Palace lanterns, originally hung in the Royal Palace, spread to folk families gradually. Bright red palace lanterns hung in front of a house are considered as both a kind of decoration and a talisman praying for peace, bliss and fortune for the family.
As legend had it, there was once a place named Huodian in the Sucheng (the Xiayi County today) where a skillful craftsman made a variety of wonderful lanterns much adored by the local people. His business flourished more as he got many apprentices and opened a shop of lanterns, which caught the attention of the County Magistrate who later selected some of the most refined ones and presented them to the Emperor. On seeing those red lanterns with beautiful patterns, the Emperor was so pleased that he rewarded the County Magistrate with much largess and recruited the craftsman into the Palace to make royal lanterns exclusively.
After the craftsman’s moving into the Court, his lanterns were improved, emitting an air of majesty and magnificence of the Royal Palace. On evenings of festivals or celebrations, the Royal Palace brilliantly lit by lanterns were a fairy land on earth, which made envious ministers to do the same thing by hanging lanterns at the gate of their own houses, praying for bliss and peace, exhibiting their distinguished honor.
The craftsman had passed on his skill of making lanterns to his descendants after his retirement and back to his hometown, who failed to continue with the glory of those lanterns, which was such a great pity. To honor that craftsman, folk people of Huodian made special lanterns with strips of local broomcorn stalk as the framework, colorful paper as the wrapper and burning oil candles in the center for their children to play in streets on evenings of the January 15th of the lunar calendar, the Lantern Festival.
Despite the alterations as generations went by in almost a thousand years, Huodian lanterns are always the embodiment of folk craft and the sources for stories.
Address of producer: Xiayi County, Shangqiu City
