Imperial roof decoration

At the head of the procession will be a man riding a Phoenix, one legend suggests that this represents a minion of the emperor who grew greedy for power and was hanged from the roof gable for treason.

The mythical beasts are set to pounce upon the man and devour him should he stray from performing his duties with faithfulness and rectitude.

The maximum number of beasts is nine, including evil-dispelling bull, courageous goat-bull (獬豸), wind- and storm-summoning fish (狎魚), mythical lion (狻猊), auspicious seahorse, heavenly horse, lion, and chiwen (鴟吻, a son of dragon).

Note the addition of an immortal guardian (行什, hangshi, "ranked tenth") in front of the dragon holding to a sword like a cane.

Other examples can be found on functional structures such as gates and barracks of the Great Wall of China, as well as the roofs of the Summer Palace outside of Beijing.