A “pouch,” or “hebao” in Chinese, is a kind of adornment of traditional Chinese clothing, used for carrying odds and ends by the ancient Chinese, something like today’s purse. They are usually made into various beautiful shapes, such as rotund, oblong, peach, ruyi and guava, and different areas have their distinctive forms.

The pouch was developed from the “nangbao,” a kind of small bag kept for containing one’s money, handkerchief and other little things, because there were no pockets on ancient dresses. The earliest nangbao could be carried by hand or by back. Due to the inconvenience of carrying it, later people improved on it by fastening it to the belt. The most common material for making the nangbao was leather.

The history of wearing a pouch dates back to the Pre-Qin dynasties or much earlier. As of today, the earliest pouch unearthed in China is one made during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476BC) and the Warring States (475-221BC). Actually, the appellation of “hebao” appeared after the Song Dynasty (960-1279), which refers to a small bag for containing carry-on valuables, such as one’s money and personal seal. This custom continued on through the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and the early Republic of China (1912-1949), and then vanished in the cities due to the reform of clothing, which brought pockets into common use. Fortunately, it is still popular in some rural areas and ethnic minority areas, so that the folk handcraft, carrying abundant and profound cultural meaning, can be passed down to modern times.

A pouch is composed of two sides, the interior and the exterior. The exterior is often embroidered with posh patterns, while the mouth is threaded with a silk string that can be tightened and loosened. The pouch boasts a great variety of designs and patterns. There were different patterns for different uses, but praying for luck was the most common subject. Butterflies and flowers represent a wish for love and marriage, golden melons and children denote longevity and more children, as do images of a kylin, a mythical Chinese chimerical creature, carrying a son. Others express good wishes through propitious animals and plants, such as bats and lotus flowers. Different subjects convey different emotions.