Sino-philosophical petals of ‘牡丹mudan. Reflections about the signification of the tree-peony from its beginnings in Tang dynasty.

Pétales sino-philosophiques de 牡丹 mudan. Réflexions autour de la signification de la pivoine arbustive dès son essor dans la dynastie Tang

Claus U Rieth (1)

1 TU Dresden - Technische Universität Dresden = Dresden University of Technology

The aim of this paper is to inquire into the significance of mudan-Paeonia suffruticosa Andrewsabove the mere botanic information. The adventurers and plant-hunters grasped little of it in the time they tried to acquire the plant in China at the end of the 18 th century and after. The information on the plant from the Jesuits and other embassies from the 17 th century onward was scarce but kicked off the search for the so-called "peony". In a humanist approach "ad fontes" primary sources are evaluated to approach the phenomenon of mudan in Tang and Song dynasty times. Four dimensions of symbolic significance can be related to: 1.»mudan» as symbol of the country, the empire and cultural independence 2. as symbol of beauty, love and love-crazy 3. as a symbol for power, wealth, power of will and resilience 4. as a symbol of home-sickness, the origin of culture and family and past glorious times. With methodological tools of a Zurich historyof-knowledge approach the phenomenon of mudan is interpreted as an example of construction of symbolic knowledge by an elite and as an example of collision of divergent systems creating order and meaning in the Western and Chinese hemispheres until today.

Domaines: Sciences de l'Homme et Société; Systématique, phylogénie et taxonomie; Art et histoire de l'art

Claus U Rieth. Sino-philosophical petals of ‘牡丹mudan. Reflections about the signification of the tree-peony from its beginnings in Tang dynasty.. 2021. ⟨hal-03213671⟩