Auspicious Beasts and Birds

Decorative patterns with animals appeared in Chinese history as early as during the Neolithic period. The patterns include not only existing animals but also legendary beasts.

Dragon (龙 - Lóng)

Of all traditional auspicious patterns the dragon certainly ranks first in terms of its long history and popularity. Since ancient times it has been considered the totem of the Chinese nation, and it is the most powerful symbol of good fortune as well as a symbol of power (it`s considered to be the king of all animals and was symbol of the emperor). According to the legend, the dragon is a composite animal: it has camel snout, antlers of a deer, rabbit eyes, serpent body with fish scales and fish tail, cow ears and eagle claws. 

According to the pattern, dragon designs can be divided into different categories, such as Twin Dragons holding onto a pearl, Dragon in a circle, Dragon and clouds, etc.

Twin Dragons holding on to a pearl, Beihai Park, Beijing

Phoenix (凤凰 - FèngHuáng)

The Phoenix is the king of birds and symbolizes good fortune and opportunity as it appears only in times of peace and prosperity. The Phoenix too is a composite beast, and it`s depicted as having the head of a chicken, the chin of a swallow, the neck of a snake, the claws of an eagle, the tail of a fish, the back of a turtle and the feathers of a peacock. Its Chinese name is the general term of legendary bird, both male and female, with Fèng denoting male and Huáng female. The combination of Phoenix and Dragon is a common pattern, and represent the perfect manifest of happiness and blessing.

Plate with Phoenix and Dragon, Suzhou Museum

Kylin (麒麟 - Qílín)

Kylin, a mythical creature in ancient Chinese legends, is the saddle horse of the immortals. The mythical Kylin is an animal with a dragon-like head surmounted by a pair of deer’s antlers and eyes of a lion. It has the scales of a snake, hooves of a horse and the tail of a cow. It is said that it can live as long as 2000 years, it can spit fire and its voice sounds like a thunder. Despite this Kylin has a mild temperament and, as it is friendly towards men it`s known as benevolent creature. In the folk culture it was believed that Kylin could bring offspring to people. The most popular legend about the Kylin delivering a child tells the story of the birth of Confucius. A Kylin, with a jade scroll in its mouth, appeared in the courtyard of his parents’ home. The scroll disclosed that the baby to be born is going to be “a man of extraordinary good moral character and talent, an exemplar of human excellence.  Although he is not on the throne, he has the virtue of a king”. On the same night Confucius was born. From this legend originated many auspicious patterns, of which “Kylin delivers a child” is the most popular.

Gold-plated Bronze Kylin in the Forbidden City, Beijing

Kylin delivering a child, New Year Wood Print

Lion (狮子 - Shīzi)

In traditional Chinese culture lions can expel specters and foresee disasters. Most commonly seen lion patterns include the “Auspicious Lion Playing with a Ball” and the “Adult Lion and Baby Lion”. The former originated from the Lion Dance, in which two people act as a lion (one waving the lion head and the other waving the lion body and tail) while another person holds a silk ball to play with the lion. The latter symbolizes promotion or passing down of social status and wealth one generation after another.

Gold-plated Bronze Lion playing with a ball in the Forbidden City, Beijing

Tiger (虎 - Hǔ)

Similarly to the lion, tigers can expel specters and bring good luck, for this reason prints with a tiger design were very commonly seen on the front door of houses. Another common patter featuring tigers is the “Tiger guards against the five poisonous creatures”. The five poisonous creatures refer to scorpion, viper, centipede, house lizard and toad, and symbolize the pests and destructive insects frequently seen in summer and autumn in ancient China.

New Year Wood Print of the Home Protecting Tiger

Fish (鱼 - Yú)

The fish symbolizes wealth as yu for ‘fish’ sounds like the yu for ‘abundance and affluence’. Due to its reproductive capability the fish also signifies marriage and the birth of many children. One of the most popular designs featuring this symbol is the “Carp leaping over the Dragon Gate”. According to an old tale, the legendary founder of the Xia Dynasty Da Yu to control the floods of the Yellow River built the Dragon Gate on Mount Longmen. Since then, many carps have come to the gate every year and have tried to jump over it. Those who successfully do so will turn into a dragon. During the Tang Dynasty, when the imperial examination system was adopted and grew popular, people described those who excelled in the examination as “climbing on the Dragon Gate”. Therefore the image of the carp jumping over the Dragon Gate became an auspicious pattern to wish students success in examinations.  

Paper cut with Carp leaping over the Dragon Gate

Bat (蝙蝠 - Biānfú)

The Chinese for bat sounds identical to the word for good fortune (fu 福) making bats a popular symbol of happiness and good fortune since ancient times. Particularly popular is the design with five bats together, which represents the “Five Blessings” ( wufu 五福): long life, wealth, health, love of virtue and a peaceful death. 

Gourd shaped vase decorated with bats,
picture from Asian art museum website

Crane (鹤 - Hè)

With a life span of about fifty or sixty years the crane is a symbol of longevity. It also represents high status as the crane is regarded as ‘a bird of the first rank’ in the imperial hierarchy. Flying cranes symbolizes a wish or hope to become an official in a higher position.

Male vest with Crane embroidery, Suzhou Museum

Magpies (喜鹊 - Xǐquè)

Since ancient times magpies have been considered as a symbol of good luck and fortune. According to the classic folk tale “Cowherd and Weaving Maiden”, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month each year, all magpies on hearth will fly to the heaven and build a bridge over the Milky Way so that Zhi Nu (the star Vega) and Niu Lang (the star Altair) could meet on the bridge. The magpie bridge is therefore seen as symbol of love and the image of magpie is often related to happy events. Chinese people also believe that the appearance of magpies foretells the imminence of a joyful event or good news. A popular pattern features magpies on the branches of plum trees and implies the coming of good news or happy events.

Luzhou Oil Paper Umbrella with Magpies on plum tree branches