Can you actually pick up cultural relics in the green belt?

How to relieve stress in this stressful time? Why not eat skewers ?

Holding a string in hand, rubbing and playing with it, it is not known whether it is the mysterious oriental power, anyway, many people, even Olympic champions, believe that it can "make one feel calmer."

Bracelets, the "Abebe" of mankind

Speaking of the "meditation" function of bracelets, it may be related to the prototype of the ornamental bracelets. The bracelets originated from Buddhist beads, also known as "rosary beads", which are used to count when reciting scriptures, that is, they can be used to pinch the beads to count when reciting scriptures, to help with meditation and enlightenment.

The materials used for Buddhist beads are also very particular. The best wooden Buddhist beads are mostly made from precious woods such as Pterocarpus indicus, Dalbergia odorifera, Aquilaria sinensis, and Diospyros vaccinioides.

This kind of bracelet has beautiful texture and pleasant fragrance. When you coil them up one by one, it can really calm your mind.

In addition to wooden bracelets, there are quite a few collectible bracelets made from plant fruits or seeds . For example, the famous Star and Moon Bodhi is made from the seeds of the yellow vine Daemonorops jenkinsiana.

Star Moon Bodhi. Copyright image from the gallery. Reprinting and using may cause copyright disputes.

Fruit of yellow rattan. Source: https://ppbc.iplant.cn/tu/1108590

The most authentic Vajra Bodhi comes from the fruit of Elaeocarpus sphaericus.

Bodhi Vajra. Copyrighted images from the photo library. Reproduction and use may cause copyright disputes.

The fruit of Elaeocarp is a spherical drupe with a bony endocarp with an uneven and grooved surface. The endocarp and the seeds wrapped in it (together forming the "kernel") constitute the Bodhi seeds of Vajra Bodhi.

Source of the kernel of Elaeocarpus angustifolia: https://ppbc.iplant.cn

Elaeocarpus angustifolia Source: https://ppbc.iplant.cn

Although these bracelets are good, they are expensive, and if you don't know much about them, you may be easily cheated. If you don't want to waste money, but want to try your hand at playing with bracelets, are there any simple and affordable alternatives ?

"Bracelets" hidden in the green belt

It is autumn and winter now, and fruits are everywhere. You might as well take a walk in the green belt to see if you can pick up anything good.

1

Soapberry

In this season, the fruits of Sapindus mukorossi can be picked anywhere in the Jiangnan area.

Soapberry. Copyright image. Reproduction may cause copyright disputes.

The outer skin of the mature soapberry fruit is fleshy and creamy yellow. Peeling off the soft outer layer reveals a hard and round "core" with a black and shiny surface that becomes more shiny as you play with it. It is a superior material for making beads.

Moreover, what is very rare is that the soapberry has a large number of fruits, and it is very easy to put together beads of uniform size and regular shape. From this point of view, the soapberry is indeed the natural choice for making bracelets.

Soapberry bracelet | Source: Douyin @KanKan

Don’t throw away the peeled fleshy peel , as it is a natural beauty soap. The peel is rich in saponins and ferulic acid . Saponins have the effect of cleaning and anti-inflammatory, while ferulic acid, as a beauty factor, can reduce inflammation, resist bacteria, and resist oxidation, effectively improving skin quality.

Next time you wash your face, rub the cleaned soapberry peel with a foaming net and immerse yourself in the magical effect of "removing dirt and moisturizing" as described by the ancients!

Source: Xue Huiping

2

Melia azedarach

In addition to soapberries, it is also easy to pick up neem berries at this time of year. Neem berries are the fruit of the neem tree Melia azedarach.

Neem fruit hanging on the tree

The exocarp of mature neem fruit is also yellow. After peeling off the outer fleshy peel, you can see the hard woody "core", which is the endocarp of neem fruit, which contains the seeds. The "core" is blunt and round, with a yellow-white to waxy yellow surface and several deep grooves.

Tik Tok @垚乐乐

Choose the neem seeds of uniform size, peel and polish them, pierce and string beads, and a bracelet is ready! However, many people give up at the first stage of peeling, because the taste of the neem seed skin is a bit unbearable , so players who can stick to the whole process are warriors!

Melia azedarach bracelet @Stone is not big 01

3

Choerospondias australis

In addition to the soapberry and neem trees commonly seen in green belts, there is another tall tree whose fruit is a natural material for bracelets , Choerospondias axillaris.

Copyright images in the gallery. Reprinting and using them may lead to copyright disputes.

Speaking of Chinese jujube, everyone is familiar with it. The sweet and sour Chinese jujube cake is made from the jujube's jujube fleshy outer peel. The remaining "fruit core" can be pierced into strings after cleaning and polishing.

South jujube fruit core. Copyright image, reprinting may cause copyright disputes

What is special is that there are five petal-shaped holes on the top of the round "core" of the Chinese sour jujube, so it is also called the "five-eyed fruit". However, these five holes are not for decoration, but for the germination of seeds. However, when made into bracelets, they have become a unique feature of Chinese sour jujube bracelets.

Southern jujube bracelet | Source: bing

4

Sapium wilfordii & Koelreuteria paniculata & Pyracantha fortuneana

If you don't mind the beads being too small, you can also play with the seeds of Sapium sebiferum and Koelreuteria paniculata.

Chinese tallow tree, the white part is the seed | Photo: Qiu Jing

Christmas tree decorated with Chinese tallow tree seeds | Short-faced bear handmade

Remove the white aril from the seeds of the Chinese tallow tree

Fruit of the Koelreuteria paniculata | Source: See watermark

If you want to get a unique "red agate bracelet", the fruits of Pyracantha fortuneana may be able to be mistaken for the real thing.

Pyracantha fruit. Copyright image from the gallery. Reproduction may lead to copyright disputes.

5

corn

If you happen to have just received your year-end bonus and have a pair of beautiful slender hands, you can consider walking out of the green belt, going to the farmland, buying a corn , and playing with it in the palm of your hand.

Artificial corn photography: Sun Leqi Special guest photographer: Song Wanli

These crystal clear grains are not tourmaline or jade beads, but corn. They are just colorful, hard and full, and shiny. They are corn specially for playing. Doesn't it feel relaxing the moment you see them?

In fact, as long as you have a broad mind, everything can be discussed, and all beings are equal, regardless of whether they are rich or poor. What other interesting cultural bracelets do you have? Why not leave a comment in the comment area, so that we can learn more!

Planning and production

Source: Shanghai Natural History Museum (ID: snhm01)

Author: Xu Shanshan Shanghai Natural History Museum Exhibition and Education Center

Editor: Yang Yaping

Proofread by Xu Lai and Lin Lin