Qiu Qunzhu
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Qiu Qunzhu, Female, Han, from Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Ningbo Jinyincaixiu (Ⅶ-104). The tradition is documented in Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang. Within the regional tradition and school record of Ningbo Jinyincaixiu in Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang: Ningbo gold and silver colored embroidery centers on Yinzhou District of Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province, extending to Haishu, Jiangbei and Zhenhai, former counties under Ningbo Prefecture, and continuing in the demand for theatrical costumes and temple-fair attire in Cixi, Fenghua and other places. Together with Ningbo's zhujin lacquered wood carving and clay-gold colored lacquer, it belongs to the local "three golds" system of traditional crafts; because all are found in the same city, the patterns of gold and silver colored embroidery and the decorative motifs of zhujin lacquered wood objects share many common elements. After the Song dynasty, physical examples of gold and silver colored embroidery works gradually increased. During the Republican period, the Haiyun Temple and Xiantang Street areas of Ningbo had already become trade streets, with some thirty to forty embroidery shops. After the 1950s, the Ningbo area had embroidery-product cooperatives and embroidery factories producing gold and silver colored embroidery, continuing into the 1990s.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Qiu Qunzhu is anchored in the documented technical standards of Ningbo Jinyincaixiu in Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang. Within the documented technical tradition of Ningbo Jinyincaixiu in Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang: Gold and silver colored embroidery, also called "gold and silver embroidery," is embroidery worked on silk fabrics with gold and silver threads together with silk threads of various other colors, forming pieces bearing different patterns. It can serve both the needs of daily life and the making of theatrical costumes and art objects for appreciation. It is mostly used for government offices, folk celebrations, clothing and accessories, religion and interior furnishing. Ningbo gold and silver colored embroidery is mainly distributed in Yinzhou District of Ningbo City and the surrounding area. Since the Tang dynasty the area has been widely planted with mulberries, with silkworms raised and cocoons reeled, and it has the tradition that "every household weaves mats and every home embroiders." Ningbo gold and silver colored embroidery has gone through a fairly long process of historical evolution; according to relevant historical records and excavated artifacts, although the history of Chinese embroidery can be traced back to the Warring States period, the earliest surviving examples of gold and silver colored embroidery as an independent category are found on Tang dynasty garments. By the Qing dynasty, numerous embroidery teaching workshops, government-run embroidery houses, private embroidery-garment shops and embroidery firms had appeared inside and outside Yinzhou county town. The main techniques of Ningbo gold and silver colored embroidery are gold (silver) coiling and gold (silver) filling, which give full play to the properties of both the materials and the craft to enhance the texture and sense of space of the designs; the large-scale use of gold and silver color allows any color to coexist harmoniously within the same picture, producing an artistic effect that is at once magnificent and elegant; the pursuit is an organic combination of gold, silver and colored threads, giving the work the character of boldness within refinement, dots combined with areas, sturdy yet not stiff, and skillfully applied stitches. With the development of the commodity economy, and because hand embroidery has high costs and low returns, fewer and fewer people are engaged in gold and silver colored embroidery; at present only four or five people in Yinzhou District of Ningbo City are still in this trade. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Coiled and filled gold": Chiefly coiling and filling with gold and silver thread, the technique builds texture and depth in a style both bold and fine. "Gold, silver and coloured silks": Worked on silk with gold and silver as well as coloured threads, its broad metallic areas let any hues coexist in a splendid yet refined whole. "Earliest pieces in Tang dress": Though Chinese embroidery reaches back to the Warring States, the earliest independent gold-and-silver embroideries come from Tang garments. "Hundred Cranes and Four Seasons": The fourth-batch inheritor Xu Jinlun, born in 1948, designed the large screen A Hundred Cranes Facing the Sun, a Baihua gold-cup winner now in the national craft museum.
Coiled and filled gold
Chiefly coiling and filling with gold and silver thread, the technique builds texture and depth in a style both bold and fine.
Gold, silver and coloured silks
Worked on silk with gold and silver as well as coloured threads, its broad metallic areas let any hues coexist in a splendid yet refined whole.
Earliest pieces in Tang dress
Though Chinese embroidery reaches back to the Warring States, the earliest independent gold-and-silver embroideries come from Tang garments.
Hundred Cranes and Four Seasons
The fourth-batch inheritor Xu Jinlun, born in 1948, designed the large screen A Hundred Cranes Facing the Sun, a Baihua gold-cup winner now in the national craft museum.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Qiu Qunzhu was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Ningbo Jinyincaixiu, with Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Ningbo Jinyincaixiu in Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2011 (batch 3), with Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang as its declared area, and Ningbo Jin YinCaiXiu Co., Ltd. as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
After the Song dynasty, physical examples of gold and silver colored embroidery works gradually increased. During the Republican period, the Haiyun Temple and Xiantang Street areas of Ningbo had already become trade streets, with some thirty to forty embroidery shops.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xu Jinlun | Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang | 04-1818 | Same declared area |
| Qiu Qunzhu | Ningboshiyinzhou, Zhejiang | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。