China's High-Value Pet

A sound most are familiar with in the summer months is the chirping of the crickets. These sounds are created when a male cricket rubs its front legs together to create a mating call to attract female crickets. Crickets begin to emerge in the late spring and are very active through late June or early July. Did you know that there is an ancient Chinese tradition of collecting crickets? The cricket has long since been considered a sign of luck, but it also symbolizes longevity, virtue, intelligence and fertility. It was a popular hobby among wealthy people to keep crickets, and some still continue with this tradition to this day. According to Atlasobscura.com, the imperial concubines of China's Tang Dynasty (618-907) had an autumn tradition of collecting the crickets from outside as the weather cooled and they would keep them in beautiful little cages made of meticulously carved and hollowed out gourds. These small cricket cages became little works of art. As the years went on and other materials were available, these small boxes could be very simple or very intricate. Many were made of bamboo, wire, metal, bone, ivory, jade, porcelain or woven materials. They were also made in many different shapes and sizes, such as a trunk shape, round, oval and rectangular. Caring for the crickets was also an important step in cricket keeping. The cages were rinsed out with hot tea water and the crickets were fed a diet similar to what they would eat in the wild. In the wild, crickets will consume a wide-ranging diet including insect larvae, aphids, flowers, seeds, leaves, fruits and grasses. As pets, the crickets were fed a diet that consisted of seasonal greens, chestnuts, yellow beans, chopped fish, insects and honey. Cricket collecting continued into the Song Dynasty (960-1278 CE) when cricket fighting became popularized. As it sounds, cricket fighting is a hobby involving the fighting of male crickets. Unlike violent, bloody sports such as bullfighting or cockfighting, cricket fighting rarely causes any injuries to the insects. The cricket winner of the fight is determined by a judge who would award points for each combat move the cricket made. Crickets are still sold in China today for pets, fighting and even food. Though cricket collecting is not a popular thing in the United States, you can still find antique cricket boxes all over the internet and maybe even in some local shops. You may have seen them and not even known what they are. Many of the affordable finds are made of brass and have a nice pattern of holes punched through them, so the crickets get a nice air flow. Prices these days range anywhere from around $10 to hundreds of dollars. You could even find some ancient, highly sought after carved gourds for sale for thousands of dollars. The fun and unique part about cricket boxes now, is if you don't want to keep a cricket in it, they are perfect for storing jewelry, used for decoration, or would be a great little place to store away some special keepsakes. They would also certainly be a great conversation starter.