Were there lions in ancient Chinese mainland?

In China, unlike tigers, lions are not native, but foreign. Lions used to grow in Iran and India in Africa and Asia. It is said that in the Eastern Han Dynasty more than 1900 years ago, the king of an interest country (now Iran) presented a lion to Emperor Zhang Han, and the lion came to China from abroad. Lions are precious beasts in foreign countries, and ancient Persia took lion worship as its fashion. The king wore a golden crown and sat on the golden lion seat. Buddhism also respects the lion as the king of all animals. It is said that when the Buddha was born, 500 lions came from the snow and waited in front of the door to welcome the birth of the Buddha. Lions occupy a place in the country of origin and Buddhism, and are deified artistic images. Perhaps it is for this reason that it was given a special mission when it came to China, and its role as a guardian was very prominent. Since ancient times, China has left many stone lions, iron lions and bronze lions. From the historical development, lion sculptures in different periods have different styles. Early lion sculptures are more concise than real lions, and craftsmen are good at using generalization and exaggeration to show the lion's demeanor as the king of beasts with powerful lines. However, later works are closer to the truth in the whole and details of the lion, and only pay attention to the description of details rather than the overall grasp, but lose the characteristics of this beast. This change of style is not accidental, it is consistent with the general artistic style and architectural style of that era. The unification of China in the Tang Dynasty maintained a period of relative political stability and economic prosperity, so in the history of architectural development, the Tang Dynasty can be said to be a heyday. This can be seen in palace buildings such as Hanyuan Hall and Linde Hall in Daming Palace at that time, religious buildings such as Wuke Temple, numerous pagodas and a large number of decorative sculptures in the Tang Dynasty. The characteristics of architectural style in this period are: large scale, magnificent momentum, highlighting the great effect of architectural art, grand but not exquisite. We also saw this style from the stone lions left over from the Tang Dynasty. Technically speaking, the architecture in Song Dynasty was more mature than that in the previous generation, and a set of norms of architectural form, structure and materials was summarized. However, as far as its architectural artistic style is concerned, the architecture in Song Dynasty is gradually developing towards beauty, and the overall momentum is not as good as before. This feature is also clearly reflected in Shishi. In the Qing dynasty, especially in the late Qing dynasty, it was politically conservative and decadent, and it showed an atmosphere of pursuing triviality and beauty in architecture and other arts. Handicrafts are full of jade treasures and gold and silver enamel, and even architectural decorations are inlaid with enamel jade. The artistic level seems to be in direct proportion to the amount of gold and silver treasures. The above is a historical vertical comparison. If compared horizontally, there are also differences in style between Chinese and foreign lion images. The most obvious difference is that one pays attention to the likeness of spirit, and the other pursues the likeness. China lions don't seek the truth of modeling, but they can bulge the muscles on the lion's body or waist at will without conforming to anatomy. Some lions in India and the West are very particular about shape. The whole lion and the lion's head and limbs should conform to the original shape, and the muscle ups and downs of the lion's body and legs should also conform to the anatomy of bones and muscles. Their overall characteristics are that their images are real but their charm is not enough. This difference in style is naturally related to the different pursuits and traditions of Chinese and western artistic creation, which is manifested in the creation of various artistic categories such as painting and sculpture. As Guardian in front of the door, the image of a lion is often shaped into a fierce and powerful expression. However, this does not mean all lions. Among the lion sculptures left in the Qing Dynasty, we found that many lions did not lose face, some were slightly docile, some laughed a little naughty, and some showed a rogue appearance, which was the "humanization" of lions. Once the lion is humanized, its character and image become rich and colorful. People also give these lions all kinds of interesting and magical legends. At Lugou Bridge in wanping county, Beijing, stone lions are carved on each pillar of the stone railings on both sides. Since ancient times, it has been said that there are countless stone lions in Lugou Bridge, and it is said that they all ran away as soon as they were counted. This is because many big lions are carrying little lions on the railings. These little lions have different postures on the feet, chest and back of the big lion. The craftsmen also deliberately carved the little lion in a hidden place, making it difficult to find it.