Uyghur Kalakuertaigaopimao Making Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
In the Han-dynasty ancient city of Yushikate, Karakul fetal-lamb skins and fetal-lamb fur hats were excavated, indicating that the fetal-lamb fur hat making craft was already fairly mature at that time.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Xayar County of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region lies at the southern foot of the Tianshan Mountains, in the middle reaches of the Tarim River, and on the northern edge of the Taklamakan Desert. Since ancient times the ancestors of Xayar have combined farming and herding; the Populus euphratica forest zone of the Tarim River valley is an excellent natural pasture, thus becoming a production base for Karakul sheep. Karakul fetal-lamb skin is a precious fur in the world; the fur feels warm and supple, soft yet tough, with a dense, lustrous texture and gentle, beautifully shaped patterns, appearing in forms such as the reclining-silkworm shape, the leaping-mouse shape, the rib shape, the pea-flower shape, and the water-ripple shape. Xayar is part of the ancient Qiuci city and historically was deeply influenced by the Central Plains Huaxia culture, Indian culture, Arab-Persian culture, and ancient Greco-Roman culture. In the long years that followed, Xayar's Karakul fetal-lamb furs and fetal-lamb fur hats were continuously exported to Central Asia and from there indirectly flowed to West Asia, Eastern Europe, and other places, being called "Persian sheepskin" and "Persian sheepskin hats." The Karakul fetal-lamb fur hat making craft takes advantage of the local abundance of Karakul sheep to deep-process the fetal-lamb skin, producing high-quality, new-style lambskin garments and hats, which both display the superb manual skills of the Uyghur people and embody the unique customs and costume culture of the Uyghur ethnicity.
Tanning the karakul skin
The skin of the young karakul lamb is tanned while still supple so the dense nap stays intact.
Forming the hat block
The skin is shaped wet and dried to the head's circumference, giving the fit of a doppa-style cap.
Sorting the curls
Curls come in worm, jerboa, rib, pea-bloom and ripple forms; skins are sorted by pattern so a cap matches.
Sewing and binding
Panels are sewn, the rim bound and a woven or embroidered edge added, tight enough to hold against sand.
Teaching in the fur-cap workshop
Workshops such as the one founded in 1955 trained cap makers, each specialising in selection, shaping or sewing.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Various cultures converged and exchanged here, finally forming the regional culture of Xayar with strong ethnic characteristics. The Karakul fetal-lamb fur hat is the concrete expression of this regional culture.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Yushan Mamat (per the official record of the associated inheritor): Representative inheritor of the third national-level batch of the intangible cultural heritage item "Uyghur Karakul Fetal-Lamb Fur Hat Making Craft." A fetal-lamb fur hat making technician. Between 1948 and 1952, he learned the Karakul fetal-lamb fur hat making craft from his father. In 1955 he founded a fur-hat cooperative, where as a technical backbone he taught the fur-hat making craft. He made hats rigorously and meticulously; the fur hats he produced used fine materials and were finely made, especially the fur hats that fit well and were comfortable, beautiful and dashing, durable, resistant to deformation, and excellent in warmth retention, and were warmly welcomed by the people. He actively took on apprentices and taught the craft, passing on the skill. Male, Uyghur ethnicity, born November 1937, died December 2011, from Xayar County, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Aimer Tuniyazi (per the official record of the associated inheritor): Male, Uyghur ethnicity, born February 1970, from Xayar County, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Representative inheritor of the fifth national-level batch of the intangible cultural heritage item "Uyghur Karakul Fetal-Lamb Fur Hat Making Craft." A fetal-lamb fur hat making technician. He learned the craft from his father since childhood and for a long time engaged in Karakul fetal-lamb fur hat making in a family workshop, comprehensively mastering the processes of tanning, design, shaping, and sewing; his craft is fine, and the fur hats fit well, are comfortable, beautiful, practical, and excellent in warmth retention, and he can actively adapt to contemporary living needs and popular aesthetic tastes, innovating fur-hat styles; the fetal-lamb fur hats he makes are welcomed by local people and the market. He actively teaches apprentices and has taken on over thirty apprentices. He has widely participated in various intangible cultural heritage demonstration and dissemination activities.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Yushan Maimaiti 03-1372
- Aimaier Tuniyazi 05-2812
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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