In the summer, the outdoor temperature is too high, and people always want to be cooler. After all, it is easy to suffer from heatstroke if it is too hot. Modern refrigerators and air conditioners can also use ice cubes to cool down in the summer, but what about the ancient summer? ?There was an "ice mirror" during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, but it could only be used by nobles. What would ordinary people do? In ancient times, ice cubes were stored in winter. So what were ancient ice cellars like? They could actually be used. Storing ice cubes from winter until summer?
Ancient ice cellars. China already had "refrigerators" in ancient times. Although it is far inferior to the modern technological product refrigerator, it can still play a role in preserving fresh food. In the ancient book "Zhou Li", there is a mention of an "ice mirror" used to store food. This "ice mirror" is actually a box-like thing with an empty interior. Just put ice on the surface, and then put the food in the middle of the ice, which can preserve the food. This may be the earliest refrigerator used by humans.
During the Ming Dynasty, the princes and nobles of Beijing had already used the refrigerator as an important device to relieve heat. It was a box that used natural ice cubes to cool down and was made of huanghuali or mahogany. From the appearance, the refrigerator has a large mouth and a small square bucket shape, with two copper hoops on the waist. There are copper rings on both sides of the box. The purpose of the copper rings is to facilitate transportation. The mouth of the box is covered with two opposing hardwood covers with money-shaped holes carved on them.
The refrigerators at that time were not only beautiful in appearance, but also very sophisticated and scientific in functional design. There is tin hanging inside the refrigerator box and there are small holes in the bottom of the box. One of the two covers is fixed on the box mouth, and the other is a trap. Whenever the heat comes, you can remove the trap, put ice cubes in the box, and chill fresh fruits or drinks on ice for ready access. The taste is dry and cool, making people feel very comfortable after using it, and the heat is gone. Due to the protection of tin, ice water will not corrode the wooden box, but can seep out from the small holes at the bottom
Before the Republic of China, collecting and storing ice was the privilege of the royal family. Only the royal family could build ice cellars. These ice cellars are government-run ice cellars, or official cellars for short. They are mostly underground ice cellars built of bricks and stones with arched interiors. They can be divided into two types: imperial ice cellars that directly serve the palace and official ice cellars that serve the royal offices. According to the "Huidian of the Qing Dynasty", there were only 18 official cellars in Beijing at that time, divided into four places inside the Forbidden City, outside Desheng Gate, Jingshan West Gate and Zhengyang Gate. Private ice cellars appeared during the Republic of China. They were almost all excavated earthen kangs, where ice was placed and then buried with soil.
Today, there are only three remaining ice cellars in Beijing: an unknown number of ice cellars in the Forbidden City, two in Xuechi Hutong, and one in Gongjian Hutong, all of which are official cellars. There are no traces of private ice cellars.
Ancient refrigerator