Stone lion, also called Shishi in Chinese, is often can be found in pairs in front of the gates of Chinese traditional buildings.
The male lion on the left is playing a ball with his right paw and the female on the right is fondling a cub with her left paw. Here, the ball symbolizes the unity of the empire while the cub means thriving offspring. Moreover, stone lions also indicate the ranks of the officials.
Since there is no lion in China, how did it come to and become important in Chinese culture? According to relevant records, the lion came in the Chinese sight in A.D. 87 when the King of Parthia presented a lion to the Eastern Han Dynasty. And in Buddhism, the lion was regarded as a divine animal of nobleness and dignity. Therefore, with the introduction of Buddhism into ancient China, the lion was familiar to ancient Chinese and its statues later became an important part in ancient Chinese architecture.
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