As Spring Festival approaches, much of the planet is decked in red — red scrolls, red lanterns and red decorations that symbolize good fortune.

The vibrant red displays and fireworks that are now ubiquitous trace their origins to an ancient Chinese tale. It is said that a fearsome creature called nian, meaning year, once terrorized villages, preying on people and livestock at the turn of the year. To drive nian away, people set off fireworks and decorated their homes in red, believing this would frighten the beast into retreat.