Cloverleaf knot
Cloverleaf knot decorating the top of a white porcelain box. Private collection.
MING DYNASTY (CE 1368–1644)
Pan chang knot
Pan chang knot hanging from a screen in a portrait of the Emperor Xiaozhong. Photo courtesy Palace Museum, Taipei.
QING DYNASTY (CE 1644–1911)
Plafond knot
Plafond knot and tassel suspended from a ball carved from hollowed ivory tusk. Photo courtesy Palace Museum, Taipei.
REPUBLIC OF CHINA (IN TAIWAN) AND PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA (1949–PRESENT)
It was a blessing that the art of Chinese knotting did not become extinct after the birth of the Republic of China (in Taiwan) and the People’s Republic of China in 1949. Indeed, Chinese knotting has experienced a resurgence since then, especially in the late 1970s, largely through the efforts of fervent knotting enthusiast Lydia Chen, who has spent twenty-five years researching and compiling traditional Chinese knots in addition to inventing fourteen new basic knots, among them the creeper knot and the constellation knot.
Creeper knot
Gold thread necklace composed of creeper knots, by Lydia Chen.
Constellation knot
Wall décoration formed of constellation knots, among others, by Lydia Chen.
In this volume, The Complete Book of Chinese Knotting, published here for the first time in English, Lydia Chen has condensed almost twenty-five years of untiring research on fourteen basic knots (up from eleven in the first book) into four main methods of tying basic knots. This makes them not only easier to remember but is also more conducive to stimulating creativity. In addition, she has summarized the different ways of modifying basic knots into nine major categories. The variations of the fourteen basic knots may change, but they all fall within the ambit of these nine major modification techniques. Together, they have spurred the creation of another 56 brand-new Chinese knots in this book.
Here also are displayed some of the author’s breathtaking original works, which she has created as wall pictures, ornamental hangings and exquisite jewelry to give a different dimension to the art of Chinese knotting. Many of these complex formations are inspired by real and imaginary creatures encountered on early brassware, jade, stone carvings, statuary, paintings, wall murals and mirror holders. Some are created with gold and silver thread – a difficult medium in which to work because of its inelasticity – while others are painted to produce a stiff, sculptural effect. Yet others are designed to project movement and life – a challenge in an art that is essentially symmetrical and static. It is the author’s dream to inspire other enthusiasts to broaden the creative horizon of Chinese knotting.
Chinese Knots in Ancient Times
Chinese knotting, ancient as it may be, was never the subject of scholarly treatises and there are only passing references to it in the literature. Some scholars believe this is because the early Chinese looked down on science, technology and the folk arts, believing that “Philosophy is the Way, and all others are just tools.” Yet, the complexity and ingenuity of the knots that have survived from the late Qing and early Republican periods as well as tantalizing secondhand evidence from sculpture, stone carvings, paintings and poetry testify to the culmination of a long, unbroken artistic tradition that may possibly have predated the written record.
From early times, knotting was one of the most basic skills that Man needed for survival. It was only after knotting techniques were developed to bind two or more things together that he could invent a variety of tools for hunting and fishing, such as bows, arrows and nets. Mankind went on to make farming tools, such as hoes and shovels, by fastening stones to wooden sticks, which led, in turn, to the construction of shelters using cords to bind the different members together, and the development of other inventions to aid production and convenience. Eventually, knotting became developed for communication purposes, to exchange letters and numbers and to record events. The art of knotting gradually found its use in decoration and rituals, firmly establishing itself as an important part of traditional handicrafts.
Using Cords to Record Events
Although it is difficult to envisage, there is sufficient documentary evidence to show that the ancient Chinese recorded events with cords. In a commentary by an early scholar, Zhou Yi, on the trigrams of the Yi Jing or Book of Changes, the oldest of the Chinese classic texts, which describes an ancient system of cosmology and philosophy that is at the heart of Chinese cultural beliefs, he says that “in prehistoric times, events were recorded by tying knots; in later ages, books were used for this.” In the second century CE, the Han scholar Zhen Suen wrote in his book Yi Zu, “Big events were recorded with complicated knots, and small events, simple knots.” Chapter 81 of the Tsui Chronicle also records that “... no writing, hence must carve on woods and tie cords....” Moreover, the chapter on “Tufan” in the New Tang Chronicle reveals that due to a lack of writing, the ancient Chinese tied cords to make agreements. This was practiced in other countries as well. For example, in Peru, there was a similar system called “Qui’ pu,” whereby a single knot means 10, a double knot 20, and multiple knots 100. Special government officials were available to explain the knots. The only indigenous evidence of this practice of making records with knotted cord consists of simple pictorial representations of the symbolic use of knotting on the surface of bronzeware from the Warring States Period (475–221 BCE).
Ancient calligraphy from the late Western Zhou Period (770–256 BCE) in the 12th year of Emperor Wei’s reign.
Calligraphy from the 27th year of Emperor Wei’s reign.
Calligraphy from the 31st year ofEmperor Wei’s reign.
Jade xi tools in the shape of a phoenix and dragon, Warring States Period (475–221 BCE).
Knots in Stone Carvings and Fabric Paintings
The double coin knot is the oldest knot to be recorded, although the prototype, a series of vertical double coin knots found on a pedestal box excavated from Zhao Qing’s tomb in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province (page 2),