How were gourds shaped into objects of art?

By Chelsie Vandaveer

February 26, 2003

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Gourd Seeds For Sale—>Click here.

Crickets - Acheta domestica - For Sale—>Click here.

Suggested Reading—>Click here.

Killer Picks: Mate gourds, 'Mystic Spirals', Live Crickets—>Click here.

Crickets and katydids mark the changing seasons; a fact not lost on the Chinese. According to Xing-Bao Jin (Chinese Cricket Culture, 1994), "Jing-Zhe" or "waking of the insects" notified farmers of the time to start plowing the fields; at the song of "Cu Zhi" or "encourage weaving", it was time to weave enough cloth for winter.

Cricket at the Sunset Zoo, Kansas Photographic Print Joel Sartore
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During the Tang Dynasty (618 to 906 CE), people began keeping crickets and katydids for their singing. In spring, the insects represented prosperity, fruitfulness, and vitality, and conversely, in the autumn, loneliness and sadness. At the close of summer, concubines of the emperor kept the tiny creatures in small gold cages near their beds. The song was said to reflect upon life of the concubine; she had material wealth, but a life of waste and emptiness.

A cricket kept served the family; the insect sings through the night, an all is well with the world. But should the insect fall silent, then something is wrong--perhaps an intruder or a fire. The sudden silence would wake the family.

Gladiator Katydid at Spring Creek Prairie Photographic Print Joel Sartore
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Male field crickets (Family: Gryllidae) and katydids (Family: Tettigoniidae) stridulate or sing by rubbing the edges of their wings. There is a rough surface on the underside edge and a scraper on the upper side. The scraper across the rough surface acts like a bow across a violin string. The frequency of vibration can range from about 5,000 cycles per second to 17,000 cps.

Crickets and katydids were kept in numerous cages, but the most popular were made from gourds (Lagenaria siceraria (Molina) Standley). The gourds were not simply grown. Artisans carved elaborate molds, often with symbols of luck or prosperity, or simple elegant designs. The mold was placed around the developing gourd; the gourd grew to fill the mold taking on the design. Stained or painted with a lid of ivory, bamboo, gold, or sandalwood, the cage was an objet d'art.

The Art Gallery of the University of Hawaii at Manoa has a photograph of a beautiful cricket gourd. To view the photograph, click on the link:

http://www.hawaii.edu/artgallery/passions/cricket.html

Asian Arts has essays on twelve art forms--the first is the ancient art of gourd molding. To learn more about these exquisite and valuable gourds, click on the link:

http://www.asianart.com/forum/takaki/dozen/Dozenns.htm

Yes, temperature can be determined by the stridulation of crickets--specifically the snowy tree cricket (Oecanthus fultoni). The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida has recordings of this cricket at various temperatures. To listen to the cricket, click on the link:

http://buzz.ifas.ufl.edu/585a.htm
Click on the 'speaker' icons.

The actual formula: (number of chirps per 15 seconds) + 40 = degrees Fahrenheit

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killerPlants Tendrils: ~~1~~2~~3~~4~~5~~

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