In celebration of winter, the Palace Museum in Beijing has shared a range of photos featuring its collection of Chinese pingfeng, or screens, with netizens on the micro blog Sina Weibo. During ancient times, Chinese pingfeng were always used to keep out the cold or as ornaments. This ancient invention is an essential part of traditional Chinese furniture.
While the earliest common use of pingfeng dated back to the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220), the furniture piece flourished in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) royal palace, which had more than 290 varieties. Screens were placed on desks, walls and the ground. A variety of exquisite screens can be seen in the list of relics below.
 |
|
A red sandalwood-framed folding screen embedded with jade and flower paintings, from the Qianlong Period of the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A Qing Dynasty red sandalwood-framed hanging screen shaped like a gourd and embedded with jade. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A round jasper table screen from the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A red sandalwood-framed table screen embedded with a glass painting, from the Qianlong Period of the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A red sandalwood-framed folding screen embedded with glass oil paintings, from the Qianlong Period of the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A Qing Dynasty hanging screen with painted flowers and embedded jade. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A red sandalwood-framed screen embedded with dyed ivory, willow and swallow paintings from the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A double-sided red sandalwood-framed table screen embedded with bamboo, flower and bird paintings from the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A red carved screen from the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A red sandalwood-framed screen embedded with ivory, flower and bird paintings from the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A Qing Dynasty hardwood table screen inlaid with mother-of-pearl and a landscape painting. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
A Qing Dynasty rosewood-framed table screen embedded with a glass mirror. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
 |
|
An embedded enamel hanging screen featuring a painting of court figures, from the Qianlong Period of the Qing Dynasty. [Photo/Official Weibo account of the Palace Museum] |
Presented by Chinadaily.com.cn Registration Number: 10023870-7
Copyright © Ministry of Culture, P.R.China. All rights reserved