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The Painting of Ice Sports

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The silk painting created in the Qing Dynasty is 35.2 cm long and 581 cm wide. It is collected in the Palace Museum. Set in the Central Lake of the Qing Dynasty, the long scroll features the grand scene of ice sports in the imperial court, with vivid depiction of every detail. From this painting, we can see that ice skating reached a fairly high level in China way back in the Qing Dynasty.

Ancient Ice Sports

Ice sports, or "playing on ice" in ancient times, are various ice and snow games. In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, some of ethnic minorities in north China already mastered ice-skating and skiing skills. Initially, they would stand on something called a "bamboo horse" when skating, holding wooden sticks for support.

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Emperor Qianlong and Ice Sports

Emperor Qianlong and Ice Sports

Emperor Qianlong was a great advocate of ice sports. So much so, he designated the sports as a "national custom", "established practice" and "annual routine", making it possible for the "grand...