Old Beijing crafts

Author: Yu Runqi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: This book comprehensively includes thirty-four traditional toys of old Beijing, illustrated with pictures and descriptions. Each toy is accompanied by several old photographs and hundreds of words explaining its origins, development, popularity, as well as its (play methods) and the (joys). The traditional toys include:
Lan Zhu Pian (pulling note slips), Pai Yang Hua (foreign picture cards), Shua Gu Dui Dui (playing with Gu Dui Dui), kite flying, Hu Pi Lian (making paper curtains), Tu'er Yue (rabbit figurines), Nie Mian Ren (clay figurines), Zong Ren Er (pigtails), Ke Ni Bo Po (baking clay cakes), Chu Tang Ren Er (sugar-coated figures), Pu Pu Ding Er (a type of toy), Nai Hou Er (playing with monkeys), Geng Diao Hou Er (acrobatic monkeys), Mao Hou Er (fur monkeys), Nai Hao Zi (playing with mice), lanterns, setting off firecrackers, abalone drums, stilts, water-spraying guns, kicking shuttlecocks, Cu Qiu (javelin throwing), spinning tops, shaking skewers, ice beds and ice carts, fighting grasshoppers, raising grasshoppers, raising birds, raising pigeons, selling goldfish, silk flowers and silk dolls, grass weaving, Dao Ma Ren Er (martial arts figures), and clay face masks.
Many of the traditional toys of old Beijing are now scarce, and this traditional culture is fading from the lives of Beijing residents. This book can fill the cultural void left by this gradual loss, awakening the nostalgic affection of old Beijingers for their cherished heritage and satisfying the curiosity of young people about these traditional toys. The book is rich in regional folk culture and includes both Chinese and English translations, making it likely to interest foreign tourists as well.