Fine Gold and Silver Work Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
Shanghai Lao Fengxiang, founded in the twenty-eighth year of the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty (1848), is a famous time-honored Chinese brand. Having been transmitted through several generations across the Qing dynasty, the Republic of China, and the People's Republic of China, it has comprehensively inherited the exquisite craftsmanship of Chinese gold-and-silver fine metalwork. From making gold and silver ornaments, jade and diamond jewelry, vessels, and gilded enamel, to making medals, shield-shaped ornaments, and miniature buildings, it basically possesses every kind of technique, covering almost all the content of our country's traditional gold-and-silver fine metalwork.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Gold-and-silver fine metalwork is a traditional craft of making gold and silver objects. The objects made are mainly used for interior display and appreciation, while also serving practical functions. Gold-and-silver fine metalwork has a long and distant origin, traceable as far back as the Shang and Zhou dynasties, with a history of more than three thousand years to the present day. By the Eastern Han period, a complete gold-and-silver craftsmanship had already taken shape. By the Ming and Qing dynasties, the use of enamel and cloisonné techniques promoted the development of gold-and-silver making, making the produced gold-and-silver objects even more crystal-clear and lustrous. Among this trade, the craftsmanship of the Shanghai time-honored silver shop Lao Fengxiang, the Nanjing Baoqing Silver Shop, and the Jiangdu gold-and-silver fine metalwork technique are the most famous. Its techniques of repoussé, gilding, raising, wire-twisting, inlay, and chasing have been used unchanged since ancient times, and are living materials that concretely and vividly reflect the history of our country's gold-and-silver fine metalwork.
Forging copper
A copper forging route added to the goldsmith's art, supplying the armatures of large armillary works.
Dapping the metal
Hammer and anvil give the sheet its volume, one blow at a time.
Twisting and stacking wire
Wire is twisted into braids and stacked into blossoms, hundreds of loops to a single flower.
Polishing on the lap
The surface is lapped to a bright, soft lustre that reflects the face.
Filling and firing enamel
Enamel is laid into chased cavities and fired; a level fill decides whether the surface reads as a mirror.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Jiangdu's gold-and-silver fine metalwork, together with the lacquerware and jade carving of the Yangzhou area, is known as one of the local 'three master crafts.' Those who practice it are mostly concentrated in the old streets of towns and in market-town workshops, taking work according to a pattern of one shop per street. This school's style leans toward the majestic: the arts of planishing, chasing, carving, openwork, filigree, inlay, enamel, and burnishing are often applied together on a single object, each piece made into a large display work. The 'Armillary Sphere,' the 'South-Pointing Chariot,' the 'Bian River Passenger Boat,' and the 'Zheng He Treasure Ship' are all products of this compositional approach, clearly distinct from the delicate style of the Suzhou-Shanghai area. Fang Xuebin studied under Shen Peikun and Du Fang, and also created his own forged-copper technique, introducing the heft of copper into gold-and-silver fine metalwork, whereby the Jiangdu school established its own distinct style.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Fine Gold and Silver Work Craftsmanship · Fine Gold and Silver Work Craftsmanship · Fine Gold and Silver Work Craftsmanship.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Fang Xuebin (per the official archive of the associated inheritor): Male, Han, born in January 1956, from Yangzhou City, Jiangsu Province. Representative inheritor of the fifth national-level batch of the intangible cultural heritage item 'Gold-and-Silver Fine Metalwork Technique.' Senior arts and crafts artist, gold-and-silver fine metalwork technician. In 1975, he studied under the famous artisans Shen Peikun and Du Fang, and excels at the research and creation of metal art. He mastered the production techniques of planishing, chasing, carving, openwork, filigree, inlay, enamel, and burnishing in gold-and-silver fine metalwork, and founded the forged-copper craft. He formed an artistic character that is exquisite, delicate, majestic, and elegant. He once participated in the design and production of large gold-and-silver fine metalwork display pieces such as the 'Armillary Sphere' and the 'South-Pointing Chariot.' His independently designed and created large gold-and-silver fine metalwork display piece 'Grand Canal Dragon Boat' won the gold prize of the 2015 Hundred Flowers Cup Excellent Chinese Arts and Crafts Award issued by the China Arts and Crafts Association. He independently designed and created large gold-and-silver fine metalwork display pieces such as 'Dragon and Phoenix Auspiciousness,' 'Deer Pulling Phoenix Cart,' 'Bian River Passenger Boat,' and 'Zheng He Treasure Ship,' winning national-level awards multiple times.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Wang Dianxiang 03-1375
- Zhang Xinyi 04-1882
- Wang Jiezhong 05-2813
- Li Jianjun 05-2814
- Fang Xuebin 05-2815
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript; it mirrors the bilingual dossier. 阅读中文版，或返回 英文名录。