神轎的形式意義與製作產業發展歷程

History and Development of Taiwan’s Ambrosial Palankeen

神轎為神明繞境時所乘坐之轎子，依形式分作輦轎、武轎、顯轎、文轎、花轎、大駕、鳳輦、輦宮和龍鳳車，始因於民間信仰中神明聖誕慶典之需，依神像尺度與車輿典章制度而製作神明專屬的轎子，經歷代演變而漸漸強化其建築形式語彙，逐漸被賦予「神明的移動廟宇」之意涵。臺灣的神轎不僅承襲了漢民族的傳統思維，且融合現代材料、技術與觀念，造成材質、造型與尺度的多元性，復加上繡品、錫器、燈籠等配件點綴而顯華麗，充分展現民間信仰之興盛，亦為臺灣最具代表性的傳統工藝之一。 本文論述神轎形式的起源與發展、神轎形式與主神位階的關係、神轎製造產業的發展歷程、歷史性神轎的保存、調查與修護等議題。

The ambrosial palankeen (palanquin) on which a god (a statue of god) sits during his or her inspection tour, can be categorized into nine different kinds according to its form. Originally, they were crafted for gods' birthday ceremonies, based on the size of their statue and the rules for their construction quoted from ancient texts. As the tradition developed, architectural terms became the mainstream terminology used to refer to sacred palanquins and to their crafting process, implying that they were ''the moving temple of gods''. In Taiwan, the culture of the ambrosial palankeen is not a pure inheritance from Han traditional beliefs. Rather, it is a hybrid of the tradition and the variation of modern materials, new technology, and concepts, with superb decoration of embroidery, tin ornaments, and lanterns. As one of the most representative of Taiwanese traditional artworks, the ambrosial palanquin fully demonstrates the richness of Taiwanese folk religion. This paper focuses on four aspects: the history and development of Taiwan’s ambrosial palankeen, the relationships between a sacred palanquin and the gods' status, the changes in guiding principles of property management, and their maintenance and repair.