Changxin Palace Lamp 长信宫灯
There were a great varieties of lamps in ancient China, the best of which was the palace lamp for the imperial household.
The Changxin Palace Lamp of the Han Dynasty(206 BC-220AD) is a veritable treasure.
It was excavated挖掘 from the tomb of Liu Sheng and his wife in Mancheng 满城of Hebei, and was named for the fact that the characters Changxin Jia 长信家were carved on it. This lamp is believed to have been used in the Changxin Palace of the Han Dynasty. Now it is in the collection of the Museum of Hebei Province, China.
The Changxin Palace Lamp is made of bronze and is gold-coated通体鎏金.
- The shape of the lamp is that of a palace maid宫女，48 cm height.
- The maid wears a calm and gentle expression, and her dress is rather impressive. She holds a lamp in her left hand while the wide sleeve of her right arm covers the top of the lamp so as to create a shade灯罩. When the lamp is lit, candle smoke would go through the sleeve into the hollow body中空体内so as to prevent smoke from polluting the air of the room.
- The head and the right arm of the maid can be removed for cleaning.
- The lamp plate灯盘 can be turned转动 and the lamp shade灯罩 can be opened and closed 开合to adjust the amount 亮度and direction of light照射角度.
