北京宫灯传人：专注宫灯四十年，天安门的大红灯笼也出自他手 | Palace Lantern

宫灯，传说起源于汉朝。常见的宫灯形制，最早是四根棍固定在蜡烛周围的防风围挡。

Palace lanterns are said to have originated in the Han Dynasty. The earliest were made from four wooden sticks and cloth, which were put around a candle to protect it against the wind.

之后，造型越来越华丽的宫灯成为中华文化的符号之一。2008年北京奥运会的火种灯，就参照了宫灯的设计。

As more refined and sophisticated styles were created, palace lantern also evolved, becoming a major symbol of Chinese culture. The lanterns used to hold the Olympic flame for the 2008 Summer Olympics were designed with a reference to the ancient palace lanterns.

如今，北京宫灯传承人、67岁的翟玉良，依然从事着手工制作宫灯的活计。他所在的工厂，世代做灯。前辈师傅的作品，可以追溯到清朝皇宫里。

67-year-old Zhai Yuliang is an inheritor of Beijing palace lantern handicrafts and is still working in the field. The factory he works for has produced lanterns for generations and the works of his predecessors can be seen in the imperial palace of the Qing dynasty.

“他那会儿就戴着腰牌进宫给皇上做灯。宫廷里头有造办处，造办处找到他们说哪儿需要什么灯，让他去给设计。做的时候，真是不惜工本，不惜时间。什么流苏，装饰配饰，珠宝玉器，好东西你就往上使，都弄得特别精致，特别豪华。”

“One of the old masters used to make lanterns for the emperor. He wore a ‘paiza’ around his waist that allowed him to enter the palace. He usually got instructions from the Management Office, who asked him to make certain lanterns for certain places, regardless of time and price. Fringes, accessories, jewelry… He used whatever was needed to make the lantern delicate and luxurious.”

之后，虽然皇宫不再，但对国内一些重要建筑装饰的时候，宫灯依然是首选。天安门广场上悬挂的大红灯笼，也是宫灯的一种，叫“喜庆灯”。

Even though the time of the emperors had ended, people still use palace lanterns to decorate important buildings. The red gauze lanterns of Tian’anmen Tower is also a kind of palace lantern, and is often referred to as “auspicious lanterns”.

开国大典时，工厂里的师傅们为了做这些直径2.7米的大灯笼，在天安门城楼下面临时开辟场地，现场制作，做好了就直接抬上楼去。80年代更换上去的新灯笼，也是他们厂里做的。

Before the founding ceremony of New China, the masters in the factory set up a temporary workshop under the tower, worked on the site to make gauze lanterns and carried onto the tower as soon as they were finished. The factory also made the new lanterns for the tower in 1980s.

1975年,翟玉良开始在工厂里做学徒。那时厂里有三百多人，专门做宫灯的就有百来号人。“一条案子，一排站十几个人，一干活，叮里咣当，跟交响乐团似的。”

Zhai became an understudy at the factory in 1975. At that time, there were over 300 workers and one-third of them specialized in making palace lanterns. “When a dozen people stood around a long table, working, ‘bang, bang’, it sounded like an orchestra.”

学了三年，翟玉良出师后亲手制作的第一盏宫灯，是最为经典的六分双层宫灯。“这个六分宫灯的整体的造型跟结构，一直流传到现在，永久不衰，挂在什么场合都特别美。而且好多其他造型的宫灯，都是由这个六分宫灯演变过来的。”

After a three year apprenticeship, Zhai’s first real work was a classic double layer hexagonal palace lantern. “The model and structure of these lanterns are popular and timeless. They fit almost all occasions. Many palace lantern styles evolved from this one.”

一只小小的六分宫灯，要用一百多块木头，经过一百多道工序才能做成，其中涵盖了木工、雕刻、绘画、编织等多种工艺。“而且这一百多块木头组成在一起，没有一颗钉子，完全是榫卯结构。这和我们的古建筑和中式家具都是融为一体的。”灯挂在那里，成就感油然而生。

Even the standard hexagonal lanterns require more than a hundred pieces of wood and a hundred different treatments, such as carpentry, engraving, painting and weaving. “We use mortise and tenon joints instead of nails. It’s the same as the ancient architecture and furniture,” said Zhai, feeling very proud of his lanterns.

如今，工厂的主要客户，是大型建筑、中餐馆、影视剧组和个别收藏家。翟玉良说：“我做的灯，世界各地都有。包括在日本的中式园林天华园，那儿的一些灯是咱们做的。还有莫斯科北京饭店里头的灯，也都是由我们来做的。自己做的灯，能挂在这么高大上的地方，确实这个事情没法儿表达的。”

Now, the factory mainly produces decorations for important buildings, Chinese restaurants, movies and TV shows and private collectors. “My lanterns can be seen around the world.” says Zhai, “Like in Tianhua Garden, a Chinese garden in Japan, and in the Beijing Hotel in Moscow. when I see my lanterns in such important places, it's hard to put the feeling into words.”

从前，工厂里做宫灯的人多，翟玉良也有干劲。大家互相比着，看谁做出来的最精致。到了现在，厂里能干活的只要七八个人，有时候还要请退休的老艺人回来帮忙。

When the factory was full of workers, Zhai felt more motivated. They challenged each other to make the finest lanterns. Now, only seven or eight people do the job. Sometimes, they need the help of retired masters.

机械制造的廉价灯具，极大地冲击了翟玉良所坚持的手工市场。但翟玉良做了一辈子灯，且不说机械化做出来灯，就连机械化做出来的工具都“不顺手”：“比如那个曲线锯，那个齿，都是我们自己铲。我们还一边干一边制，比如说我干到这儿了，还缺一个工具；或者要做一道工序，没有这道工序的工具，怎么弄呢？自己做一个。好使的话，就一直用它干这活，又快又好。”

Mass-produced, cheap products had a significant impact on the handmade lantern market, but after spending a lifetime making them, Zhai can’t even get used to the machine-made tools: “Say, the bow saw. We used to cut out the saw teeth by ourselves. We also designed tools during the making. If we need to make a certain thing, or to finish a procedure, we made tools to fit the purpose. If it works well. we keep using them and finish the jobs quickly and nicely.”

而且，“虽然很多灯机器也做得出来，但我们的灯品种多，千变万化。每盏灯都是不同的设计，都不一样，这个没法机械化。”

"Although many lanterns can be manufactured by machines, our handmade lanterns have various styles. The design of every lantern is unique, and the machines are incapable of doing that.”

除了华丽的宫灯，翟玉良也热爱元宵节家家户户点起的灯彩。“这个和宫灯不一样，就是纯民间的。小孩点一个灯，里面搁一个蜡烛，往外头一跑，体现的还是中国的传统文化，是老百姓心里的期盼。”

Besides for the glamorous palace lanterns, Zhai Yuliang also likes the hand lanterns used to light up the Lantern Festival. “They belong to folk culture, so they are different from the palace lanterns. With a lit candle inside, kids take hand lanterns and run to the streets. They embody a kind of traditional Chinese culture and an affection for life that the common people have."

他依然记得自己小时候提着纸灯笼出门的时光。“过去的灯啊，就是每家做一个他自己想像的东西，所以各家不同，比较丰富多彩，跟现在成批出的不一样。这才体现的是老百姓最自然的民俗。”

He still remembers a time when he was young and went out with a lit paper lantern. “In the past, every household would make their own lanterns in their preferred style. Therefore, unlike those made on production lines, these lanterns were diversified and different from each other, reminding you of the natural folk culture that is rooted in common life”.  

“要说对灯的感情，毕竟四十多年了，跟你久了，肯定会产生感情。”尽管过了退休年龄，翟玉良依然坚持做灯，还常常去学校、社区教人们制作宫灯。“被评为传承人，我感到很荣幸，所以我要做一个传承人应该做的事，就是把咱们的传统文化给传承下去，让更多的人了解咱们的中国传统文化。”

“I have been making lanterns for over 40 years. After such a long time, it is only natural that I have become attached to them”. Although Zhai has reached retirement age, he is still carrying on this career, and often teaches how to make palace lanterns in schools and communities. “It is my honor to be the inheritor (of the intangible cultural heritage), so I feel obliged to pass on this traditional Chinese culture and acquaint more people with it”.  

往期链接：

Suggestions and Cooperation

请读者广提建议，您的建议很重要

投稿与合作：[e-mail]