Fu Haixian

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Fu Haixian, Male, Han, from Jingan, Shanghai, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Yinni Making Craftsmanship (Ⅷ-134). The tradition is documented in Jingan, Shanghai. Within the regional tradition and school record of Yinni Making Craftsmanship in Jingan, Shanghai: Seal paste originated from the sealing clay (feng ni) of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods; at that time there was no paper, and people used bamboo slips (jiandu, bamboo boards for writing) as writing material. The 'Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons' (Wenxin diaolong) of the Liang dynasty of the Southern Dynasties (502–557) already contains a record concerning seal paste. Lu'an seal paste was created by Zhang Lu'an, a famous Shanghai seal-paste master of the early twentieth century; its making technique is distinctive and stands alone in Shanghai and throughout the Jiangnan region. Zhang Lu'an was a seal-paste master in Shanghai during the late Qing and early Republic, and also one of the collectors with the richest seal-engraving materials in the country at that time; the seal catalogues he collected included more than four hundred kinds, such as the 'Shizhongshanfang Seal Compendium' (Shizhongshanfang yin ju).

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Fu Haixian is anchored in the documented technical standards of Yinni Making Craftsmanship in Jingan, Shanghai. Within the documented technical tradition of Yinni Making Craftsmanship in Jingan, Shanghai: Seal paste is a coating used for stamping seals; because its main raw material, cinnabar, is bright red, in ancient times it was also called 'cinnabar paste' (dan ni) and 'seal cinnabar' (yin zhu), among other names. When transmitting official documents, a blank bamboo slip was placed over the letter, tied with cord, and then coated with clay on the outside, and a seal was impressed into the clay as a sign of closure; this clay was the sealing clay, also called 'seal paste'. After paper was invented, both bamboo slips and sealing clay fell into disuse. But people still imitated the method of sealing clay, impressing seals onto announcements, letters, and the like, using seal paste as the coating. Seal paste uses cinnabar as its main raw material: first the mugwort leaves are pounded into a cotton-wool state, then mixed with aged castor oil and cinnabar and stirred repeatedly; the resulting paste has a brilliant, eye-catching color that does not fade for a long time. During the Tang and Song periods, with the flourishing of calligraphy and painting art, the seal-paste making technique continuously advanced. By the Ming and Qing dynasties, traditional calligraphy and painting art developed widely in various regions, and seal-paste making correspondingly improved greatly; the related making technique has been transmitted to the present. The creation of Lu'an seal paste is closely bound up with the development of Shanghai calligraphy and painting. Famous painters and calligraphers such as Wu Hufan, He Tianjian, Gao Zhenxiao, and Wang Fuchang all used this seal paste exclusively. With this seal paste, even after stamping ten impressions in succession, the seal characters do not distort. Therefore, at that time Lu'an seal paste was favored by famous calligraphers and painters of Jiangnan and Shanghai, and its reputation soared. The making of Lu'an seal paste requires a natural oxidation process; its production mainly consists of three operations: grinding cinnabar, rubbing mugwort, and preparing the oil. Lu'an seal paste has a specific formula and making technique; the finished product is thin, even, and pure, fine yet highly viscous, not softening in heat nor hardening in cold, never fading, and does not bleed oil or shift color when pressed on paper, with a bright yet subdued color showing a piled, solid sense. Because this seal paste has high production costs and limited market demand, its development prospects are not optimistic. Seal paste is an indispensable item in Chinese calligraphy and painting art creation and one of the material carriers of traditional culture; protecting the seal-paste making technique is of great significance for promoting traditional culture. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Archival Process Records": The making of Lu'an seal paste requires a natural oxidation process; its production mainly consists of three operations: grinding cinnabar, rubbing mugwort, and preparing the oil.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Fu Haixian was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Yinni Making Craftsmanship, with Jingan, Shanghai as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Yinni Making Craftsmanship in Jingan, Shanghai: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Jingan, Shanghai as its declared area, and Shanghai Jingan District Wen WuShiLiao Hall (Zhongguolaodongzuheshuji Ministry Jiuzhichenlie Hall) 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

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.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Fuhaixian (Jingan, Shanghai) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Fuhaixian · China ICH Official Archive