The Panda

Today's post will feature the beautiful Panda.
To me he is the most spectacular of the bears with his striking black and white markings.
We think of them as coming from China, but fossils have been found in Vietnam and Burma, although the earliest were found in Eastern China.
The Giant Panda has been on the Earth for up to three million years and was treasured during the Han Dynasty as a semi-divine animal. An ancient Chinese poet thought that the Panda had special powers to ward of evil spirits.
The rest of the World did not know of the Panda until the turn of the 19th Century.

There is a wonderful story told as a legend about how the Panda got his markings.

'A lovely young shepherdess lived in a beautiful valley with her Mother and Father and her 3 sisters.
She would care for her sheep daily and was know as a kind and gentle person.

In those days Pandas were all white, with no black markings.
Every day a Panda cub would come to play with the sheep and lambs.  He probably thought they were the same as him as they were all white too.

One day as he was playing, a large wild cat pounced from a bush and began to attack him.
The young shepherdess ran to his aid and beat off the cat.  The Panda escaped, but the girl was killed in her valiant effort to save him.

When the rest of the Pandas heard what had happened they decided to go to the funeral and, as was the custom, they covered their arms with black ashes as a mark of respect.
They were so upset at the funeral, they cried so loudly that they covered their ears and their tears flowed so freely that they had to wipe them away with their ash covered paws.  They hugged to comfort each other and wherever they touched the ashes stained their fur.

To this day the Pandas have always carried the markings that the blackened ash gave them.

The girl's sisters were so grief stricken that they fell into her grave and in it's place a huge mountain grew.  It had three peaks, one for each of the sisters.  The mountain's translated name is The 'Four Sisters' and it's ridges protect the Pandas that still live there.' 

 I thought that it was a lovely little story. I hope you enjoyed it too.

Below are three Pandas from the Pud Bears 'Flower Pandas' range.  These are traditional Pandas with a hint of colour.

Here is a red 'Flower Panda' This one is an 8" with red ears, neck and paws.
They come in various colours - purple, green, blue, nearly any colour in fact.


www.folksy.com/shops/PudBearsandFriends

This shows a purple one.  He has been sold and as they are all one of a kinds he cannot be repeated exactly the same.
I still have purple mohair left so a similar Panda could be made if wanted.


www.folksy.com/shops/PudBearsandFriends

This one has beige fur instead of white and is also an 8".
Unfortunately he is sold too.  They are very popular little chaps so if you see one you like in my shop don't leave it too late!


www.folksy.com/shops/PudBearsandFriends




I have searched through the shops in Folksy and found these delightful Panda items:-

This is Hui Ying from Fluffy Bearz - quite a handful of a Panda I would think.


                                                                         
Dotty is also from Fluffy Bearz and is 'nearly' a Panda.
She looks so cute and cuddly don't you think?

www.folksy.com/shops/FluffyBearz

Next, these absolutely gorgeous Wedding cake toppers from Amy's Clay Critters. 

www.folksy.com/shops/amysclaycritters

This is a cheerful looking Retro Panda from Mia Design

www.folksy.com/shops/miadesign




That is all from me for today.  Hope you enjoyed the Pandas as much as I enjoyed blogging about them. 

Polly xx