Chinese seal carvings are an ancient art that combines calligraphy and engraving. Chinese seal carvings, or Chinese name stamps, evolved from a practical need to be able to affix a signature to documents and carvings. But these custom stamps became an art form as well as a practical devise, with its intricate Chinese calligraphy and beautiful carvings.

Chinese seal carving started in ancient Chinese times, during the Qin dynasty (221-210 B.C). The Chinese seal carving was originally used as an imperial seal - a seal used by the emperor to, in effect, put his stamp of approval on documents. The royal seal was called the Xi (which can literally be translated into “the imperial seal”). These Chinese seal carvings were used only by royalty.

After this dynasty, another type of seal developed. This Chinese seal carvings were used for non-official use by private individuals as a personalized stamp. These non-official custom stamps were called Yin. During the Tang Dynasty, (618 - 907 A.D.) the name for the seals changed, in part due to a superstition about the similarity in pronunciation to another Chinese word which meant death, during this period Chinese signature stamps became referred to as Bao.

Chinese tea (chá 茶) culture refers to the methods of preparation of tea, the equipment used to make tea and the occasions in which tea is consumed in China. Tea culture in China differs from that of Europe, Britain or Japan in such things as preparation methods, tasting methods and the occasions for which it is consumed. Even now, in both casual and formal Chinese occasions, tea is consumed regularly. In addition to being a drink, Chinese tea is used in traditional Chinese medicine and in Chinese cuisine.

         

Have u watched the Chinese movie King of Masks?
In the movie, Master Wang has a different face for every day and every town. Wearing an odd piece of headgear, Wang (Zhu Xu) can whip a colorful demon-style silk mask across his face within seconds, and then change that visage in an instant.

Peking opera of China is a national treasure with a history of 200 years. In the 55th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty(1790),the four big Huiban opera Troupes entered the capital and combined with Kunqu opera, Yiyang opera, Hanju opera and Luantan in Beijing's thearetical circle of the time. Through a period of more than half a century of combination and integration of various kinds of opera there evolved the present Peking opera, the biggest kind of opera in China, whose richness of repertoire, great number of artists of performance and of audiences, and profound influence are incomparable in China.