Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Hmong Design - embroidery
This is a detail from a Hmong baby carrier. It's made in Guizhou and about 2cm square. I was told that the eight-cornered figure represents the seeds of star anise, an ingredient of five spice powder, the quintessential spice mixture in Chinese cooking. I've never been able to confirm this but it seems likely because star anise, or bajiao, literally "octagon" in Chinese, is widely grown in Hmong areas and would be of significance due to the high returns it yields at the market. Interestingly, the second link above tells a little about the occult value of star anise in Western mythology.
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