Diancui, the traditional Chinese jewelry craft that ruffles feathers

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Traditional crafts that are passed on till today were typically embraced and treasured by people, but there is one particular craft that is highly controversial and that is the Kingfisher feather inlay craft, also known as the Dian Cui （点翠） craft.

Most of the pictures on the internet make the jewelry and feathers look extra big, for the purpose of allowing us to see the details of it, but if you have seen an actual Dian Cui piece in person, you would realise that it is actually surprisingly small. This is due to the fact that the Kingfishers are tiny in stature, and their feathers are even tinier, so to inlay them into filigree-based jewelries, you would require quite a lot of the feathers so traditionally they wouldn’t be too big.

Whenever I think of feathers and accessories, I always think of the Native Americans and their sacred headdresses and feather dance. And just like the Native Americans, the Chinese also had a long history of using feathers to accessorise ourselves and for ceremonial dances. There were records of dances that existed some 3,000 years back where they used feathers as props and also for wearing by the dancers.

The use of feathers for shamanistic rituals would have been common in the ancient worlds, and in a particular ancient Chinese culture called the Chu culture (modern day Hunan and Hubei—central China area), there were records of people decorating their wooden jewelry boxes with kingfisher feathers (and flowers, pearls, and jade) about 2,200 years back.

Gradually, about 2,000 years ago, imperial women started to have kingfisher feathers to decorate their walls (yes, what a luxury!), and a few hundred years later, a crown prince used it to decorate his crown. So it was not confined to just jewelry, and it was not just for women.

The earliest visual documentation that I can find, of kingfisher feather being used for accessories by the Chinese, would be the Song dynasty (circa 12th century) Empress in their formal ceremonial wear with their crowns decorated by kingfisher feathers, pearls and other gemstones.

A Chinese period drama in recent years replicated the ceremonial wear for the Song empress, and you can see a more tangible representation of it here:

Of course you could say that you can’t tell much from just a painting, and it could very well be embroidered or silk threads since we have not found any physical proof of it yet. That is definitely a possibility except that the Kingfisher feather industry was a thriving one that was widely documented, and that imperial women were often spotted wearing dresses of kingfisher feathers, or accessories with them to the chagrin of the emperors. Several times during the 12th century, the emperors tried to ban the use of kingfisher feathers precisely for the reason that they found it an unnecessary extravagance that harms the ecosystem, to no avail.

The iridescence and brilliance of the kingfisher feather is seen as unparalleled by any other bird, so there was no way of replacing it with other alternatives.

By the Qing dynasty, the kingfisher feather was everywhere in the accessories of the imperial family. From hairpins to hats, they were lavishly decorated with kingfisher feathers of different shades of blues.

The high demand for kingfisher feathers also meant that more kingfishers have to be killed for it, and eventually it became unsustainable. By the turn of the 20th century, the Chinese were already very familiar with the Cloisonné craft brought in from the west or the Islamic world, and for the commoners, they would use blue and green cloisonné craft on their silver or copper jewelries to create a semblance of kingfisher feather inlay decorated ones.

The last kingfisher factory in China closed in 1933 due to political instability within China and other socio-economic factors.

The Kingfisher feather craft has a bad reputation in recent years because of the rumour that the feathers had to be plucked from birds that were alive, and it was a torturous and slow death for the kingfishers. However, that is a myth. Historically, there were indeed records of plucking the feathers from kingfishers while they were alive, but it was taken out of context. The record mentioned that a few feathers were plucked form the kingfishers and then, the birds were released into the wild. So it implied that the birds were not killed in the process. However, I’m sure that as demands surge, it would be much faster for people to just catch and kill those birds for their feathers, and much more profitable that way.

As part of Yaji Masterclass, we are also going to have an introductory workshop on this traditional jewelry decorating craft using peacock feathers in place of kingfisher so no bird would be harmed in the process. The peacock feather has a really beautiful iridescence to it that changes with light. Since butterflies also have that kind of feathers, I thought it’d be apt to get everyone attending the masterclass to make a pair of butterfly earrings with this technique!

I will also be sharing more about the technical details of this craft, and stories of how famous traditional Chinese Opera singers would own an entire headdress of kingfisher feathers of the finest quality, and one that would cost you a fortune.

If you’re interested to learn this craft with us on the 24 Sep 2022 (Sat), you can get a ticket HERE. Your ticket comes with all that you need for this craft, and you can bring the tools home to make more of your own accessories with feather inlays!

Ruffling up some feathers the Chinese way

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The Chinese has an almost pathological obsession with beautiful feathers.

The Tang dynasty emperor from the 8th Century fell in love with a piece of Indian music called the Brahmin Tune and decided to adapt it into his Chinese court to be played and danced to. He renamed the dance and music Raiment of rainbows and feathers. Instead of kingfisher feather as what most sources said, I think the dancer (Lady Yang) probably wore an outer coat made of different coloured feathers such as peacock, pheasant, and perhaps even parrot (I will talk about parrots in the 8th century in detail the next time)!Nevertheless, the craft of kingfisher feather accessories remains a highly mysterious and valued craft unique to China.

Tang dynasty China was one of the earliest periods with documented proof that feathers were used widely for decorations. It was such a ‘fashion statement’ that even the Japanese adopted this technique in their art from the same period.

I thought of doing one entry related to feathers in particular. And the wonderful brilliance of colours adored by the ancient Chinese (men and women alike, mind you~!).

Example of an antique Kingfisher accessory and you could see the slight change in colour because of the different angle of light that is reflected from the feather. It varies a little when you tilt it.

The oldest use of feathers in Chinese textiles (and accessories) was said to date to as far back as 2,000 years ago during the Han dynasty where the use of the word 翡翠(feicui) which refers to Jadeite today, was originally used to refer to the Kingfisher feathers. Jadeite, actually has a very short history in Chinese culture, as it was from Myanmar and was not very valued by the Chinese until mid to late Qing dynasty (last 300 yrs or so). Nephrite was the kind of jade highly valued by the ancient Chinese.

Anyway, while there were brief mentions of such in poems from about 2,000 years ago, and an excavation discovery from the period belonging to the Xiongnu nomadic tribes revealed textiles made of silk and kingfisher feather–definitely a Chinese influence:

Although it’s not a physical dress made of kingfisher feather that we could get hold of from China itself, or any accessory during that period, but we could definitely see hints of it on paintings or from certain use of feathers in artefacts. Nobody ever confirmed it, but it definitely looks probable that the blue tinge on the crown of the courtesans from Tang was from the kingfisher feathers.

There is no surviving physical kingfisher feather from that period in China, but we could still find remnants of feather decoration on the screens of Shosoin (Collection of the Japanese emperor in the 8th century) below:

It’s interesting to note that the women depicted on the screens look very much like Tang dynasty women, but it was an item made in Japan in a Tang style. How do we know? The feathers of course! Scientists have managed to examine whatever feather was left from the 8th century on the screen, and concluded that they were taken from a bird native to Japan! So it is likely that the Japanese got inspired by the crafts and practices in Tang dynasty China (since they were really quite big on Chinese culture then), that they decided to do a local interpretation of it!

Back to the Chinese imperial use of kingfisher feathers, the Song dynasty emperor was known to award his court officials with robes made from a wide range of materials including one which was made of kingfisher feathers. The practice of making fabric from kingfisher feather dates to about Tang dynasty (some 1,300 yrs ago) as mentioned in famous poet Wang Wei’s poem from that period.

During the Qing dynasty, we could find emperor’s robes made from peacock feather threads. Yes, that’s the peacock feather threads mentioned in the Yanxi Palace drama show as well, except that the one they used in the show looked nothing like the actual one:

One thing about beautiful things such as the shine and colours of silk threads and feathers, is that cameras have problem capturing them in their full glory. The texture is just really hard to captured in a 2D image since the colours of feathers tend to change with the varying angles of light. So the actual imperial robe with the peacock feather looks rather underwhelming in an image:

But if you look unclose, you could probably imagine how exquisite it would’ve been if you see it in person up close and personal:

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Just now I mentioned the Chinese opera-like kingfisher feather crown in the Tang dynasty painting. Perhaps it is pure coincidence, but traditional Chinese Opera singers would break their back to get their hands on an entire full hair decoration made of kingfisher feathers.

It was said that the most famous opera singer in the early 20th century, Mei Lan Fang, owned a kingfisher feather full set of headdress made from ‘soft’ kingfisher feathers. Kingfisher feather accessories are divided into ‘hard’ feathers which are coarser and ‘soft’ feathers which are finer. There are altogether 4 types of kingfisher feathers often used in Chinese traditional accessories (mainly for the imperial family or aristocrats in the distant past, and whoever could afford it in the recent hundred of years).

As you can see above, the hard feathers are a lot larger than the soft ones, but even that is not too large at only about 7cm long. The small one’s about 2-3 cm long. Out of which, 60% of them can’t be used due to the existence of black or grey parts or other ‘less pure’ colours.

That is why it was highly controversial lately for Chinese opera singers to admit to owning real kingfisher feather crowns.

In case you think only the Chinese is capable of thinking up such a way of decorating themselves, hold my baijiu while I whip out the dark history of the West’s use of birds as accessories (includes kingfisher too). It went as far as using an entire bird (completely indiscreet I know, hurts my Asian aesthetics *hairtoss moment*).

 

Towards late Qing dynasty (the last 200 years), there was a switch to use cloisonne in place of kingfisher feather accessories–cheaper and less fragile. But the kingfisher feathers still has its fan. The last kingfisher factory in China closed in 1933 due to poor economic performance (not so much of the ban).

Like the West, there are laws against capturing kingfishers as they are considered endangered species or protected species. But it was not enforced by the government.

Dyed goose feather (dyed is not dead, no goose is harmed in the process)

Silk or synthetic coloured threads

Well, at the end of the day, it’s really a personal choice. If you wish to YOLO or you wish to do your part in preserving this endangered species of bird.

I am working with a silk-threads craftsperson to recreate certain antique kingfisher pieces, and you can order them from my online shop from November onwards. Yes, will be working on a few items for the shop to raise fund for the performance I’m putting up next year. So stay tuned~!

Meanwhile, here’s a visual feast of the many paintings and artefact of ancient empress and palace women in their beautiful kingfisher feather accessories. Also, beyond accessories, they even made fans, screens and decorated cups with the feathers!

If you’re interested in knowing more about this craft, I have also done up a few “Fact or Fiction” clarification at the end of the article because I do realise that people like to sensationalise things they don’t know much about, or they villainfy things they don’t agree with. Both of which are not useful in understanding this craft.

even the cup is decorated with kingfisher feather

crown made of kingfisher

kingfisher feather fan

Statement: Practitioners pluck the feathers out from birds while they were alive to ensure that the colours of the feather remain brightly coloured.

Verdict: Fiction. People of different agenda tend to sensationalise this trade or craft. The businessmen trying to make it seem like it’s a mysterious colour that has to go through certain “ritual” that’s somewhat mystical to get the colour. Animal rights people trying to make it seem like it is a really cruel trade. The truth is somewhere in the middle especially if you are meat-eater. Since ancient times dead birds have been given as tribute from southern cities or southeast asian region to China and feathers were taken from these corpses.

Statement: The newer kingfisher feather accessories used leftover feathers from the Qing dynasty, leftover feathers from opera troupes or feathers from people who got them before the last kingfisher factory closed in 1933. So it was not killing new birds.

Verdict: Fiction. They are just statements to make you feel better about buying these items. Unlikely to have such abundance of feathers to support so many accessories with such large surface area. Also, it is much more economical to kill new birds than to buy from antique dealers. So if you buy any kingfisher feather accessories that are made in recent years, or antique kingfisher feather accessories that are newly repaired, do know that they’re probably newly killed birds. Although, there are also officially sourced (so not illegal) kingfisher feathers which the Chinese government would get for purposes such as repair of artefacts, or making special items as dignitary gifts etc.

Statement: The vibrant colours on the kingfisher feather does not fade with passing time.

Verdict: Fact. Provided you keep it in pristine condition away from dust and other physical touch etc. Never touch the surfaces with your hands. It is tempting, but resist you must. Dyed goose feather and dyed silk would fade over time (but it’s probably over a long time) especially with constant exposure to sunlight. Cos we all know how fragile silk can be. Feathers, on the other hand, are used to such exposures.

Statement: Kingfisher feather accessories demand is as bad as ivory.

Verdict: Tricky question. Fact if you look at it from the angle of unnecessary killing of a life for one’s vanity. Fiction if you are looking at this being the main cause of bird extinction. Lost of habitat is often the larger concern for the survival of this beautiful bird. The average lifespan of a common kingfisher (there are over 120 species of them) is 5-7 years, although a rare few could live up to 16 years. The reproduction/replacement rate of the bird is also a lot faster than elephants. Plus, the demand for kingfisher feather really isn’t very high as there are many substitutes that are 1/10th the price around. The resale value of kingfisher feather is also not as high as ivory (since actually there are also a lot of kingfisher birds around so there’s no limited supply at this point) so there is not much incentive for people to stock up and sell at higher value.