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Now this is interesting....In ancient feudal China where bandits, rapists and thugs were not uncommon, (much harder to get caught without forensic evidence), young daughters of the aristocracy were sent to highly secret kungfu/taichi schools to learn the art of self defence. These damsels were trained in the fan style of taichi chuan self defence…..and woe betide any thug who came across a seasoned practitioner of this rather deadly art. Take note of the fans in the picture, though these are practice fans in days of yore the blades that held the fans together were made of bone or steel and the tips were honed to razor sharpness. The fans were carried folded up in the sleeves of the young ladies and if attacked…the fans were withdrawn and flicked open with a crack that sounded like a stockwhip or gunshot. The razored blades sliced through the carotid arteries of the hapless thug. The damsels were trained to attack the ‘bleeders’ (groin, neck, wrist or any other vulnerable vein). If more than 1 attacker was involved the young ladies would go into a well practised routine and could easily dispatch 3 or 4 thugs in a matter of moments, leaving them incapacitated and spurting blood as their lives ebbed away in the dust. It is a joy to behold a group of women, (and the occasional male), practising this routine and hearing the ‘crack’ of the fans in perfect unison, a sound most intimidating. (There is a small group of Chinese women that often practice in the main square at Parramatta in the grounds of the old church early in the morning). The instructor in the group below is Sheila, fourth from right front row, who came from the US of A to train this class. I enjoyed watching and photographing this group so much that I might join a class next year and learn the style myself. Something wonderfully different. Don't let these gentle looking ladies fool you....they are dangerous! If anyone wants more info on this or where they can learn other forms of taichi then contact me via this forum.

Nice story to go with the pic Matt

A nice piece of historical significance that adds so much more to a good image