The Twelve Symbols national emblem () was the state emblem of the Empire of China and the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

from 1913 to 1928. It was based on the ancient Chinese symbols of the

Twelve Ornaments The Twelve Ornaments () are a group of ancient China, ancient Chinese symbols and designs that are considered highly auspicious. They were employed in the decoration of textile fabrics in ancient China, which signified authority and power, and wer ...

History

The Empire of China during the

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...

-led

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

did not have an official state emblem, but the flag featured the

azure dragon The Azure Dragon ( zh, c=青龍, p=Qīnglóng) is one of the Dragon King, Dragon Gods who represent the mount or Chthonic deities, chthonic forces of the Wufang Shangdi, Five Regions' Highest Deities (). It is also one of the Four Symbols o ...

on a plain yellow field with a red sun of the

three-legged crow The three-legged (or tripedal) crow is a mythological creature in various mythologies and arts of East Asia. It is believed to inhabit and represent the Sun. Evidence of the earliest bird-Sun motif or totemic articles were excavated around 5000 ...

in the upper left corner. It became the first national flag of China and is usually referred to as the Yellow Dragon Flag. Following the end of Qing rule, new national symbols were deemed necessary by the leaders to represent the changed circumstances. The renowned writers

Lu Xun Lu Xun ( zh, c=魯迅, p=Lǔ Xùn, ; 25 September 188119 October 1936), pen name of Zhou Shuren, born Zhou Zhangshou, was a Chinese writer. A leading figure of modern Chinese literature, he wrote in both vernacular and literary Chinese as a no ...

Qian Daosun Qian Daosun (1887–1966) was a Chinese writer and translator. His renowned translations include the Inferno part of the Divine Comedy, Man'yōshū and The Tale of Genji.Zou, Shuangshuang (2011)"佐佐木信綱選、銭稲孫訳『漢訳万葉集� ...

, and

Xu Shoushang Xu Shoushang (; 1883–1948) was a Chinese writer. He was one of the co-authors of the Twelve Symbols national emblem The Twelve Symbols national emblem () was the state emblem of the Empire of China (1915–1916), Empire of China and th ...

from the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

were tasked with designing a new national emblem. It was presented on August 28, 1912, and was adopted as national emblem in February 1913. President-Emperor

Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 18596 June 1916) was a Chinese general and statesman who served as the second provisional president and the first official president of the Republic of China, head of the Beiyang government from 1912 to 1916 and ...

continued its use during his short imperial reign from 1915 to 1916. Coins issued during this time feature the emblem. A variation of the emblem was shown on orders and illustrations. The

Northern Expedition The Northern Expedition was a military campaign launched by the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Kuomintang (KMT) against the Beiyang government and other regional warlords in 1926. The purpose of the campaign was to reunify China prop ...

led by General Chiang Kai-shek and the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

party led to the overthrow of the fractious but legitimate

Beiyang government The Beiyang government was the internationally recognized government of the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China between 1912 and 1928, based in Beijing. It was dominated by the generals of the Beiyang Army, giving it its name. B ...

in 1928. This ushered in a

one-party state A one-party state, single-party state, one-party system or single-party system is a governance structure in which only a single political party controls the ruling system. In a one-party state, all opposition parties are either outlawed or en ...

under the Kuomintang known as the Nanjing decade. The state emblem was therefore replaced with the Kuomintang party symbol

Blue Sky with a White Sun The Blue Sky with a White Sun ( zh , t = 青天白日 , p = Qīngtiān Báirì ) is the national emblem of the Taiwan, Republic of China, both during its history in Republic of China (1912–1949), mainland China and on History of Taiwan (1945–p ...

Design

Douze emblemes des rites memoires historiques V3c23 205

Douze emblemes des rites memoires historiques V3c23 204

The emblem is based on the ancient symbols of the

. These are first mentioned as already ancient in the ''

Book of Documents The ''Book of Documents'' ( zh, p=Shūjīng, c=書經, w=Shu King) or the ''Classic of History'', is one of the Five Classics of ancient Chinese literature. It is a collection of rhetorical prose attributed to figures of ancient China, a ...

'' by

Emperor Shun Emperor Shun ( zh, c=帝舜, p=Dì Shùn) was a legendary leader of ancient China, regarded by some sources as one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors being the last of the Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he lived sometime between 229 ...

, who was one of the legendary

Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors According to Chinese mythology and traditional Chinese historiography, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors () were a series of sage Chinese emperors, and the first Emperors of China. Today, they are considered culture heroes, but they wer ...

. Oral tradition holds that he lived sometime between 2294 and 2184 BCE. According to the book, the emperor wished for the symbols to be used on official robes of the state. The symbols were considered most auspicious and therefore as a set were reserved only for the emperor to be shown on his ceremonial robes. The national emblem arranges these symbols in such a way to reflect the order of achievement in western

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and genealo ...

Symbols

*The supporter sinister is a dragon, which symbolizes strength and adaptability. The

already featured on the national flag during the preceding Qing dynasty. *On the back of the dragon is fire, which symbolises light and brightness. *Behind the head of the dragon is the crescent

moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

of the

moon rabbit The Moon rabbit, Moon hare or Jade rabbit is a mythical figure in both East Asian and indigenous American folklore, based on interpretations that identify the lunar mare, dark markings on the near side of the Moon as a rabbit or hare. In East A ...

who is constantly pounding the

elixir of life The elixir of life (Medieval Latin: ' ), also known as elixir of immortality, is a potion that supposedly grants the drinker Immortality, eternal life and/or eternal youth. This elixir was also said to Panacea (medicine), cure all diseases. Alch ...

. *The supporter dexter is a ''

fenghuang ''Fenghuang'' () are mythological birds featuring in traditions throughout the Sinosphere. ''Fenghuang'' are understood to reign over all other birds: males and females were originally termed ''feng'' and ''huang'' respectively, but a gender ...

'', or pheasant-phoenix, and represents peace and refinement. *The phoenix holds

pondweed Pondweed refers to many species and genera of aquatic plants and green algae: *''Potamogeton'', a diverse and worldwide genus *''Elodea'', found in North America *''Aponogeton'', in Africa, Asia and Australasia *''Groenlandia'', a genus of aquatic ...

or algae in its right talon, a symbol of purity and brightness. *Behind its head are three stars, which could be the ''

Fu Lu Shou The Sanxing ()) are the gods of the three celestial bodies considered essential in Chinese astrology and mythology: Jupiter, Ursa Major, and Canopus. Fu, Lu, and Shou (), or Cai, Zi and Shou () are also the embodiments of Fortune (Fu (character ...

'' stars, which symbolise happiness, prosperity and longevity. *Both creatures hold in one of each claws the ''zongyi'' (), which is a sacrificial cup, symbolising devotion and loyalty. The dragon and phoenix represent the natural world. In

yin and yang Originating in Chinese philosophy, yin and yang (, ), also yinyang or yin-yang, is the concept of opposite cosmic principles or forces that interact, interconnect, and perpetuate each other. Yin and yang can be thought of as complementary an ...

terminology, a dragon is male ''yang'' and the phoenix a female ''yin''. Therefore, the emperor was often identified as the dragon, while the empress was the phoenix. The inclusion of the phoenix into the national symbol, opposite but equal to the dragon, can be seen as a symbol of women being equal to men, and a visual and poignant representation of women's rights in the new China. *Featuring as the crest on top is an abstract symbol of the

sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as visible light a ...

of the

. *In the middle functioning as the escutcheon is the

axe An axe (; sometimes spelled ax in American English; American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for thousands of years to shape, split, a ...

head, which symbolises courage and resolution, but also executive justice. The blade of the axe head is pointing downwards, the head is shaped like a sloping mountain. *Overlaid on the axe head are grains of rice, which symbolise nourishment and the country's agriculture. It can also be seen as a symbol of the concept of a

moderately prosperous society Moderately prosperous society or Xiaokang society (), is a Chinese term, originally of Confucianism, used to describe a society composed of a functional middle-class. In December 1979, Deng Xiaoping, then paramount leader of China, first propose ...

. *In the center of the axe head framed by a

pentagon In geometry, a pentagon () is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple polygon, simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be simple or list of self-intersecting polygons, self-intersecting. A self-intersecting ...

is a simplified symbol of a rice

ear In vertebrates, an ear is the organ that enables hearing and (in mammals) body balance using the vestibular system. In humans, the ear is described as having three parts: the outer ear, the middle ear and the inner ear. The outer ear co ...

, which again stresses the importance of agriculture as the basis of the country's wealth and prosperity. The shape on the emblem is based on a carved stone dating to the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

. *The downward-pointing blade of the axe head features a hardened edge in shape of the four

sacred mountains Sacred mountains are central to certain religions, and are usually the subjects of many legends. For many, the most symbolic aspect of a mountain is the peak because it is believed that it is closest to heaven or other religious realms. Many reli ...

. These represent tranquility and steadiness. The fifth Center Great Mountain is represented by the axe head. The mountains represent earth, the cups metal, the pondweed water, the rice grains wood, and fire, which are all representations of ''

wu xing Wuxing may refer to: Places in China Counties and districts * Huzhou, formerly Wuxing County, Zhejiang, China * Wuxing District (吴兴区), central district of Huzhou Subdistricts (五星街道) * Wuxing Subdistrict, Mudanjiang, in Dong'an Dis ...

''. *The figure 亞 ''fu'' underneath the axe represents two animals with their backside together. This symbolises the capability to make a clear distinction between right and wrong. *The ''fu'' sign is in the middle of complex interlacing ribbons, which connect the dragon, the phoenix and the axe to each other. The ribbons could symbolise

Great Unity The Great Unity () is a Chinese vision of the world explicitly based on the past period of "three dynasties" as understood by the Confucian tradition. In this ideal historical model, everyone and everything was at peace and this model must be ...

and

Harmonious Society The Harmonious Society (also known as Socialist Harmonious Society) is a socioeconomic concept in China that is recognized as a response to the increasing alleged social injustice and inequality emerging in mainland Chinese society as a result ...

References

{{Coats of arms of Asia

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

National symbols of China Coats of arms with dragons Chinese heraldry

History

Design

Symbols

See also

References