Leo and Tenons: Animals on Load-Bearing Elements

Show the carved timber lion block that sits on a beam and carries the purlin above it in a Taiwanese temple frame. Render a compact lion figure about 50 centimetres tall, carved from a single block, crouched with its back taking the load and its head turned outward toward the viewer, mouth open, curly mane deeply undercut, one paw resting on an embroidered ball. Make the structural role legible — the flat bearing surface on its back and the seating beneath its haunches are clearly doing work, not decoration applied afterwards. Detail the finish in dark red-brown lacquer with gold on the mane curls, teeth and the ball, and worn patches where the original polychrome has flaked to bare timber. Show its pair on the opposite beam behind, and a slender carved drop pendant hanging beside it. Keep the surrounding frame simple so the lion reads. Light from one side with soft courtyard daylight. Photorealistic, lively, worn and finely carved, eye-level close view.