The sentiment in the oil paper umbrella

oil paper umbrella poem

    “Holding an oil-paper umbrella, wandering alone in a long, long and lonely rainy alley, I hope to meet a lilac-like girl with sorrow ……” is a classic work of the famous Chinese poet Dai Wangshu. In the drizzling rain, in the rainy lane of Jiangnan, with an oil-paper umbrella, “I” waited for a girl …… This scene depicts a dream-like mood that is hazy but beautiful.

uses of oil paper umbrellas

   For more than a thousand years, as the oil paper umbrella has been widely used, it has also been given various meanings. In the old days, when a Hakka girl got married, besides the bride price and dowry, the oil paper umbrella was an essential auspicious object. The rounded umbrella surface is circular, signifying a successful marriage. In the Yao tribe, the oil paper umbrella became a token of affection. On the day of the marriage proposal, the man’s matchmaker will carry a red oil-paper umbrella to the woman’s house, and if the woman is interested in tying the knot, she will hang a canvas and a cloth ball on the umbrella, which will be taken back by the man’s matchmaker. In the Dai and Hak families, the oil paper umbrella is also used as a funeral object when a loved one is buried, as they believe it can bring the deceased loved one to heaven.

   Nowadays, we can often see beautiful scenes of women holding up oil paper umbrellas in movies and TV dramas, which are very beautiful in the ancient style. The most classic is “The Legend of the White Snake”, in which Xu Xian and Bai Niangzi meet on a broken bridge and use the umbrella as a matchmaker, leaving behind a romantic story of “a hundred years of cultivating the same boat”. The umbrella craft has had a profound impact and has become an essential part of people’s daily lives.

the use of oil paper umbrellas in movies

   Oil paper umbrella, bamboo as the bone, bamboo bone like water; paper as the surface, paper surface like silk, each stitch, each umbrella bone carries the traditional Chinese cultural lineage, but also records the craft of the years of vicissitudes. It is because of the hands of the craftsmen that this cultural treasure has been passed down from generation to generation and its charm has endured.