The iron flowers are so beautiful, will it burn the craftsman who made them?

Review expert: Zhu Guangsi, member of Beijing Science Writers Association

"Silver flowers fall from iron trees, and thousands of stars bloom." When molten iron is sprinkled into the dark and quiet sky, it blooms with a bang, filling the sky with brilliance and making the ground golden. As Xin Qiji wrote, "The east wind blows thousands of flowers at night, and blows them down like rain." Thousands of stars break through the shackles of the night, cut through the dark night curtain, and bloom brilliantly between heaven and earth.

Iron flower making in Luoyang, Henan attracts tourists

Source: Xinhuanet

Iron flower making is an intangible cultural heritage of Chinese traditional culture , with a history of thousands of years. During festivals, many places will make iron flower making to ward off evil spirits, bring good luck and pray for blessings.

The historical origin and meaning of iron flower

Iron flower making originated from the ancient iron making technology in northern China . After thousands of years of development, it has gradually evolved into a unique art form.

When making iron flowers, iron sheets and coal are indispensable materials . As early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, people in the Central Plains had already begun to use coal to smelt iron. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, coal mining, iron smelting and foundry industries flourished, providing extremely favorable conditions for the emergence and prevalence of iron flowers. It was precisely because of the highly developed smelting industry and the need for sacrifices at that time that this thrilling, unique and spectacular craft came into being. Today, the art of making iron flowers has been listed as a national intangible cultural heritage and has become an important part of Chinese culture.

The art of making iron flowers is actually closely related to Taoism. Ancient people believed that Taoists both used furnaces for alchemy and iron smelting, so they naturally became brothers. In the Song, Ming and Qing dynasties, there was a folk song that went like this: "The Taoist priests and craftsmen are one family. There is a law of fate in the hall of the Lord of Heaven. The senior and junior brothers kowtow together to bless the safe making of iron flowers." According to legend, one year in the Song Dynasty, the business of the five craftsmen was not good. Because they were "all disciples of the Lord of Heaven", the Taoist priests helped the craftsmen to attract social attention by beating iron juice. Because of the spectacular scene, the business was also very prosperous.

In the iron flower making, the homophony of "flower" and "fa" is both entertaining and auspicious. "Make more flowers, make more prosperous", which means wealth and good fortune. Therefore, iron flower making has become a popular folk activity and has been passed down. At the same time, there is a legend that "iron flowers can subdue five ghosts": Taoist priests use alchemy furnaces to refine immortal juice, hit it with willow sticks, and it makes crackling sounds, iron stars splash, and colorful clouds surround the sky. In this way, ghosts and gods can be driven away and evil spirits can be suppressed, and misfortune can be turned into good fortune. People believe that iron flower making is not only festive, but also can drive away evil spirits. Therefore, in various major activities such as festivals, temple fairs, and sacrifices, iron flower making has become an indispensable folk performing art to seek good luck and express good expectations for the next life.

Flower

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Tips for making iron flowers

There are three main steps to making iron flowers: building a flower shed, setting up the colors, and hitting the flowers. Before the performance, people need to build a two-story octagonal shed in the center of a wide venue. Fresh willow branches are laid on the top of the flower shed, and fireworks, firecrackers, etc. are tied to it; a pole more than ten feet high is erected in the middle of the top of the flower shed - people call it the "old pole", and long hanging firecrackers, large fireworks, etc. are also tied to the top of the old pole. This step is called setting up the colors. After the first two steps of preparation are done, it is time to hit the flowers. Making iron flowers requires the use of a specific tool - a "flower stick" made of willow wood. The craftsman first pours molten iron into the flower stick. When making iron flowers, he wears an inverted gourd ladle on his head as protection, holds a flower stick filled with molten iron in one hand, and uses an empty flower stick in the other hand. He quickly runs to the bottom of the flower shed and hits it hard, hitting the 1600℃ molten iron into the sky. After the hot molten iron hits the fresh willow branches around the flower shed, it quickly splashes and scatters into burning iron stars. It undergoes an oxidation reaction in the air, and the energy released is presented in the form of light in the dark night, presenting a scene of iron trees and silver flowers. At this time, the iron flowers ignite the firecrackers and fireworks on the flower shed, and suddenly the firecrackers are blasting and the lights are shining. A dozen iron flower craftsmen follow one after another, one stick after another, and dragon lanterns come and shuttle back and forth under the flower shed where iron flowers are flying, which is thrilling. Those who can hit the old pole and ignite the fireworks and firecrackers at the highest point are called winners. The winners will be rewarded, wearing red and flowers, and are extremely glorious. The iron used for making iron flowers must be white iron, because white iron contains high sulfur and phosphorus, and it is easy to flower. The white iron is melted into high-temperature iron juice above 1600℃, and it is best to be thin but not scattered, thick but not sticky. The process of melting molten iron is usually achieved by burning a furnace and using a blower. There are two points to note. First, ventilation must be maintained so that coke can burn better and produce high temperature conditions; second, the bottom basin for receiving molten iron must be kept dry to prevent molten iron from condensing. If you want to produce iron flower effects of different colors, you can add different materials to the iron liquid. If you add a proper amount of charcoal, the iron flower can appear bright red; adding brass can present a green glow. In the process of making iron flowers, the control of force is extremely important, as well as the control of accuracy. When making iron flowers, the craftsman needs to aim at the molten iron and hit it hard to hit the iron flowers high and scattered. The higher it hits, the more scattered it is. Only then can the molten iron become finer iron filings that are fully burned, cooled, and landed in the air. Too little force may cause the molten iron to be unable to disperse and the iron flowers to be unable to bloom. In summary, making iron flowers requires not only skills, but also a certain amount of experience accumulation to effectively control the force and angle of the strike to present the most gorgeous iron flowers.

How can a flower-making master avoid injury?

Making iron flowers can be described as an art of seeking beauty in danger. In such a dangerous environment, how should the masters of making iron flowers reduce the possibility of injury?

As mentioned above, during the performance, the iron flower masters will beat the molten iron high and disperse it, so that the iron sparks that fall after the molten iron disperses in the air can contact the air to cool down, making the temperature not so high. The more dispersed the iron sparks are, the larger the contact area between the iron sparks and the air, the easier it is to fully cool down, and the less likely it is to burn people. In order to reduce injuries to craftsmen, iron flower performances are mostly performed in winter, because the weather is cold in winter, and the scattered iron flowers can cool down more quickly, which can better ensure the safety of craftsmen. During the process of making iron flowers , craftsmen will wear some specific protective clothing, traditionally mainly gourd ladle helmets decorated with Tai Chi patterns, pure cotton protective hats with shawls, pure cotton double-breasted protective clothing with Taoist colors, protective shoes, red or yellow pure cotton belts, etc. The protective shoes include leg, knee pads, and foot guards, and the three must be integrated to achieve the best protection effect .

Some craftsmen choose to work shirtless to increase the shock of the scene.

Image source: Sohu public platform

Every golden flower of the thousand-year-old iron flower is a unique heritage, and every flying spark is the release of cultural charm. This ancient and beautiful art carries the warm wishes of the Chinese people for a good harvest, peace and good fortune for thousands of years, and also carries the good wishes for peace and prosperity.