(These Would Almost Always Be Identical, But Not
Always.) Generally Speaking, The First Month Will Include Part Of February
And Part Of March.
The eighth month will then be September-October
(v. ante, ch.
Ii. note 2).
[According to Dr. S. W. Williams (Middle Kingdom, II. p. 70): "The year
is lunar, but its commencement is regulated by the sun. New Year falls on
the first new moon after the sun enters Aquarius, which makes it come not
before January 21st nor after February 19th." "The beginning of the civil
year, writes Peter Hoang (Chinese Calendar, p. 13), depends upon the
good pleasure of the Emperors. Under the Emperor Hwang-ti (2697 B.C.) and
under the Hsia Dynasty (2205 B.C.), it was made to commence with the 3rd
month yin-yueeh [Pisces]; under the Shang Dynasty (1766 B.C.) with the
2nd month ch'ou-yueeh [Aquarius], and under the Chou Dynasty (1122 B.C.)
with the 1st month tzu-yueeh [Capricorn]." - H. C.]
NOTE 2. - The expression "a or batuz" as here applied to robes, is common
among the mediaeval poets and romance-writers, e.g. Chaucer: -
"Full yong he was and merry of thought,
And in samette with birdes wrought
And with gold beaten full fetously,
His bodie was clad full richely."
- Rom. of the Rose, 836-839.
M. Michel thinks that in a stuff so termed the gold wire was beaten out
after the execution of the embroidery, a process which widened the
metallic surface and gave great richness of appearance. The fact was
rather, however, according to Dr. Rock, that the gold used in weaving such
tissues was not wire but beaten sheets of gold cut into narrow strips.
This would seem sufficient to explain the term "beaten gold," though Dr.
Rock in another passage refers it to a custom which he alleges of sewing
goldsmith's work upon robes. (Fr. Michel, Recherches, II. 389, also I.
371; Rock's Catalogue, pp. xxv. xxix. xxxviii. cvi.)
NOTE 3. - The number of these festivals and distributions of dresses is
thirteen in all the old texts, except the Latin of the Geog. Soc., which
has twelve. Thirteen would seem therefore to have been in the original
copy. And the Ramusian version expands this by saying, "Thirteen great
feasts that the Tartars keep with much solemnity to each of the thirteen
moons of the year."[1] It is possible, however, that this latter sentence
is an interpolated gloss; for, besides the improbability of munificence so
frequent, Pauthier has shown some good reasons why thirteen should be
regarded as an error for three. The official History of the Mongol
Dynasty, which he quotes, gives a detail of raiment distributed in
presents on great state occasions three times a year. Such a mistake
might easily have originated in the first dictation, treize substituted
for trois, or rather for the old form tres; but we must note that the
number 13 is repeated and corroborated in ch. xvi. Odoric speaks of four
great yearly festivals, but there are obvious errors in what he says on
this subject.
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