📖 Meaning
A metaphor for someone of elegant, refined, and outstanding character. The four objects named—ancient ritual bronzes (yi, ding) and precious jade implements (gui, zhang)—were revered artifacts in classical China, symbolizing nobility, dignity, and cultivation. Applied to a person, it praises their distinguished bearing and graceful virtue.
📜 Origin Story
This idiom comes from the 36th chapter of the Qing dynasty novel Ernü Yingxiong Zhuan (儿女英雄传) by Wen Kang. In the scene, the newly crowned top scholars of the imperial examination are presented to the public, and onlookers gather to admire them. While the状元 (first-ranked) shines with clear brilliance and the榜眼 (second-ranked) is composed and serene, the探花 (third-ranked) is described as surpassing even the legendary beauty Pan An and the literary genius Cao Zhi (Zi Jian), showing grandeur without arrogance and scholarly grace without any trace of pettiness. The narrator concludes he is truly '彝鼎圭璋, a rare human treasure of the prosperous dynasty.'
💡 Example Usage
这位老先生学识渊博、风度儒雅，真可谓彝鼎圭璋。
This elder gentleman, with his profound learning and refined bearing, is truly a paragon of elegance and distinction.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 彝鼎圭璋
- Pinyin: yí dǐng guī zhāng
- Literal Translation: sacrificial bronze vessel, ritual cauldron, jade scepter, jade tablet
- Category: Quality
- Characters: 4