Oroqen Paopi Making Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
The Oroqen of the Aihui District area of Heihe have hunted for generations in the deep mountains and dense forests of the Lesser Khingan Range; the uses of roe-deer-hide work are drawn out in great detail: quilts and bedding, overcoats, leggings, hats, gloves, and pouches each have their own requirements for material and stitching, and the hide parts taken for boots and hide-quilts are not the same.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The Oroqen ethnic group's animal-hide crafting craft is a unique handcraft of the northern hunting peoples of our country, with a strong ethnic and regional character. The Oroqen people have lived by hunting for generations, long eating beast meat and wearing beast hides, and in this process created a highly distinctive animal-hide handcraft. The craft process of the Oroqen animal-hide crafting includes hide collection, tanning, piecing-cutting and sewing, dyeing, ornamentation, embroidery, etc.; the finished products produced can be divided by use into categories such as apparel, daily articles, and religious implements. Roe-deer-hide culture is a unique culture produced by the Oroqen under specific historical conditions. The roe-deer-hide daily articles of the Oroqen in Heilongjiang Province and the Oroqen Autonomous Banner of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region include quilts, overcoats, gloves, hats, leggings, boots, pouches, shoulder bags, etc.; these articles are mainly made with a zhadao (piercing knife) and some other unique tools. The making of roe-deer-hide articles is an initiative by which the Oroqen people make full use of the animal-hide culture they themselves created to resist the cold, protect themselves, adapt to the environment, and survive actively. The Oroqen people of Aihui District, Heihe City, Heilongjiang Province have hunted for generations in the deep mountains and dense forests of the Lesser Khingan Range. The Oroqen have no written script of their own, so the animal-hide crafting craft and its products became the carrier of Oroqen hunting culture.
Recorded Process Steps
The craft process of the Oroqen animal-hide crafting includes hide collection, tanning, piecing-cutting and sewing, dyeing, ornamentation, embroidery, etc.; the finished products produced can be divided by use into categories such as apparel, daily articles, and religious implements.
Joining birch bark and roe-deer hide
Bark for stiffness and roe-deer hide for supple warmth, joined with flat, dense seams.
Sewing the quilted hide
Quilts are built from several panels with a lofted centre and hide-strip bound edges.
Making hide hats and boots
Small close-fitting items cut from neck and limb skins, then decorated with bone plaques and shell fastenings.
Pouches and shoulder bags
Small personal items cut from offcuts, carrying the densest embroidery of any object.
Household and ritual objects
Beyond bedding and bags, roe hide is made into saddle gear and hunting kit, each piece assigned to its use.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The roe-deer-hide craftsmen of Aihui District are scattered among villages along the river and at the forest edge, taking work household by household; weddings, funerals, and the return from a hunt all call for new hide goods, so the craft's field of use is broader than mere cold resistance. The two inheritors, Meng Lanjie and Ge Changyun, one learned needlework from her parents, the other learned hide work from her aunt.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Oroqen Paopi Making Craftsmanship.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
This is a history book without writing, in which are deeply reflected the Oroqen people's views on life, aesthetics, and religion; it is an important basis for knowing and investigating Oroqen ethnic culture, of high academic research value. With social progress and development, the Oroqen people's attire has changed greatly; coupled with the daily dwindling of roe-deer-hide resources and the passing of old craftsmen who mastered the roe-deer-hide crafting craft, this precious ethnic handcraft is on the verge of extinction and urgently needs protection and transmission. Meng Lanjie (per official archival records of the associated inheritor): female, Oroqen ethnicity, born in November 1948, from Heihe City, Heilongjiang Province. Representative inheritor of the Oroqen roe-deer-hide crafting craft, a national-level intangible cultural heritage project of the third batch. Oroqen roe-deer-hide crafting technician. Influenced by her parents from childhood, she loved needlework. Through unremitting effort she quickly mastered the sewing techniques for birch-bark and roe-deer-hide products. During training periods she bought tools and roe-deer hides with her own money, and cooked for out-of-town trainees herself. Through the training, the roe-deer-hide crafting skill of Oroqen women was significantly improved. Under her leadership, this traditional Oroqen craft has been transmitted down. To do well the transmission and protection of roe-deer-hide products, she went from house to house despite illness. Ge Changyun (per official archival records of the associated inheritor): female, Oroqen ethnicity, born in July 1947, from Heihe City, Heilongjiang Province. Representative inheritor of the Oroqen roe-deer-hide crafting craft, a national-level intangible cultural heritage project of the fifth batch. Oroqen roe-deer-hide crafting technician. Influenced by her family from childhood, her ancestors made a living by hunting; to make warm clothing for her parents, brothers, and sisters, she learned from her aunt to make hide goods; the daily articles she made—hide quilts, leggings, palm-pieces (bashang), hide mattresses, etc.—are sturdy and durable. In 2009 she participated in the series of activities of the China Intangible Cultural Heritage Traditional Craft Exhibition in Beijing; the Oroqen roe-deer-hide hat, roe-deer-hide gloves, and children's roe-deer-hide boots she made were collected by the China Art Research Institute. In 2011 she participated in the Third China Chengdu International Intangible Cultural Heritage Festival, and often teaches young people the roe-deer-hide crafting craft.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Meng Lanjie 03-1370
- Gezhangyun 05-2811
- Mangumei
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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