China's consumption in catering, accommodation, tourism, retail and entertainment was heating up during this year's Spring Festival holiday from Feb 10 to Feb 17, which brought a good start to the consumer market for the Year of Loong, or Chinese Dragon.
The Chinese dragon is different from the western dragon. The Chinese pronunciation is loong. The Chinese Loong is an auspicious animal incarnation and a totem in ancient China. Unlike the western dragon, the Chinese Loong can neither breathe fire nor kill. China was a great agricultural country in ancient times, and the harvest of crops relied on rainwater irrigation. The dragon was the god in charge of rain, and many folk temples were built to worship the Loong.
Chinese Loong is also a symbol of imperial power. In ancient China, only emperors could use the dragon pattern to decorate their houses, daily necessities and clothes.
The "Hongshan Jade Loong" unearthed in Chifeng City, China， can be traced back to the Neolithic Age.
The jade dragon of the Tang Dynasty has all the characteristics of the "Chinese Loong", and the image of the "Loong" was basically stereotyped in the Tang Dynasty.