Real bird feathers are still used though. But that isn't an issue, since nowadays they no longer kill the birds to get them! They just use regularly molted (you know, many birds lose their feathers regularly) feathers of different birds and dye them if necessary.
As long as the crafting techniques are not lost, it's completely possible to use other feather types that would not result in the death of kingfishers. Peacock feathers are shed regularly, or shed feathers from bird rescue sanctuaries? They are lovely works of art, but Kingfishers are even more beautiful.
There’s a really cool TH-cam channel that does these kinds of artworks still (mostly smaller and usually of ronghua, another kind of hairpiece), but they did also address this in a short recently! They mentioned how materials they use now are usually peacock feathers and I think maybe one other potential bird but I actually can’t recall its name right now. But yes, peacocks are a new alternative for modern crafters! *EDIT:* Hi everyone who wants the name of the channel! It’s MarvelousPassions. ♥️ I’ve tried replying before but TH-cam keeps deleting my comment. :c
@@RoseCameron-h3p Had to dig a little bit, but I searched up “ronghua” and managed to locate them! They go by the username MarvelousPassions, and I like them because they actually provide commentary on how they make these crafts. I’ll link them here (which I think should be okay since it’s a TH-cam link so Google shouldn’t mark my comment as spam): youtube.com/@marvelouspassions?si=bh6dsEJVxhaIo99K
@@RoseCameron-h3p Had to dig a little bit, but I searched up “ronghua” and managed to locate them! They go by the username MarvelousPassions, and I like them because they actually provide commentary on how they make these crafts. I did want to link them, but I tested it out and it seems Google ate my comment as spam despite the link included being for TH-cam and not an outside website. Because of that, I guess I’d recommend searching up “MarvelousPassions ronghua” to try and find them. 😮💨
Fun Fact: The most expensive pieces of Dian Cui jewelry used a species of kingfisher from Cambodia. The trade of these kingfisher feathers was so lucrative and profitable that it helped the Khmer empire fund the construction of Angkor Wat
It's the same for any other display of power. Imagine how many PEOPLE have died in colonised countries because of the precious stones that adorn the crowns of European monarchies. I hope one day we will overcome any need for social distinction and display of power.
@@Chilling_Chilling imagine you were murdered and in your funeral, people around just stand there, stare at your coffin with an oblivious expression on their faces and say: "You should've run faster."
That's wonderful to see people who have understood that not all parts of a tradition should be upheld as we grow as humans. But there are ways of keeping the main tradition alive!
@@apuspeak8764 so you would rather torture an animal than use synthetic or feathers from birds that naturally fall off? Why do we have to continue the level of barbarism and not evolve into better people?
@@apuspeak8764 the "soul" comes from the work of the artists themselves, regardless of the materials used. You wouldn't be able to tell if synthetic materials were used and the end result would still be beautiful because of the *craftsmanship* .
So... nope. China is the global leader in the illegal animal products trade. Ivory from poached rhinos and elephants, fur from tigers for rugs, bile from bears, even though pharmaceuticals create the exact same chemicals - bear bile preserves Chinese heritage, you see. In fact, around 36 animals are used because in traditional Chinese medicine. Pangolin scales, seahorse, and musk deer are among the most endangered. As for killing birds, they're all for that. Mao Zedong, as part of the Four Pests Campaign, decided to kill all Eurasian Sparrow because he thought they ate grain stores. They do. They're also a native species that ate grain pests like locusts. Killing all the Eurasian Sparrows led to a famine that lasted from 1959-1961 and killed... let me check my notes... 30 million people. I guess it's hard to focus on the materials when you're starving. Oh and China still uses a TON of bird feathers. Today they live pluck geese for down. Basically they take geese, pluck all their feathers out, and toss the still living birds back into the flock to refrow their feathers and begin the process anew.
Fun fact: Back in the Edwardian era, European and American women wore taxidermied colourful birds on their fancy hats. They unalived so many birds that many species went extinct.
This is absolutely true. Trade in exotic, colourful bird feathers was extremely lucrative. It's still a surprisingly big business. Birds like egrets, birds of paradise, herons and the now extinct Carolina parakeet were killed by the millions. For hats. Fucking hats.
The craftmanship of these decorations is very humbling to witness. Nice to hear that preserving the traditions comes craftmanship first, that's where the true skill seen. A diamond's true beauty comes from the cut. Without expert cutting and polishing, diamonds don't look like anything special. Beautiful craftmanship will make any material look desirable and horrible craftmanship cannot be saved by rare or expensive materials.
not really. it's the artisans that find the ways to make intricate jewelry using questionable techniques that are cruel, the elites and royalty only buys and wears those designs as it was presented to them to gain favors (usually in the form of tax cuts, access to precious mines and trade routes, etc).
@@nevie9490 yup. Humanity never changes. at least now you have lab manufactured diamonds and 3-d printed rhino horns to drive actual poachers out of business but still… the fact that there’s a demand for that stuff in the first place…humans never change. We think think thr world was made for us.
Very much agreed and that's quite depressing. You see something amazing and then learn just how many animald and ppl died in vain making it and it instantly ruins the joy of looking at the art/building. Joy turns into mourning. Same is true for today's companies. If you're going to make something that wrecks the environment I'd rather you not produce it at all. Because it just sucks to end up as an enabler of that destruction by buying stuff and you just cannot go tracking down all the details on each material and firm history etc.. Companies get paid to do that eork for customers and I wish they were held to way higher standards, since too many very clearly cannot manage to do to on their own accord.
@@lethfuil Yeah, in the modern age, that's very common around the world. Before we could produce such brilliant dyes, we had no choice but to either source those colours from nature or simply not wear bright colours.
And it is quite rare for the crown to be found in such an excellent condition - the feathers are still bright, little to no missing pieces etc. This piece is invaluable because it brought a lot of understanding to archelogists on how prosperous the dynasty was and the excellent techniques used to craft the crown
The reason the colors look so vibrant even after so many years is because the blue from feathers comes from structural color, not pigment, which makes it far less likely to fade when placed under strong lighting. (Obviously we shouldn’t continue using kingfisher feathers but it’s still a pretty interesting fact.)
Traditional Culture's in the past was not thought about. It was a way of life, and passed down to the next generation. ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ I'm still learning more about my Chinese Heritage, Beautiful Culture to learn about. We need to accept what happened in the Past and live for the Present and plan for the Future generation's.❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
It's beauty is overshadowed by its cruelty. When I first saw it, I felt amazement but after learning that live kingfisher feathers were plucked, I felt sad and disgusted by the cruelty.
Wearing blinkers much.... unfortunately they still do, maybe not the kingfisher anymore but they do skin rabbits and other poor creatures alive for their fur...sorry to say.
Why did the Kingfishers need to be alive while plucking the feathers? Isn't that just torturing them before they die from it, when at least they could've found a way to give them a quicker death to get the feathers? Thanks for the informative video, I love learning about Chinese history and it's great that Chinese citizens support keeping up the craft without the mistreatment of the kingfishers ❤️
Kingfishers happen to be one of the rare bird species that has blue feathers and live in non-tropical areas. Also, they're very small. Thus, if you want to use their feathers, you need all the feathers coverting the birdy, getting they full nacked and unable to fly. Under such circunstances, these little ones would become dead for sure.
Pretty incredible how such a gorgeous crown can instantly become ugly the moment you mention how many birds were needlessly killed for it. I agree completely with preserving the craft, not the materials.
I appreciate the honesty here. These elegant pieces are amazing. May the artists learn to care for the birds they use in a humane way now. It's a possible practice as I know Kanaka Maoli made feather pieces and had families maintaining the bird population to produce the pieces ongoing in our small island nation. Aloha to the kingfisher bird & may our bird populations for art pieces return n soon!! My appreciation for bird life is growing from uninterest😊
The Fengguan Xiapei was only work by the empress, as the Feng, the phoenix, is a sacred bird and is commonly portrayed/mentioned alongside the dragon, the representation of the Emperor.
凤冠霞帔existed during the Song Dynasty, they are part of the ceremonial attire for Royalties, nobles and wives of high ranking court’s officials. The term was adopted to refer to the ceremonial attire of Han women, just that no phoenix emblems were used on the crowns for commoners.
I've seen this art updated with synthetic fibers, and is good to know we can still appreciate the craftsmanship even if some of the traditional elements are not original, because society learnt something moral about it.
Oh my God, that’s horrifying. Those poor birds. You would think that in a country that believes in reincarnation, they would be a little kinder to the wildlife.
If i remember in china history drama series, a concubine wearing red dress usually end up getting punishment,i assume probably that too luxurious or trying to get emperor attention
I am not sure what period it is in but a lot of social rules dictated what one could wear from the color to furs. Not just in China but throughout different societies
@gmcmisty Luxury laws, that prevented con artists from tricking the wealthy. The original Puss N Boots story was a sort of cautionary tale. A cat put on clothes and became a servant, a Miller's son wears borrowed rich mans clothes and becomes a Marquis, ending up marrying the rich man's daughter. Hence, the clothes make the man, as the old saying goes.
It doesn't matter how good any crown as beautiful as they might look, but to start any wedding by wearing the suffering of any animal, person or living bring is not something to be called auspicious, lucky to start a fruitful live, but its not. Since many are used to eat anything, one isn't aware, nor do they want to change because of it, also if your entire medicine recipes is mostly animal, insect based, rather than plants. Nobody can teach you this if the wisdom escapes one. Taoist do have a better understanding and way of life, that is if they're not changed. Manusmriti 5th chapter, 51,12 is told about meateaters and the 8 sort of sin they commit. They don't talk about what is not right, but straight to be sin. 1st who ordered the kill, 2nd who cut the meat, 3rd who killed the animal, 4th to buy an animal to kill, 5th to sell an animal to be slaughtered, 6th those who cook/prepare it, 7th those who serves it, 8th those who eat it. One can get deeper into the subject as to why more, but hope this is sufficient for those who want to know, read and really are prepared to change and be better. Even buddhism has this, but sometimes they rather think of it differently as long as they didn't kill for it, unaware they became suddenly accomplish and part of it. I hope the Chinese literatures about heavens and so are telling also these things, unless it was erased
Usually they honour the death of the animals they killed due to the heavy influence of Buddhism In China. The use of kingfisher feathers mostly came from Cambodia, because of the high price China paid to get them, Cambodians back then killed and bred many kingfishers to get high pay from China. There could be a possibility that China didn't know what was happening. But this crown is only used by empresses, so it is very rare.
I agree that history and heritage like this, should never be forgotten. Those artist’s craftsmanship is still deserving of praise for its unbelievable beauty and technical excellence. Thankfully there are ways for the skills to be passed down and for the art to be kept alive for many more generations still to come-that allow artists to achieve the same result, without having to take down 10,000+ kingfishers.❤
Was this before the gorgeous enamel work was made regularly, or was there a special significance to using the bird feathers? I love these cultural snippets!
Kingfisher feathers lose their shine after the bird dies if they aren't plucked out first; to keep the feathers' bright colors, they need to be plucked while the bird is still alive and because kingfishers are small, it takes dozens or even hundreds or thousands of them to make one crown
Yes, silk thread is one of the alternative material chinese people currently use to make these kind of headdress. More popular is synthetic thread because it's cheaper but the sheen will be duller, but if you arrange the colour palette well it can give a good aesthetic too!
You don’t actually have to kill silk worms to harvest silk from their cocoons it just means the resulting silk will be rougher because it has shorter threads since the silk moth broke through its cocoon. But since these are for ornaments rather than textiles I don’t see why that would be as much of an issue
@@realmofthesenses i'm allergic, so not for me but damn it is real and shocking. Just like peacocks molt but many others have been found killed and completely plucked. All about human greed.
@@SewingBoxDesignsthere was no environmental awareness centuries ago. They could breed it, but not for any moral reason. Probably just for the convenience of having materials close by.
@@SewingBoxDesigns remember the scandal around a fashion item in the H&M collection, years ago? It was made of goose feathers, if I remember correctly. Back then, a video on YT went viral, it showed the way the goose were plucked alive. Letting the feathers grow back, plucking them again, and again, and again. The goose were severely traumatized. After seeing that, many fashionable girls became vegan, and became very aware and conscious.
I love how around the world animal cruelty is being condoned for human pleasures. We are finally seeing that animals are also living creatures and humans aren’t more important than other creatures.
FYI. 霞帔/xia-pei is NOT a cape, it is a scarf. The charater "pei 帔" means long scarf or shawl in this particular context, and xia-pei derives from the pei-zi (帔子）or long scarf worn by women in the Tang & Song dynasties. This character can get a bit confusing, beucase the charater 帔 is also pronounced as pi. When 帔 is pronounced as "pi" and being used in the context of Chinese opera, pi/帔 means jacket, also known as 披风 (pifeng: a Ming-styled hanfu jacket with a straight collar and parallel front panels).
Anyway, thank you for saying that "perserving culture is about the craft, no material." 🧡 As someone who works in Chinese fashion history, I really appreaciate this ending!
And this is one reason why I love Chinese culture is because they don’t focus on harming animals to get the craft that they want done. They will find alternatives to keep the animals safe while also still holding onto their cultural heritage by practicing these crafts.
Here in the US one of the most popular fashion items was a hat with egret feathers (late 1800s). So many white egrets were killed that the population was nearly wiped out.
Kind of reminds me also of the (now extinct) great auk. The flightless sea birds were so docile and easy to exploit at nesting season that they would be herded around & plucked to use the feathers as stuffing for pillows & bedding. The bloodied birds would then be left where they were found, “to die at their own leisure”
I like that they can appreciate and preserve the cultural significance of these items while also condemning the cruelty and finding a way to continue the craft without continuing the cruelty. History shouldn't be destroyed. History should be preserved and taught so that future generations can choose to be better.
It’s really refreshing seeing the younger generation in eastern countries really caring about their heritage but not take it out on nature. Been seeing large movement of younger generation really caring about wildlife and river systems. The younger generation really is the future for our biodiversity and ecosystems.
“In modern times Chinese people see this as cruel and choose to focus on the craft, not the materials.” Tell that to the people taking shark fins and panda poo for quack medicine.
It's stunning, but knowing all those birds were killed to make it makes me sad. I am really glad to hear people have moved on from killing the birds just for their feathers. Thanks for sharing your history. Love your videos. ❤❤❤
Nowadays people replicate kingfisher feather gowns from a kind of velvety thread/fabric which is just as shiny and beautiful
Truuuue, I saw that in a TH-cam short the other day! Super intricate fabrication process, and the final result was juste mind-blowing
doesn't feel the same as the real kingfisher feather tho where the souls of those sacrificed lives inside the headdress.
Also peacock and parrots, but only using the feathers they naturally shed, not plucking on purpose
Ronghua. It's handmade 'pipe cleaners' from fine wire and silk threads.
Sooo beautiful 🙏🏼
“…craft, not materials.” That’s beautiful.
This. Absolutely the best way to approach traditional crafts.
Yeah
That's true, however some craft are 'craft' because of the material used, the way the material was used
@@tzed2219you can use artificial feathers or feathers from newly deceased birds if you have places to procure them nearby
If only that were true
400 years old and it looks like it was made yesterday. Absolutely beautiful. Pretty glad people moved away from real bird feathers though.
Poor animals. How can you do that to innocent animals??
@@elishh8173From now on, the only birds used will be those tried and found guilty in a jury of their peers.
@@elishh8173back in the days ppl used to hunt for fun
@@elishh8173 It was the only option before synthetic materials. Look up violin strings for example.
Real bird feathers are still used though.
But that isn't an issue, since nowadays they no longer kill the birds to get them! They just use regularly molted (you know, many birds lose their feathers regularly) feathers of different birds and dye them if necessary.
As long as the crafting techniques are not lost, it's completely possible to use other feather types that would not result in the death of kingfishers. Peacock feathers are shed regularly, or shed feathers from bird rescue sanctuaries? They are lovely works of art, but Kingfishers are even more beautiful.
There’s a really cool TH-cam channel that does these kinds of artworks still (mostly smaller and usually of ronghua, another kind of hairpiece), but they did also address this in a short recently! They mentioned how materials they use now are usually peacock feathers and I think maybe one other potential bird but I actually can’t recall its name right now. But yes, peacocks are a new alternative for modern crafters!
*EDIT:* Hi everyone who wants the name of the channel! It’s MarvelousPassions. ♥️
I’ve tried replying before but TH-cam keeps deleting my comment. :c
@@kukuandkookieparrots and dyed geese usually
@@kukuandkookie Could you please advise the name of the YT channel, if you happen to remember it? I'm super curious now
@@RoseCameron-h3p Had to dig a little bit, but I searched up “ronghua” and managed to locate them!
They go by the username MarvelousPassions, and I like them because they actually provide commentary on how they make these crafts.
I’ll link them here (which I think should be okay since it’s a TH-cam link so Google shouldn’t mark my comment as spam): youtube.com/@marvelouspassions?si=bh6dsEJVxhaIo99K
@@RoseCameron-h3p Had to dig a little bit, but I searched up “ronghua” and managed to locate them!
They go by the username MarvelousPassions, and I like them because they actually provide commentary on how they make these crafts.
I did want to link them, but I tested it out and it seems Google ate my comment as spam despite the link included being for TH-cam and not an outside website. Because of that, I guess I’d recommend searching up “MarvelousPassions ronghua” to try and find them. 😮💨
Fun Fact: The most expensive pieces of Dian Cui jewelry used a species of kingfisher from Cambodia. The trade of these kingfisher feathers was so lucrative and profitable that it helped the Khmer empire fund the construction of Angkor Wat
Wow! 😳 The feathers had a high price.
Is it true ??
😱😱😱😱😱😱!!!!
thanks for sharing
What??? Wow. 😮
The crowns are beautiful but to see that thousands of birds had to die for it is heartbreaking.
It's the same for any other display of power. Imagine how many PEOPLE have died in colonised countries because of the precious stones that adorn the crowns of European monarchies. I hope one day we will overcome any need for social distinction and display of power.
Exactly what I thought I went from "Wow that's a beautiful pigmented paint" to absolute horror because I love love love Kingfishers.
😢, it's that the animals had to suffer having feathers plucked while they're alive, very cruel!! They can use faux feathers
your name is fitting
@GabrielleTollerson so u think its OK for animals to suffer and die for beauty then.
I feel bad for those kingfishers 😭
Same
Maybe they should've flown away faster? 🤷
@@Chilling_Chilling Don't justify cruelty
@@Chilling_Chilling imagine you were murdered and in your funeral, people around just stand there, stare at your coffin with an oblivious expression on their faces and say: "You should've run faster."
@@friedalien1351😂😂😂 well.. is a good advise...
That's wonderful to see people who have understood that not all parts of a tradition should be upheld as we grow as humans. But there are ways of keeping the main tradition alive!
there's no soul and genuine feel for using imitations. do you agree to eat bugs labelled as chicken over actual chicken?
@@apuspeak8764 so you would rather torture an animal than use synthetic or feathers from birds that naturally fall off? Why do we have to continue the level of barbarism and not evolve into better people?
@@apuspeak8764 the "soul" comes from the work of the artists themselves, regardless of the materials used. You wouldn't be able to tell if synthetic materials were used and the end result would still be beautiful because of the *craftsmanship* .
So... nope. China is the global leader in the illegal animal products trade. Ivory from poached rhinos and elephants, fur from tigers for rugs, bile from bears, even though pharmaceuticals create the exact same chemicals - bear bile preserves Chinese heritage, you see. In fact, around 36 animals are used because in traditional Chinese medicine. Pangolin scales, seahorse, and musk deer are among the most endangered.
As for killing birds, they're all for that. Mao Zedong, as part of the Four Pests Campaign, decided to kill all Eurasian Sparrow because he thought they ate grain stores. They do. They're also a native species that ate grain pests like locusts.
Killing all the Eurasian Sparrows led to a famine that lasted from 1959-1961 and killed... let me check my notes... 30 million people.
I guess it's hard to focus on the materials when you're starving.
Oh and China still uses a TON of bird feathers. Today they live pluck geese for down. Basically they take geese, pluck all their feathers out, and toss the still living birds back into the flock to refrow their feathers and begin the process anew.
@@lovecatxx This.
Thank goodness that the feathers are no longer plucked from the live birds thus killing them. I appreciate that you mentioned this. Thank you.
Keep living in your pink bubble... 😢
I mean they had no choice. They made them extinct in the wild
You're naive. "Thank goodness" btw. You're not aware how they treat and slaughter animals over there.
I agree with the people's views on this, preservation of a craft can be done using alternative materials. We must also preserve life.
I didn't know it was made of feathers! I thought it was something like Persian Minakari (Vitreous Enamel)
I thought the same at first! But I think the whole thing would be impossibly heavy with enamel.
Same.. I thought it was enamel
The enamel technique was introduced to China in 17th century, so before that, to get the blue color, it's from those birds.
@@apuspeak8764 thank you!
Poor birds.. 😢😢😢 It's better to preserve these crowns so that these birds don't die in vain.. 😢
Only ancient empress can it only
Fun fact: Back in the Edwardian era, European and American women wore taxidermied colourful birds on their fancy hats. They unalived so many birds that many species went extinct.
Thanks for sharing this. Actually, I knew it.😅
This is absolutely true.
Trade in exotic, colourful bird feathers was extremely lucrative. It's still a surprisingly big business.
Birds like egrets, birds of paradise, herons and the now extinct Carolina parakeet were killed by the millions.
For hats. Fucking hats.
The craftmanship of these decorations is very humbling to witness. Nice to hear that preserving the traditions comes craftmanship first, that's where the true skill seen.
A diamond's true beauty comes from the cut. Without expert cutting and polishing, diamonds don't look like anything special. Beautiful craftmanship will make any material look desirable and horrible craftmanship cannot be saved by rare or expensive materials.
Given how cruel the making of the crown was, makes sense that it was worn by Royalty, which is also known for being cruel.
not really. it's the artisans that find the ways to make intricate jewelry using questionable techniques that are cruel, the elites and royalty only buys and wears those designs as it was presented to them to gain favors (usually in the form of tax cuts, access to precious mines and trade routes, etc).
Sacrificing as many lives as needed for the glory of the kingdom is how all empires were built
@@RadenWAno shit doesn’t make it right
@@ThugDollXOno one said it was right, just how it happened
@@Feathertail2205 I never said otherwise that's the point I was making to the girl I replied to
10,000 dead kingfishers for the arrogance of a human. Its beauty will always be overshadowed by the cruelty and sacrifice used to
Make it.
it still happens today, fur trade, diamonds, you name it
@@nevie9490 yup. Humanity never changes. at least now you have lab manufactured diamonds and 3-d printed rhino horns to drive actual poachers out of business but still… the fact that there’s a demand for that stuff in the first place…humans never change. We think think thr world was made for us.
the cruelty and sacrifice overshadows the beauty*
@@apuspeak8764 the way they worded it was perfectly fine
Very much agreed and that's quite depressing. You see something amazing and then learn just how many animald and ppl died in vain making it and it instantly ruins the joy of looking at the art/building. Joy turns into mourning.
Same is true for today's companies. If you're going to make something that wrecks the environment I'd rather you not produce it at all. Because it just sucks to end up as an enabler of that destruction by buying stuff and you just cannot go tracking down all the details on each material and firm history etc.. Companies get paid to do that eork for customers and I wish they were held to way higher standards, since too many very clearly cannot manage to do to on their own accord.
Here in the USA, dyed turkey and chicken feathers are used for crafts. They're byproducts of the meat industry.
@@dianalindeman1644 thanks for sharing🇺🇸
Good to see nothing is wasted.
Isn't that pretty normal in many countries? (I'm not from the US, btw.)
@@lethfuil Yeah, in the modern age, that's very common around the world. Before we could produce such brilliant dyes, we had no choice but to either source those colours from nature or simply not wear bright colours.
Very glad they protect those precious birds now. Because the craft is fantastic by itself. It doesn't require cruelty to be breathtakingly beautiful!
I'm glad no more birds have to die for beautiful headdresses ❤❤❤❤
My jaw dropped and it's somewhere on the floor, these crowns are just stunning!!
5 second rule!
it's pretty but dear god it has to be heavy and waaaay tooo showy in my opinion. sometimes less is best lol
@@silveryfeather208The crown was for Empress of course nothing was normal. Your opinion is suitable for ordinary people ✌️
@@silveryfeather208 the crown shown was for the empress and it is only worn publicly for rare and formal occasions, with an attire to match
And it is quite rare for the crown to be found in such an excellent condition - the feathers are still bright, little to no missing pieces etc. This piece is invaluable because it brought a lot of understanding to archelogists on how prosperous the dynasty was and the excellent techniques used to craft the crown
The reason the colors look so vibrant even after so many years is because the blue from feathers comes from structural color, not pigment, which makes it far less likely to fade when placed under strong lighting. (Obviously we shouldn’t continue using kingfisher feathers but it’s still a pretty interesting fact.)
Traditional Culture's in the past was not thought about. It was a way of life, and passed down to the next generation. ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
I'm still learning more about my Chinese Heritage, Beautiful Culture to learn about. We need to accept what happened in the Past and live for the Present and plan for the Future generation's.❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
It's beauty is overshadowed by its cruelty. When I first saw it, I felt amazement but after learning that live kingfisher feathers were plucked, I felt sad and disgusted by the cruelty.
I am glad they don't kill animals anymore.
Wearing blinkers much.... unfortunately they still do, maybe not the kingfisher anymore but they do skin rabbits and other poor creatures alive for their fur...sorry to say.
@@mandysmith7619 No one wears rabbit fur... And why the fuck would they skin them alive, your comment is nothing but prejudice.
Because it's faster , and yes people do wear fur. @Justspinwin
@@janewright315 No one wears rabbit fur, people would laugh at u for wearing that. Those people buy fur to show off not to be laughed at.
@@Justspinwin Dunning kruger explains
Why did the Kingfishers need to be alive while plucking the feathers? Isn't that just torturing them before they die from it, when at least they could've found a way to give them a quicker death to get the feathers? Thanks for the informative video, I love learning about Chinese history and it's great that Chinese citizens support keeping up the craft without the mistreatment of the kingfishers ❤️
Kingfishers happen to be one of the rare bird species that has blue feathers and live in non-tropical areas. Also, they're very small. Thus, if you want to use their feathers, you need all the feathers coverting the birdy, getting they full nacked and unable to fly. Under such circunstances, these little ones would become dead for sure.
@@amebansmic7560youre not answering his question. The question was if its not possible to at least euthanize the bird before plucking the feathers
@@chiligurka who is saying the birdies weren't euthanized before?
Haberdashery back in the day caused a global crisis for bird populations in Western culture too.
Those birds are very vibrant and beautiful
These crowns are older than America
The crowns are beautiful💖....but I'm now scarred for life knowing those gorgeous kingfishers died in such a cruel way.😭
Pretty incredible how such a gorgeous crown can instantly become ugly the moment you mention how many birds were needlessly killed for it.
I agree completely with preserving the craft, not the materials.
It Is Indeed beautiful ❤️
Too gorgeous! Absolutely stunning!
A crown made from 10,000 dead birds. Horrific
I appreciate the honesty here. These elegant pieces are amazing. May the artists learn to care for the birds they use in a humane way now. It's a possible practice as I know Kanaka Maoli made feather pieces and had families maintaining the bird population to produce the pieces ongoing in our small island nation. Aloha to the kingfisher bird & may our bird populations for art pieces return n soon!! My appreciation for bird life is growing from uninterest😊
This was so interesting to learn, but I literally jumped back when I saw the dead king fisher 😥 RIP you beautiful soul.
I love your content sir...more please...
Sad they thought plucking a bird’s feathers to death was the way to go.
The Fengguan Xiapei was only work by the empress, as the Feng, the phoenix, is a sacred bird and is commonly portrayed/mentioned alongside the dragon, the representation of the Emperor.
凤冠霞帔existed during the Song Dynasty, they are part of the ceremonial attire for Royalties, nobles and wives of high ranking court’s officials. The term was adopted to refer to the ceremonial attire of Han women, just that no phoenix emblems were used on the crowns for commoners.
S-T-U-N-N-I-N-G headdress and clothes!😊
I've seen this art updated with synthetic fibers, and is good to know we can still appreciate the craftsmanship even if some of the traditional elements are not original, because society learnt something moral about it.
The way my jaw fucking dropped when he started explaining the process….
The crowns are beautiful but the birds hold more beauty
Thank you sharing this history
I would love to learn more. I am an American, but I believe in cultural exchanges to prevent war and suffering.
Exactly. The dehumanizing of other countries needs to stop.
@@SewingBoxDesigns Russia comes to mind.
Oh my God, that’s horrifying. Those poor birds. You would think that in a country that believes in reincarnation, they would be a little kinder to the wildlife.
RIP kingfishers
They are absolutely stunning peices! ❤❤
If i remember in china history drama series, a concubine wearing red dress usually end up getting punishment,i assume probably that too luxurious or trying to get emperor attention
I am not sure what period it is in but a lot of social rules dictated what one could wear from the color to furs. Not just in China but throughout different societies
@@gmcmisty true, oh i forget usually the person who punish concubine wearing red cloth is dowager
Because only the legitimate wife was allowed to wear red.
@gmcmisty
Luxury laws, that prevented con artists from tricking the wealthy. The original Puss N Boots story was a sort of cautionary tale. A cat put on clothes and became a servant, a Miller's son wears borrowed rich mans clothes and becomes a Marquis, ending up marrying the rich man's daughter. Hence, the clothes make the man, as the old saying goes.
@user-yj8zw7hk6f or pastel colour
So beautiful and the craftsmanship is gorgeous 😍
It doesn't matter how good any crown as beautiful as they might look, but to start any wedding by wearing the suffering of any animal, person or living bring is not something to be called auspicious, lucky to start a fruitful live, but its not. Since many are used to eat anything, one isn't aware, nor do they want to change because of it, also if your entire medicine recipes is mostly animal, insect based, rather than plants. Nobody can teach you this if the wisdom escapes one. Taoist do have a better understanding and way of life, that is if they're not changed.
Manusmriti 5th chapter, 51,12 is told about meateaters and the 8 sort of sin they commit. They don't talk about what is not right, but straight to be sin.
1st who ordered the kill,
2nd who cut the meat,
3rd who killed the animal,
4th to buy an animal to kill,
5th to sell an animal to be slaughtered,
6th those who cook/prepare it,
7th those who serves it,
8th those who eat it.
One can get deeper into the subject as to why more, but hope this is sufficient for those who want to know, read and really are prepared to change and be better.
Even buddhism has this, but sometimes they rather think of it differently as long as they didn't kill for it, unaware they became suddenly accomplish and part of it.
I hope the Chinese literatures about heavens and so are telling also these things, unless it was erased
Usually they honour the death of the animals they killed due to the heavy influence of Buddhism In China. The use of kingfisher feathers mostly came from Cambodia, because of the high price China paid to get them, Cambodians back then killed and bred many kingfishers to get high pay from China. There could be a possibility that China didn't know what was happening. But this crown is only used by empresses, so it is very rare.
Adorabile, superbe ,fericire la superlativ ! Nu mă satur sa le privesc ! Mulțumim!!❤
I somehow briefly misread this as "The most luxurious crown in cheese history" and was only slightly disappointed that I was wrong.
I agree that history and heritage like this, should never be forgotten.
Those artist’s craftsmanship is still deserving of praise for its unbelievable beauty and technical excellence.
Thankfully there are ways for the skills to be passed down and for the art to be kept alive for many more generations still to come-that allow artists to achieve the same result, without having to take down 10,000+ kingfishers.❤
Was this before the gorgeous enamel work was made regularly, or was there a special significance to using the bird feathers? I love these cultural snippets!
Kingfisher feathers lose their shine after the bird dies if they aren't plucked out first; to keep the feathers' bright colors, they need to be plucked while the bird is still alive and because kingfishers are small, it takes dozens or even hundreds or thousands of them to make one crown
@@AChinesetranslator it is a cruel but beautiful work of art
Alas, poor birds. 😢 But it occured to me that enameling the blue color would make the crown more heavy.
This culture is so beautiful man🎎✨
Awesome! 😍😍💕💕👍👍
Well, nowadays we have the ability to use naturally shedded feathers, so the craft can still live on harmlessly.
How about using silk threads to replace the feathers?
Yes, silk thread is one of the alternative material chinese people currently use to make these kind of headdress. More popular is synthetic thread because it's cheaper but the sheen will be duller, but if you arrange the colour palette well it can give a good aesthetic too!
so it's okay to kill silk worms and not okay to kill birds?
You don’t actually have to kill silk worms to harvest silk from their cocoons it just means the resulting silk will be rougher because it has shorter threads since the silk moth broke through its cocoon. But since these are for ornaments rather than textiles I don’t see why that would be as much of an issue
They are stunning and mesmerizing!!
The ethereal beauty of the white pink and blue crown, to me, appears otherworldly, created by non human divine spirits. Oh to see it in person🧚🏻♀️
i wonder what it’s called…also my fav
These are absolutely gorgeous!! The crown is such amazing quality being from over 400 years ago too!! ❤
Also most cultures where crueler back then even among themselves so deplucking a live bird was nothing to them.
But unfortunately it is still done with goose. They are plucked alive, for our comforters and pillows.
Not so much cruel, but unconcerned?
@@realmofthesenses i'm allergic, so not for me but damn it is real and shocking. Just like peacocks molt but many others have been found killed and completely plucked. All about human greed.
@@SewingBoxDesignsthere was no environmental awareness centuries ago. They could breed it, but not for any moral reason. Probably just for the convenience of having materials close by.
@@SewingBoxDesigns remember the scandal around a fashion item in the H&M collection, years ago? It was made of goose feathers, if I remember correctly. Back then, a video on YT went viral, it showed the way the goose were plucked alive. Letting the feathers grow back, plucking them again, and again, and again. The goose were severely traumatized. After seeing that, many fashionable girls became vegan, and became very aware and conscious.
Omg sooooo beautiful!!! 😩👌❤️
That's good "focus on craft not material"
First one and the one at 0:50 are stunning 😮
I love how around the world animal cruelty is being condoned for human pleasures. We are finally seeing that animals are also living creatures and humans aren’t more important than other creatures.
Keep those eyes closed.. You're still to sensitive to the real bs STILL happening
They’re so insanely beautiful man it drives me crazy
But they were those sad white gowns these days. Their traditional dress looks much more beautiful
Stunningly beautiful!
I've always found the garments of ancient Chinese lady courtiers the most beautiful I've ever seen 😍 so ethereal, soft and very comfy looking
FYI. 霞帔/xia-pei is NOT a cape, it is a scarf. The charater "pei 帔" means long scarf or shawl in this particular context, and xia-pei derives from the pei-zi (帔子）or long scarf worn by women in the Tang & Song dynasties.
This character can get a bit confusing, beucase the charater 帔 is also pronounced as pi. When 帔 is pronounced as "pi" and being used in the context of Chinese opera, pi/帔 means jacket, also known as 披风 (pifeng: a Ming-styled hanfu jacket with a straight collar and parallel front panels).
Anyway, thank you for saying that "perserving culture is about the craft, no material." 🧡 As someone who works in Chinese fashion history, I really appreaciate this ending!
China has made some very wisely choices. Preserving natural wildlife and feet are welcome changes.
I very much enjoy your content! Especially the language part. ❤
@@annamossity8879 Glad you enjoyed it😁
Beautiful people with such rich culture.
Thank you to share your culture❤
“The crown is worn on the head” wow, you learn something every day! 🤣👑
They're absolutely stunning I can't get over the color how it's preserved specially the feathers one of the most beautiful cultures
Wow those outfits and crows are so beautiful ❤
And this is one reason why I love Chinese culture is because they don’t focus on harming animals to get the craft that they want done. They will find alternatives to keep the animals safe while also still holding onto their cultural heritage by practicing these crafts.
It truly is magnificent looking 🤩 so detailed, colourful and jusy downright beautiful.
Such gorgeous beautiful attire❤❤❤. I love these videos!
Wow those are gorgeous!
The second to last blue one is GORGEOUS
They are stunning
Here in the US one of the most popular fashion items was a hat with egret feathers (late 1800s). So many white egrets were killed that the population was nearly wiped out.
Kind of reminds me also of the (now extinct) great auk.
The flightless sea birds were so docile and easy to exploit at nesting season that they would be herded around & plucked to use the feathers as stuffing for pillows & bedding. The bloodied birds would then be left where they were found, “to die at their own leisure”
Stunning. The skill of the craftsman who made the crown is incomparable. The colours are still so vibrant after four hundred years.
I like that they can appreciate and preserve the cultural significance of these items while also condemning the cruelty and finding a way to continue the craft without continuing the cruelty.
History shouldn't be destroyed. History should be preserved and taught so that future generations can choose to be better.
What tasteful craftsmanship and high quality textures. This fast fashion era could never
So beautiful and luxurious.
Nice to kow such history and tradition.
Very beautiful. And good job for the younger ones still making them by tradition but without killing any birds for them. I love history.
Traditional Chinese brides leave me in awe, as a fashion designer I am flawed when I learn the cultural history behind the garment.
Beautiful. Glad they changed the materials. Thank you for sharing 👌🏾
I'm glad she doing what she loves and hope she continues to prosper she is honeing her craft and sharing her story ❤😊
I love these videos. Thank you for the information.
Wow, they are so beautiful!😮
Gorgeous
Those are so beautiful. Amazing works of art. True national treasures.
It’s really refreshing seeing the younger generation in eastern countries really caring about their heritage but not take it out on nature. Been seeing large movement of younger generation really caring about wildlife and river systems. The younger generation really is the future for our biodiversity and ecosystems.
Breathtaking outfits, crowns the women wow
“In modern times Chinese people see this as cruel and choose to focus on the craft, not the materials.”
Tell that to the people taking shark fins and panda poo for quack medicine.
It's stunning, but knowing all those birds were killed to make it makes me sad. I am really glad to hear people have moved on from killing the birds just for their feathers. Thanks for sharing your history. Love your videos. ❤❤❤