Study On Dragon And Phoenix Patterns In Liao Dynasty

Decorative pattern is a kind of art form used to decorate and beautify artifacts with the development of arts and crafts.Dragon and phoenix patterns have always been used by the royal nobles,symbolizing a special social class,and can directly reflect the cultural connotation of the official art of the Liao Dynasty and the aesthetic taste of the Khitan nobles.The image of dragon and phoenix patterns in the Liao Dynasty was relatively stable.The dragon patterns were generally composed of walking dragons,flying dragons,round dragons,fish dragons and sitting dragons.The phoenix patterns were commonly used in the types of standing phoenix,flying phoenix,round wind,etc.In addition,the Liao Dynasty also used dragon and phoenix elements in many arts and crafts categories.The patterns of dragons and phoenixes in Liao Dynasty have various combinations.The typical patterns of dragon patterns include sea water dragon pattern,cirrus cloud looking back dragon pattern,hundred flowers gathering dragons,etc.,while the phoenix patterns include phoenix standing peony,phoenix holding ribbon,etc.In addition to decorative patterns,dragon and phoenix patterns are often matched with religious auxiliary patterns,such as Buddhist Mani beads,flame patterns,lotus patterns,Taoist Tai Chi pictures,immortals,etc.Dragon and phoenix patterns appear in a large number in aristocratic tombs and Qidan ethnic characteristic utensils.This paper aims to explore some details of the decorative art and cultural background of the Liao Dynasty from the perspective of the dragon and phoenix patterns’ noumenon,combination schema and cultural meaning.The dragon and phoenix patterns interacted with the surrounding ethnic groups with the official art exchange of the Liao Dynasty.The patterns in the early Liao Dynasty obviously inherited the previous dynasties,and gradually merged into the shadow of the surrounding ethnic cultures in the late Liao Dynasty,which also directly affected the development of patterns in later generations.Dragon and phoenix also collided with foreign ethnic culture along the Silk Road and Fur Road in Liao Dynasty.From the interactive comparison of decorative art motifs,we can find the important contribution of Liao Dynasty art to the world art.