Qing abstinence gourd

Whenever it was time for crucial state sacrifices and offerings, the court would observe a strict period of abstinence. As a friendly reminder, the court was to wear abstinence plaques. Some of them took on the form of a double gourd.

Gourds are part of the spiritual and gastronomic life of many peoples all over the world. In China, where this gourdy plaque was made, double gourds represent a myriad of meanings, and all of them are good. The two bulbs on top of each other represent the union between Heaven and Earth. Also, while demon-hunting clouds live on the inside of the gourd, the place is also reserved for a drug store owned by Iron Crutch Li, one of the eight Daoist immortals. An important part of Li's iconography is that he is always depicted with a gourd. We will hear more from him later on.