In ancient times, palace lantern was used only in palaces. Legend goes that after Liu Xiu, the founder of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 AD – 220 AD), unified the whole country and made Luoyang the capital city, there was a feast held in the palace to celebrate the great success. During the feast, the palace was decorated with colored streamers and special lanterns which were called palace lanterns then. Later, the skill of making palace lantern became popular but the name palace lantern was remained.
The lantern looks very elegant. The frame of the lantern is made of precious wood, such as rosewood, sandalwood, etc. It usually has big size and is embedded with painted silk or glass panes around its body. It is said that the traditional lantern is finished via 56 processes.
Nowadays, the use of the lantern is still popular and you can find them in restaurants, temples, homes, etc.
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