sibo

Tea

The garrison way of life in Qapqal in the Ili Valley: the Xibe regiment settled among the five Ili camps in 1764 and has kept 西迁节 xīqiānjié ever since. Tea leaves do not grow in Ili, so tea came to the camp by supply shipment — pressed 茯砖茶 fúzhuānchá, and was listed in provisions on par with grain. The regiment’s daily breakfast rests on it: 锡伯大饼 xībó dàbǐng, an unleavened flatbread about thirty to forty centimeters across. The side with the hearth imprint is called 天 tiān, heaven, the other 地 dì, earth. It is placed heaven-side up, broken into four, and DIPPED into milk tea 奶茶 nǎichá. What sets this card apart is not the recipe but the hour and the order: here tea is the morning ration of service.

Headwear

A round everyday winter hat of the Xibe, replacing the women’s dressy 坤秋 with ribbons: a low cloth crown in wet-stone gray, assembled from six gores, and a solid turned-up band of dark seal fur sitting right above the brow; no embroidered ribbons — those marked the dressy variant. The accent: a warm bronze tea bud instead of the cloth button at the point where the six gores meet.

Object

A bowl of milk tea with a slice of flatbread has moved into the hands: a low wooden bowl flaring toward the rim, held with both shovel-like hands at chest level — pale beige brew, two dark tea leaves on the wall, a slice of flatbread stuck in at an angle, the crust bearing a hearth imprint, porous crumb, the dipped edge darkened.

Clothing

An everyday robe with a diagonal wrap and a narrow stand collar, a cloth sash, plain boots; over the shoulder, a canvas bag with a ration flatbread.

Palette

Wet-stone gray cloth, dark fur trim, warm wood of the bowl, pale beige milk brew, golden crust of the flatbread.