Chinese Door Culture
Doors are the passages we go in and out of every day. These seemingly ordinary structures embody rich Chinese culture. In ancient China, doors carried meanings of social status, etiquette, and moral norms. In the Book of Rites (《禮記》), for instance, it is recorded that representatives from different tribes and groups had to stand outside the door during important ceremonies held by the Kings of the Zhou Dynasty (周朝) in the imperial hall. Doors were there to differentiate social classes.
