornaments also reflected the feudal hierarchy: officials of different ranks had different numbers and types of ornaments on their clothing.<\/p>\n

    Symbolism of the Twelve Ornaments<\/h4>\n
    \"Zhang<\/a>
    Photo source: \u767e\u5ea6\u767e\u79d1; From left to right: Sun (\u65e5), Moon (\u6708), Stars (\u661f\u8fb0), Mountains (\u7fa4\u5c71), Dragon (\u9f99), Huachong (\u534e\u866b), Zongyi (\u5b97\u5f5d), Waterweed (\u85fb), Fire (\u706b), Millet\/Grain (\u7c89\u7c73), Fu (\u9efc), and Fu (\u9efb)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
      \n
    • Sun (\u65e5 ; r\u00ec), Moon (\u6708 ; yu\u00e8), Stars (\u661f\u8fb0 ; x\u012bng ch\u00e9n): Signify light; symbolize illumination.<\/li>\n
    • Mountains (\u7fa4\u5c71 ; q\u00fan sh\u0101n): Signify a place revered by people; symbolize stability and calmness.<\/li>\n
    • Dragon (\u9f99 ; l\u00f3ng): Signifies the ability to transform; symbolizes wonder and change.<\/li>\n
    • Huachong (\u534e\u866b ; hu\u00e1 ch\u00f3ng) \u2014 sometimes separated into Flower (\u82b1 ; hu\u0101) and Bird (\u9e1f ; ni\u01ceo): Signifies the beauty of the pattern (referring to its colorful appearance).<\/li>\n
    • Zongyi (\u5b97\u5f5d ; z\u014dng y\u00ed) \u2014 before the Southern Song represented by Tiger (\u8001\u864e ; l\u01ceo h\u01d4) and Monkey (\u7334\u5b50 ; h\u00f3u z\u01d0): Signifies loyalty and filial piety. The tiger signifies ferocity; the monkey signifies wisdom. Symbolizes offering and devotion.<\/li>\n
    • Waterweed (\u85fb ; z\u01ceo): Symbolizes purity.<\/li>\n
    • Fire (\u706b ; hu\u01d2): Symbolizes brightness.<\/li>\n
    • Grain (\u7c89\u7c73 ; f\u011bn m\u01d0) \u2014 before the Jin dynasty separated into Powder (\u7c89 ; f\u011bn) and Grain (\u7c73 ; m\u01d0): Signifies \u201cfeeding people\u201d (i.e., providing nourishment); symbolizes livelihood.<\/li>\n
    • Fu (\u9efc ; f\u01d4): Signifies \u201ccutting\u201d (acting decisively); symbolizes decisiveness.<\/li>\n
    • Fu (\u9efb ; f\u00fa): Signifies \u201cturning away from evil and toward good\u201d; symbolizes the ability to distinguish, observe, abandon evil, and pursue good.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Together, these symbols wove an idealized portrait of the emperor, not just as a ruler but as a moral paragon.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      At first glance, they are simply patterns\u2014sun, moon, mountains, dragons\u2014embroidered in gold and silk on imperial robes. But in the...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":1706,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,15],"tags":[1093,1094,1059,1095,1097,1092,1096,1099,1098],"class_list":["post-1704","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hanfu-guide","category-history-culture","tag-clothing-rank","tag-imperial-china","tag-traditional-chinese-clothing","tag-twelve-chapters","tag-twelve-emblem-patterns","tag-twelve-ornaments","tag-1096","tag-1099","tag-1098"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1704","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1704"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1704\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1704"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1704"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zhangruying.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1704"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}