China is a country of etiquette. Since ancient times, the rich and profound jade culture has always run through the whole process of national cultural development. As we all know, although bronze ritual vessels can be classified as "Li" and have a long history, it seems that the ritual jade culture has a long history, which is more representative of the soul of the Chinese nation than bronze ritual vessels. As the representative of Li Yu's culture, it is the "six devices".

"Liu Qi" originated from the so-called "Liu Qi" in the Zhou Dynasty, namely "Gui, Bi, Cong, Huang, Zhang and Hu". This "six vessels" is the core of ancient ritual jade in China, and it is also the dream collection of collectors of ancient jade, and there are also many collectors in Shanghai.

China's "Six Instruments" originated in the Zhou Dynasty. According to historical records, the Zhou Dynasty was the most prosperous period of etiquette in ancient China. From emperors, court nobles to ordinary people, almost all social activities and daily life are strictly restricted by etiquette. Under this historical background, a series of ritual jade appeared, among which the most important and representative is the "six vessels". "Zhou Li" says: "Take jade as the six vessels, to celebrate the four directions of heaven and earth, with Cang Shi in the sky, Huangyan in the land, Qinggui in the east, Zhang Chi in the south, White Tiger in the west and Huang Xuan in the north".

There are different opinions about the origin of Li Yu's "Six Classics", which is quite exploratory and controversial. For example, GUI and Zhang are all developed from weapons or production tools, and these weapons or production tools are mostly derived from stone tools in shape. For example, Bi and Cong come from the old saying that the sky is round. In this regard, as early as the Neolithic Liangzhu cultural tombs, a large number of jade bi were unearthed, but some people think that jade bi may have originated from ancient spinning wheels or round stone axes. For another example, the most prosperous period of jade cong in history was in the Neolithic age. Later, with the prosperity of jade-making industry, jade cong gradually became scarce, especially in the Western Zhou Dynasty, so that there was no record of jade cong in the Han Dynasty literature.

The origin of Huang Yu, some people think that it is like a rainbow after rain. Scholar Na Zhiliang quoted the theory of "rainbow drinking" in ancient books in "On the Ancient Jade in China". However, more people think that "half the country is yellow". In fact, most of the jade yellow we usually see is only a third of that of jadeite, and some are only a quarter. As for the jade pot, this kind of ritual jade should be said to be the most peculiar of all the "six vessels". Other shapes, such as Gui, Bi, Cong, Huang and Zhang, are geometric and abstract, but the jade pot is concrete and realistic.

Jade pots usually have two cognitive standards, that is, all jade articles engraved with tiger patterns or carved into tiger shapes can generally be regarded as jade pots. However, some people think that "Zhou Li" was written at the end of the Warring States Period, and the use of jade ritual vessels in the book has a certain imagination. For example, the "yellow" jade found by archaeologists in archaeology is mostly decorated by the ancients, and opinions vary.

"A gentleman is better than jade" Even so, the "six devices" of Liyu still have a great influence on the jade use system in later generations, and it is still the core of the Chinese nation recognized by the world as a "state of etiquette". When our ancestors moved from primitive totem to reality, let's go.

When they go to life and pursue a better society, they completely personify jade with ideal wings.

There is a saying from Confucius in the Book of Rites: "In the past, gentlemen were rich in jade. Warm and gentle, benevolent. If you use millet carefully, you will know. Honesty is bad, but integrity is good. It' s like hanging down, and the ceremony is also. Knock on it, and it will sound louder and longer, and finally it will be pleasant. Flaws don't hide Yu, loyalty is also. Pang Da, Zhe, Xin Ye. Anger is like white flood, and the sky is also. Spirit is found in mountains and rivers, and the land is also. Zhang Gui TEDA, Deya. The world is expensive and the road is also. " This is the origin of "a gentleman is better than jade". More than 2000 years ago, Confucius highly summarized jade from six aspects: benevolence, knowledge, righteousness, ceremony, joy, loyalty, faith, heaven, earth, morality and Taoism. This understanding beyond the material world directly leads to the spiritual and cultural connotation of "a gentleman can't get rid of his jade for no reason" and reveals the core of the "six things" of etiquette jade. Jade pot is a kind of jade with or similar to tiger pattern, which is common from Yin Shang Dynasty to Han Dynasty.