Lishui (Chinese: 立水; pinyin: lìshuǐ; lit. 'standing water') or shuijiao (Chinese: 水脚; Chinese: shuǐjiǎo; lit. 'water feet') is a set of parallel diagonal (either straight or wavy), multicoloured sea-waves/line patterns.[1][2][3]: 100 It originated in China where it was used by the Qing dynasty court prior to the mid-18th century.[4] Lishui represents the deep sea under which the ocean surges and waves;[1][4] it is therefore typically topped with "still water" (woshui (Chinese: 卧水; pinyin: wòshuǐ), also called pingshui (Chinese: 平水; pinyin: píngshuǐ)), which is represented by concentric semicircle patterns which runs horizontally.[3]: 100, 117 Lishui was used to decorate garments,[5] including the bottom hem and cuffs of some of the court clothing of the Qing dynasty.[5][4] It could be used to decorate as wedding dress items.[4][5] It is also used to decorate Chinese opera costumes, typically on the bottom hem of the costumes.[3]: 329 It was also adopted in some court clothing of the Nguyen dynasty in Vietnam under the influence of the Qing dynasty.[6]
Quick Facts Chinese name, Chinese ...
Lishui |
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Lishui (diagonal and parallel wavy multicoloured stripes), Qing dynasty. |
Lishui (diagonal and parallel straight multicoloured stripes), Qing dynasty |
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Chinese | 立水 |
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Literal meaning | Standing water |
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English | Lishui waves/ Lishui stripes/ Lishui border |
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