Legend has it that fans originated in the Yao and Shun period. Cui Bao's Notes on the Past and the Present in the Jin Dynasty said that Shun made a Wuming fan in order to help others. At first, it was a long-handled fan, also known as an estimation fan, a barrier fan or a palm fan, which was used to block the sun and symbolize authority. Later, it evolved into a short-handled fan, also called Qing, which was used to cool off the wind. Later, Wan Fan and Tuan Fan were decorated with paintings. The folding fan developed in the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty became a typical representative of the fan because of its semicircular shape and portability. Generally speaking, fans can be divided into the following four types:
feather fan
In the early days, the feather fan was made of bird feathers (white goose feathers) and added with fan handles. It can be used not only for enjoying the cool, dancing and decorating, but also as an exhibit of ancient court etiquette in China. According to records, Song Yu of Chu once used feather fans. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, feather fans were very popular in Jiangdong area. During the Jiaqing period of the Qing Dynasty, Zhang Yanchang mentioned in "Feather Fan Spectrum": "In the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang commanded the three armies with feather fans, and now it is imitated by feather fans." And the article of Lu Ji in Jin Dynasty in "Feather Fan Fu" also records the historical facts of people using feather fans at that time.
folding fan
Folding fans did not originate in China. It is said that after the early years of the Northern Song Dynasty, this kind of folding fan was paid tribute by Japan, Korea and other countries and spread to China. It was not until the Ming Dynasty that China began to make folding fans, which became popular in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Because the four masters of Ming Dynasty, such as Shen, Wen, Tang and Qiu, were good at writing poems on fans, fans changed from daily necessities to works of art that appeal to both refined and popular tastes.
Round silk fan
Tuanfan, also known as Tuanfan, is a kind of Tuanfan with short handle, symbolizing reunion. Mostly made of silk, silk, silk, Luo and other silk fabrics, it is a common item in ancient palaces, so it is also called Gongshan. When Wan Fan was in Song Huizong, he began to draw many beautiful fan paintings, which were popular for some time. At that time, the fan has become the object of literati chanting, and it is also the new favorite of many painters and painters to write poems or stippling.
Palm fan
Pufan was originally called Pukui ancient fan, and was called brown fan in ancient times. It is made from the leaves of mallow. The manufacturing method is simple, the price is low, the fan has strong wind power, and it is convenient to block the sunlight on the surface of the obstacle. It is said that the mallow fan was invented in the Jin Dynasty. "The Book of Jin Xie" said that Tai Fu Xie made a fortune selling Pu Kui fans for fellow villagers. Later, the seller of Pu Kui Fan also regarded him as an ancestor. It is the most popular fan in China.