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Button knot on a rubbing taken off a stone carving from an ancient tomb in Shandong Province.
NORTHERN ZHOU PERIOD (CE 557–588)
Good luck knot on a statue of Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, from cave 55, Maiji Caves, Tianshui, Gansu Province.
Prototype of the good luck knot.
A Unique Handicraft
The Shuowen Jiezi, the first comprehensive Chinese character dictionary, compiled around CE 100, defines the word “knot” as “the joining of two cords.” Knotting is an ancient and highly regarded art form in China and an integral part of Chinese life. Because such knotwork appeared in ancient times, was developed in the Tang and Song dynasties in China and was popularized during the Ming and Qing dynasties, the knots are naturally enough referred to as Chinese knots. Moreover, knotting in China spawned a tradition of decorative knotting in other East Asian countries, especially Korea and Japan.
Archaeological studies in China indicate that the art of tying knots dates back to prehistoric times. Recent discoveries include 35,000-year-old bone needles used for sewing and bodkins used for untying knots, proof that knotting existed. Baskets for carrying a multifarious array of goods, ropes for making hunting and fishing snares, lacing for pulling together garments and cords for wrapping and tying items were as crucial to the development of human civilization as spear heads made of flint, boats made of wood and ploughs made of bronze. But, because of the delicate and perishable nature of the materials used to tie knots – mostly fibers from plants and strips of animal hide – few examples of prehistoric Chinese knots exist today. Moreover, the art is generally very poorly documented.
Over the centuries, Chinese knots began to take on a life of their own, eventually being appreciated for their intrinsic beauty in addition to their functional use. Wherever utilitarian knots appeared, decorative knots were not far behind, and nowhere was the art of decorative knotting as highly developed as in Imperial China. A magnificent array of complex knots ornamented everything from wind chimes to palace lanterns, sword hilts to teapots, fan tassels to hairpins, and peasant coats to empress’s hair. In effect, they were decorations of decorations, imbuing elegance in everything they embellished, including commonplace, everyday items. Some of the best and earliest evidence of these knots has been preserved on bronze vessels of the Warring States Period (475–221 BCE), on stone carvings during the Western Han Period (206 BCE–CE 8) and on Buddhist carvings of the Northern Dynasties Period (CE 316–581). Further references to knotting have also been found in literature, poetry and the private letters of some of the most infamous rulers of China.
SUI DYNASTY (CE 581–618)
Buddha knot on a waist cord adorning a statue of Kuan Yin. Photo courtesy Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City.
Buddha knot
TANG DYNASTY (CE 618–906)
Cross knot
Double connection knot
Cross knot on a silk belt. Photo courtesy Tokyo National Museum.
Double connection knot decorating the back of a sash on a terracotta statue of a maiden. Photo courtesy Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto.
Cloverleaf knot with two outer loops
Cloverleaf knot on an ancient fuming pot raised on a multi-legged stand.
Round brocade knot
Round brocade knot on a prancing horse decorating a silver pot from He Village, Xian, Shaanxi Province.
Tassel knot
Tassel knots in a circle of birds, symbolic of good luck, on an octafoil linghua mirror. Photo courtesy Shanghai Art Museum.
The phenomenon of knot tying continued to steadily evolve over the course of thousands of years with the development of more sophisticated techniques and increasingly intricate woven patterns. During the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911), knotting finally broke away from its pure folklore status, becoming an acceptable art form in Chinese society and reaching the pinnacle of its success. Knotting also became an important form of communication, whereby people could express blessings, best wishes, and amorous sentiments. The Chinese pursued knotting ornamentation as a serious art form and devoted enormous amounts of time and effort to perfecting the art. What remains of their work is not only a marvel of technical ingenuity and perfection but a reflection of their creative spirit searching for aesthetic expression.
Knotting continued to flourish up until about 1911 CE, the start of the Republican Era, when China began its modernization process, although some knotting continued into the 1930s, especially in items made for festive occasions and important rites of passage. Due to the effects of industrialization and the Cultural Revolution in China, the art of Chinese knotting, along with many other arts and irreplacable cultural treasures, was almost lost. However, in the late 1970s, a resurgence of interest occurred in Taiwan, largely due to the efforts of Lydia Chen of the National Palace Museum who founded the Chinese Knotting Promotion Center, as well as the publishers of Echo magazine who sought out the few remaining keepers of the knotting tradition and recorded their work in a series of articles published in the magazine. When the art of macramé became popular in the West in the 1970s, there was a simultaneous revival of interest in Chinese knots. In the 1980s, Lydia Chen focused her energies on researching
