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In ancient China, the red and yellow colors were rarely used in the architectures of ordinary people. Only the royal palace, the Confucius temples and the Tibetan Buddhist temples use the combination of red and yellow color: red wall and yellow roof. The Confucius Temple in Qufu, Shandong was the first temple constructed in memory of Confucius. In 478 B.C., two years after the death of Confucius, regent built the temple onto the former residence of Confucius according to the specifications of royal palace, coated with red walls, covered with yellow tiles. Confucius Temple in Beijing is the second largest Confucian Temple in China next to the one in Qufu. It was founded in 1302 A.D., and later became the worship place of Confucius by central government officials in the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Tainan Confucian temple in Taiwan was built in the year of 1666, which was the first Confucius temple built in Taiwan. It was the first institute of higher learning in Taiwan when Koxinga recovered Taiwan and established the Confucius temple, marking the official commencement of Confucianism in Taiwan, an important milestone in the history of education. Chinese traditional culture and education spread on the island. The construction years of the Forbidden City in Beijing and the Temples of Confucius were different, all decorated with red walls and yellow roof. In early 7th century, Emperor Songtsen-Gampo unified Tibet, chosen Lhasa as the capital, and built up strong Tibetan regime. In 641 A.D., he and Nepal dynasty and Tang dynasty established marital relationship. In hosting Princess Bhrkuti Devi and Princess Wencheng, he began the construction of the Potala Palace on Mt. Maburi. Outer wall mostly of white symbolizes snow-capped mountains and white milk, but the main palace at the top remained the red-wall and yellow-roof combinations.
Why the combination of red and yellow colors has such a noble position in Chinese culture? Red is the color of blood. According to historical records, the practice of painting red in tombs of nobles and warriors in ancient represents respect to brave ancestors and heroes. In ritual activity, it is usual to kill animals in front of sacrificed, thus red has a significance of remembrance and sacrifice. The premier status of yellow color is said to have been related to Buddhism. Wang Jia’s work Records of Collection in Jin dynasty states that the time of Buddhism spreading into China dates back to the 7th year of King Yanzhao (305 B.C.) during warring-states period in China. Sakyamuni practiced simple life. Adhering to the concept of thriftiness, he went to the celestial burial platform, picked up the shrouds discarded by people, which had faded to yellow colored after long time rainfalls and sunshine, cleaned them and wrapped on his own body as clothes. As Buddhism spread to China, yellow shirt became a dress of Saint and the emperor.
Combination of red and yellow in modern China is a color of joyous celebration. This culture not only influenced the design of new China’s national flag in 1949, but may also have an impact on the other cultures. From early Kodak film to well known McDonald's chain stores, Image designers cannot help using the combination of both colors to please customers. The Confucius Institute at the University of Regina at the spring festival celebration in 2013 boldly used a combination of the two colors. The venue was brightened with eye-catching decorative and joyful festival atmosphere.