You may think you cannot live through summer without air conditioners. But in ancient China， hand fans were almost the only ones to help people keep cool.

Chinese people started to use hand fans over 2，000 years ago. The fans came in different shapes，such as round and square. They were also made from all kinds of materials. Palm leaf fans were cheap and easy to make. Feather fans showed the owners high status. Sandalwood fans could send out a sweet smell.

Later， hand fans became far more than just something that could cool you down. They developed into art works， in which tuanshan （round fans） and zheshan （folded fans） were the most common.

In the shape of a full moon， round fans were usually made of silk. They had beautiful birds and flowers on them. Women especially those in the imperial palace， liked to use them. Meanwhile， men， especially the literati， used folded fans. The literati liked them because folded fans were usually made of paper and they could paint and write poems on them. It was a way for them to show off their ability in literature， painting and handwriting. Almost anything can be painted on folded fans.

Today， Chinese people still use these fans， only not many people write or paint on them any more. Next time when you are waving a fan， you may think of the stories behind it.

你可能會認(rèn)為，沒有空調(diào)你難以忍受夏天，但是在古時候的中國，手扇基本上是人們消暑的唯一方式。

中國人在2000多年前就開始使用手扇了。扇子的形狀各異，比如有圓的和方的，并且由各種各樣的材料制成。棕櫚扇便宜、好制作;羽毛扇象征著擁有者的尊貴地位;檀香扇會散發(fā)出縷縷清香。

后來，手扇不僅用于消暑，還演變?yōu)樗囆g(shù)作品，其中以團扇和折扇最為常見。

團扇形似一輪滿月，通常由絲綢制成。扇面上繡有精美的花鳥。宮廷里的女士尤其鐘愛使用團扇。與此同時，男士，尤其是文人墨客，喜歡使用折扇，原因是折扇通常由紙制成，他們可以在上面畫畫、賦詩。 折扇是文人們展示文學(xué)造詣、繪畫和書法能力的一種方式，幾乎所有的事物都可以畫在折扇上面。

現(xiàn)在，人們?nèi)匀辉谑褂蒙茸?，只是很少有人會在扇面上寫寫畫畫了。下次?dāng)你使用扇子時，不要忘記扇子背后的故事哦。

Vocabulary

air conditioner 空調(diào)

square adj. 方的

status n. 地位;身份

imperial palace皇宮;宮廷