Village hard at work making Spring Festival lanterns

Lanterns made in Gaocheng, about 250 kilometers southwest of Beijing, date back to the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) and are known as Gongdeng, or Palace Lanterns.

Local history shows the name dates back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) when Emperor Qianlong (1711-99) passed Gaocheng during his trip to the south and found lanterns hung on gates of local households.

He found the lanterns exquisite, brought some back and hung them in his palace, thus the name Palace Lantern.