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About Tobacco > The smoking custom of the nobles in the Qing Dynasty

The smoking custom of the nobles in the Qing Dynasty

The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China's feudal society. It not only had the glory of the "Kanggan Shengshi" but also the humiliation of arbitrage compensation. Some of the major events in the Qing Dynasty and the resulting tremendous changes have had a profound impact on all areas of society in the later years, as reflected in the smoking customs. Before cigarettes and cigars had entered China, many different types of smoking have existed for a long time in the life of the Qing Dynasty and gradually integrated into the daily life.

The types of smoking in the Qing dynasty were shisha, dry smoke, tidal smoke and snuff.

Hookah, with a copper hookah (especially the best with copper) with water, used to filter smoke. The shredded tobacco is best made by the leather and blue silk produced in Lanzhou, Gansu. The finished shredded tobacco is pressed into a square thin piece in the mold, and is sealed with oil paper to waterproof and evaporate. It is burned with incense when sucking, and the smoker is mostly elderly.

The dry smoke, the tobacco rod is made of ebony, the rod head is made of copper, and the mouthpiece is made of jade, white jade, ivory, etc., with deerskin bags and tobacco leaves from Kanto. When friends and relatives meet, they must respect each other's smoking articles, exchange products, and observe the quality of each other's cigarette holders. In the TV series "Golden Teeth Bronze Teeth", the protagonist often takes the dry smoke.

The tide smoke, the tobacco rod is slender, the smoke pot is small, and the shredded tobacco is slightly moistened with water. Beijing people call the wet tide, hence the name of the tide. Because of the small intensity of the tidal smoke, the smokers are mainly women. The pouch purse is beautifully embroidered and attached to the tobacco rod.

Snuff, the tobacco material is imported, first introduced to the court by European missionaries, and later popular among the aristocrats. Snuff does not need to be smoked and sucked. When using it, use a finger to lick a little nostril to smell it. The tobacco material stimulates the nasal cavity and induces the sneeze and sneeze, so that the body is comfortable and refreshed.

When it comes to snuff, you can't help but mention the snuff bottle. Because the tobacco material is afraid of being dry and afraid of moisture, it is not easy to collect, so it must be dressed in a well-sealed smoke pot. The snuff bottle is small and exquisite, easy to carry around, and its production is extremely elegant. Common pot materials include white jade, jade, agate, crystal, cloisonne, etc. The lid of the pot is made of rhinoceros and coral. The pattern of the body and the inner wall is exquisitely carved, especially the depiction of the inner wall. A major in art. Nowadays, snuff bottles have become a hot spot in the antiques industry, and they are expensive, which is probably not what the producers and users did not expect.