As early as the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, people found it necessary to tie unruly clothes with belts. As early as in the Book of Songs, there was a record of clothes and belts: "I am full of enthusiasm, but I am afraid of hanging down." There are many kinds of ancient belts and their shapes are very complicated.
Before Qin and Han Dynasties, the belts in men's wear were mainly leather belts and ribbons. There were belts with hooks in the Spring and Autumn Period. During the Warring States period, belts were further popularized in the north because King Wuling of Zhao personally spoke for the platform of "Khufu Riding and Shooting".
Subsequently, various types of belt hooks were gradually applied to belts. One part is used for the waistband head, and the other part is used for embedding the hook into the waistband body, with the hook head facing down, for hanging various accessories. Nomads in the north live on aquatic plants, and a horse becomes their mobile home, and daily necessities are often carried with them. Large objects are mostly tied to horses, and small objects are tied to the waist with belts. This can be regarded as the prototype of the first generation of waste belt.
In the pre-Qin period, like many dress systems, there were great differences in ribbon styles and materials used from the emperor to the folk. Even if the belt is knotted, the length of the remaining drooping part is strictly regulated. Zheng Xuan mentioned in his works: "If we say that Pei Rongdao, Rui and Chuishen take three feet, we will stop in fear."
Xu Shen in the Eastern Han Dynasty concluded in Shuo Wen Jie Zi: "Belt, gentry also. Men wear arrows and women wear silk. " It has become a common phenomenon in society that men wear belts every day and women use ribbons. After the Three Kingdoms, a belt with a more rigorous structure appeared, which finally completely replaced the once popular hook.
With the development of the times and the strengthening of national integration, more and more ornaments are hung on the waist of the knights of Han and Hu, and finally a special form of belt is formed. The word "waste" is not only used to ward off evil, but also used as "Yb for defending war" and "Ba for Zhan Ge". It means taking small steps. Zhuo Wenjun mentioned in the bitter love poem "White-headed Songs": "On the ditch, the ditch water flows east and west."
A classic waste belt is mainly composed of buckles, cymbals, belts, thallium tails, pendants and trinkets, which is full of masculinity. Meng Xi Bitan described this in detail: "Since the Northern Qi Dynasty, China's clothes were all Hu clothes. The narrow sleeves are crimson, the short jacket is long with boots, there is a belt, and Hu clothes are also ... I want to bring a bow and sword, pleasure, several bags, and a knife. "
Each part has a practical purpose:
① "Kou": Tang people also called "Jun". Through which the belt can be fixed at the waist. The belt buckle consists of a buckle ring, a tongue (pin) shaft and a buckle tail (handle), which is similar to the belt head of today's belt.
② "belt": Tang people also called "hip". Raccoons have various shapes, some are round and some are semicircular, which are called "round raccoons" or "group raccoons"; There is a kind of square called "square"; The composite carcass with two shapes at the same time is called "square carcass"; Only use square "pure square"; The jade bodies are closely arranged on the belt, which is called "square arrangement", and the sparse arrangement is called "sparse arrangement". There is a poem: "red shirt wrapped around wrist, blue row square hip waist." There is a flat hole under the bucket to hang the belt directly, which is called ancient eye. Raccoon is the facade of a belt, and whoever wears it with good texture often has a high status.
③ "samarium": the belt itself. The cymbals in the Tang Dynasty were often black belts, which are equivalent to the main part of our belts today. Song Pang's Miscellaneous Notes on Wenchang records: "Although the imperial belts in the Tang Dynasty were rhinoceros jade, they were all black cymbals. Red cymbals appeared in the Five Dynasties. Portrait of Ming Taizu in Luzhou, with black cymbals. The same is true of its ministers. " Tang people already know that dark belts will have a better waist-closing effect.
"Thallium tail": the ornament at the end of the belt. It has two functions, one is to protect the lead from wear, and the other is to play an aesthetic role. The gold belt and jade belt in the late Tang Dynasty will be engraved with inscriptions. Wearing a tail is also very particular. Originally it was inserted upside down, and the tail of Tang Gaozong's imperial edict was inserted downwards. New Tang book? Che Fu said: "The wearer hangs his head, and his name is at the end of the day, which means obedience." Since the mid-Tang Dynasty, in addition to the style of single buckle and single tail, there has also been a style of double buckle and double tail with one buckle and one tail on both sides of the left and right waist. After fastening, the two tails hang down to one side, which has a symmetrical decorative effect. This kind of belt was very popular in Song and Jin Dynasties.
Looking at the whole belt, the belt has the richest content and high visual appeal, which supports the whole value. There are many textures of belts in the Tang Dynasty, such as jade, gold, silver, rhinoceros, copper and iron, which can be ground into related shapes to make belts. Of all the materials, jade is the most precious and of good quality, and it is not a problem to use it for a hundred or eighty years, so the jade belt has become the lever of the belt in Datang clothing. In The Longest Day in Chang 'an, He Jian's swaddling clothes around his waist are a piece of jade, which complements his noble purple robe.
In addition to the material, the number of pieces and patterns matched with enamel do not reveal low-key luxury, but always show the identity of the wearer. The common patterns in the Tang Dynasty are plain faces and carved figures and animals, among which the most common ones are exotic Hu people and animals. The white jade carcass unearthed in hejia village, Xi 'an is engraved with a lion pattern. In Liaoyang, Liaoning Province, a belt was unearthed, and a jade carcass was embossed with the pattern of a boy holding a bottle.
In the Tang Dynasty, water hose not only became a popular style, but also rose to the national level rules and regulations. The Tang government specially formulated the "big belt system" for the people, and used the belt to distinguish official positions. Du You recorded in the "General Code": "In August of the first year of Shangyuan, the civil and military officials were more than three products, and the jade took twelve hips; Four products, goldfish bag, eleven hips; Five products, gold belt, ten hips; Six products, seven products, and nine hips with silver belts; Eight products, nine products, both? ? Stone belt, eight hips; I wear a brass iron belt and have six hips. " Officials of different grades wear belts of different materials and quantities, and the grades are strict.
Since the birth of belt, functionality has been put in the first place in design. Some people use it to hang ornaments, while others use it to hang themselves. The waste belt follows the design concept of the previous dynasty and gives full play to its functions. It can not only distinguish the rank of officials, but also has a powerful storage function, which can hang kettle, wallet, fan, sachet, knife, sword, musical instrument, several bags and other items. Anything you need can be hung on your belt. Their waist became a small mobile warehouse.
Seven items such as "several bags, knives, grindstones, deeds, needles and flint bags" are usually hung on the waste belt, and there is also a loud and elegant name "Seven things about wasting time". Du You's "General Code" also recorded: "In April of the following year, Jing Yun pardoned officials at home and abroad and ordered them to follow the first year of Shang Dynasty. The civilian military attache brought seven things (note: sword, knife, millstone, knife, syringe, flint bag, etc. )"
The reason why people in the Tang Dynasty hung these things is inseparable from the powerful practical functions of ornaments.
Knife is a small tool similar to dagger, which was widely used in ancient times. Similar to today's multifunctional Swiss army knife, it is deeply loved by outdoor survival enthusiasts. A grindstone is a grindstone. Tang people love knives like life, even if they are as sharp as tangdao, they can't resist rust. Therefore, the industrious Tang people hung a grindstone around their waist and sharpened it while using it.
Needles are generally made of bamboo, which is equivalent to the current belt. Tang people put some important papers and silk books in bamboo tubes, which is convenient to carry around and avoid damage. Flint, a tool used for ignition in ancient times, is equivalent to today's lighters. Tang people used steel "fire sickle" to strike flint for fire, and wherever they went, fire could reach.
The truth is the needle. Qiju was originally one of the Tiele tribes, and it was a tough and aggressive nation in Xianbei. Their culture is very backward, and the characters are basically engraved. The sewing needle is their special tool for lettering.
The effect of fainting is even more magical. This awl-shaped thing is used to untie knots. During the Zhou Dynasty, nobles took off their coats and put on ribbons. When they put on lace, lovely people often tied ribbons in knots to prevent their clothes from falling freely. This knot effectively avoids exposure, but it is really a headache to untie it. Therefore, the witty ancients invented Jue, which was specially used to untie knots.
Waste belts used to be the patent of men's wear shows, but with the popularity of women's men's wear in the Tang Dynasty, women in the Tang Dynasty began to use waste belts. Serious and regular round neck robe and belt seem to be a natural pair, which is enough to make women's waistline more obvious. Princess Taiping, the beauty leader of Chang 'an, likes this kind of dress very much. "The Book of the New Tang Dynasty" records: "The emperor tasted the banquet, and Princess Taiping wore a purple shirt and jade belt with soap and silk towels, covered with seven objects, singing and dancing in front of the emperor. The emperor and Wu Zetian said with a smile:' Women can't be military officers. "Why are you dressed like this?" Close to the devil. "
After the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the court stipulated that ordinary officials no longer had to wear belts. Since then, the belt has more justifiably entered the wardrobe of women in the Tang Dynasty. They left out the original "seven things" and changed the waste belt into a narrow pimp. Functionality gradually disappeared and became an accessory of women. They are exquisite but not exaggerated, and they can capture the audience whether in the workplace or on a date.
In "A Generation of Masters", Ye asked the master Chen Huashun, and the master warned him: "One belt and one breath, you should be a person with this tone in the future." For men and women in the Tang Dynasty thousands of years ago, a long belt represented their fashion life.