Pizhi Making Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
Taking the bamboo paper produced in Xiangzhigou as an example, the technique is said to have begun in the Hongwu era of the Ming dynasty, giving it a history of more than six hundred years to the present day. The white cotton paper produced in Xiaotun, Zhenfeng County, originated in the Xianfeng era of the Qing dynasty; until the end of the last century, more than a thousand households throughout the township were still engaged in scooping paper production.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Papermaking is one of the four great inventions of ancient China; bamboo paper, made from bamboo, and bark paper, made from paper mulberry bark, are two important varieties of traditional handmade paper. Guizhou is a region inhabited by ethnic minorities, and many areas of the province still preserve the ancient techniques of making traditional bamboo paper and bark paper. Among them, the techniques of Xiangzhigou in Guiyang (Buyi ethnic group), Xiaotun in Zhenfeng County, and Shiqiao in Danzhai County (Miao ethnic group) are the most outstanding. The complete set of operations comprises 72 process steps — cutting bamboo, splitting bamboo, retting bamboo, steaming and boiling, grinding bamboo slivers, pulping, scooping paper, pressing, and drying — identical in every respect to the papermaking method recorded in Song Yingxing's Tiangong Kaiwu. The finished product is soft yet tough, bears hidden bamboo-fiber markings, and gives off a faint fragrance. The paper produced there uses paper mulberry bark as its raw material; the complete operation likewise passes through 72 process steps, and the finished paper is soft and tough, even, and moistly supple. The white bark paper produced in Shiqiao, Danzhai County, likewise uses paper mulberry bark and fir roots as raw materials, and colored paper is also produced, in six varieties including cloud-dragon crepe, raised-and-indented (embossed), pressed-flat, flower-and-grass, and hemp paper. Its production process generally involves more than ten stages. In manufacture the cotton-like pulp is diluted with water, a slippery mucilage (hua yao) is added and stirred evenly, and the sheet is formed by scooping, pressing, sun-drying, and peeling before being packaged as the finished product; the paper is soft and tough, glossy and smooth, and highly water-resistant. All the handmade papers described above place strict demands on raw materials, water quality, and workmanship. The transmission of the technique relies entirely on oral instruction and personal example, and alongside the craft itself it has given rise to rich paper-industry customs, including the annual worship of Cai Lun, the grand master of papermaking. In light of these facts, the related bamboo-paper and bark-paper making techniques have become important evidence of cultural diversity and ethnic identity.
Archival Record of Process Steps
The complete set of operations comprises 72 process steps — cutting bamboo, splitting bamboo, retting bamboo, steaming and boiling, grinding bamboo slivers, pulping, scooping paper, pressing, and drying — identical in every respect to the papermaking method recorded in Song Yingxing's Tiangong Kaiwu.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Xiaotun in Zhenfeng County is one of the three most outstanding production areas of the bark paper making technique in Guizhou. Its bark paper uses local paper mulberry bark as the principal raw material; the villagers mostly make paper on a household basis, working intensively ahead of festivals and market days to produce incense paper and sacrificial paper. Together with Xiangzhigou in Guiyang (Buyi ethnic group) and Shiqiao in Danzhai County (Miao ethnic group), it is counted among the three surviving sites of bark paper production in Guizhou. The Zhenfeng County Cultural Center is the protection unit for this project.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Pizhi Making Craftsmanship · Pizhi Making Craftsmanship · Pizhi Making Craftsmanship · Pizhi Making Craftsmanship.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
However, under the powerful impact of the modern paper industry, the transmission of these complex and difficult-to-learn ancient papermaking methods has become a problem, and rescue and protection are required. Liu Shiyang (as recorded in the official archive of the associated inheritor): Male, Han ethnic group, born in 1952, from Zhenfeng, Guizhou. Representative inheritor of the bark paper making technique, a national-level intangible cultural heritage project of the first batch. The bark paper he makes is soft and tough; the sheet surface is even, of uniform thickness, moistly supple to the touch, and firm within its softness. His products are mainly gold paper and wallpaper, and some of them are exported to Europe and the Americas. Beginning in 2006, Liu Shiyang launched transmission activities, successively passing the ancient papermaking technique on to his younger brothers Liu Shiyou and Liu Shihu and his son Liu Meng, in the hope that they would carry the traditional technique forward.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Luo Shouquan 01-0179
- Liu Shiyang 01-0180
- Wang Xingwu 03-1330
- Wan Aizhu 04-1855
- Zhang Shifeng 05-2764
- Pan Yuhua 05-2765
- Hu Zongliang
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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