Moon cake mold made of urban sculpture

In the prosperous commercial street of Zhongshan Road in Xiamen, there is a special set of urban sculptures—“Seal” of the three giant turtles. This is the only group of urban sculptures produced at home and abroad using the image of a cake mold.

The exact name of this sculpture is "red turtle stamping," and the Longnan people call it. In Tianjin, they are generally called cake molds or moon cake molds. The trio of sculptures are all red and scattered, with an inset turtle pattern on the top. The turtles' turtles have a clear and beautiful turtle pattern. The turtles are all engraved with the word “Fuhou”. In the upper part, a high-relief three-dimensional tortoise was carved, painted in gold and full of movement, adding to the beauty and interest of this rare sculpture.

“粿” is interpreted as “rice food” in the “Kangxi Dictionary” and includes various kinds of rice cakes made with rice flour. Northerners often think that cakes and pastries are a kind of pasta culture, and cakes are unique to pasta cultures; while wolfberry is a type of cake made with rice flour. It is a cake of southerners, including people of southern Fujian, and is part of the rice food culture in the south. . To make bread or cake, use moon cake molds or stamping. In this way, the mold enters the pasta or rice food culture in a grandiose manner with its exquisite designs, auspiciousness and rich uses.

In many places in China, people have even used a large number of different cake molds. However, its production history, shape, pattern, material, and name are different. For example, people in Tianjin called moon cake molds, and there are many patterns of lucky characters based on blessings, longevity, and happiness; Shandong people call them “reading cards”, and fish, lotuses, and various types of small animals are rich in images. In the Zhejiang area, it is called printed cake plate. There are almost all kinds of auspicious patterns for Longfeng and Eight Immortals patterns; in Guangdong and Fujian, they are called cake printing or printing, and the most used are peach, turtle, fish, money, and gossip. image of. One of the outstanding features of the production of seals by the people of Xiamen, the prefecture, the prefecture, and the prefecture, is the appearance of turtles and the appearance of turtles. ". From the viewpoint of southern Fujian, turtles are a symbol of healthy longevity. In the psychological pursuit of auspiciousness of the Chinese people since ancient times, "longevity, longevity, and more children" has been the key to longevity. In the south of Anhui, the use of turtles must be compatible with red and become "red turtles." Whether it is festivals, visits, visiting relatives and friends during the festive seasons such as the Spring Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival, or the daily feasts and gifts for the occasions such as marriage, childbirth, longevity, and relocation, the people there are must-haves.

Many of Taiwan’s residents once lived in southern Yunnan. Therefore, the tradition of using red turtle turtles in Taiwan is not less than that of Minnan. This folklore and other folk customs surrounding the production and use of cakes have long entwined the folk culture of southern Taiwan and Taiwan. The red-colored turtle sculptures on the pedestrian street of Xiamen’s Zhongshan Road, where Taiwanese often travel, often provide interesting “evidence” for this folk and cultural connection.

Pastry molds carry a "three combinations" in their use, that is, eating cakes, praying for blessings, and aesthetics. They are related to eating, ancestor worship, and appreciation of beauty. Therefore, this group of seal sculptures in Xiamen City is not only a general display of cake diets and cake molds, but also a display of life blessings and aesthetics of life. It will enable more people to think about the culture behind the diet and taste the long, deep and honest traditions of the folk custom.