Fine Gold and Silver Work Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
This gilt fine-metal craft originated in the area of Wudui Village, Jishan County, Shanxi Province, and currently extends to the Yellow River Golden Triangle of Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Henan, as well as Sanmenxia in Henan and Weinan-Tongguan in Shaanxi Province. Whole-surface gilding is mostly applied to imitation-gold jewelry or statues of deities and Buddhas, aiming for a surface appearance indistinguishable from the real thing; partial gilding chiefly arises from decorative needs and must be applied selectively according to the subject, with the finished products being mainly religious ritual implements and statuary. According to the Jishan County Annals, the ancestor of the family began trading in the 52nd year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing dynasty (1713). In the 15th year of the Daoguang reign (1835), the Wang family founded the Xingyetang silver studio, specializing in gilt fine-metal work; contemporaries praised it as "exquisitely carved, delicate and refined, truly extraordinary."
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The Jishan gold-and-silver fine-metal craft is a traditional technique that forms a gold or silver film on the surface of an object by applying a compounded gold-silver paste, then burnishing it with an agate knife, and combines with various manual techniques such as hammering, chasing, and engraving to make exquisite ornaments or vessels. The gilding in Jishan's gold-and-silver fine-metal craft is divided into two forms: whole-surface gilding and partial gilding. This craft is mainly used for the surface treatment of jewelry and vessels made of metals such as silver or copper. The process is as follows: first, the material is worked into forms such as necklaces, pendants, lock pendants, rings, and bracelets; patterns, designs, or inscriptions are chiseled onto the surface of the base; the surface to be gilded is polished with charcoal; then pure gold or silver leaf is rubbed into fine powder, mixed with mercury to form a paste, evenly applied to the polished base surface, and baked in a furnace; once the mercury evaporates, a gold or silver film forms in close bonding with the base; finally the surface is burnished bright with an agate knife. The characteristic of this craft lies in its demand for comprehensive ability: the maker must possess a range of specialized knowledge and skills in aesthetics, chemistry, metallurgy, and the principles of machining, and moreover the surface-polishing process is held to very high standards. The gilt fine-metal craft is said to have been invented in the Yin-Shang period, and came into widespread use during the Sui and Tang dynasties. Jishan's gold-and-silver fine-metal craft was originally created by the Wang family of Wudui Village.
Archival Records of the Production Process
This craft is mainly used for the surface treatment of jewelry and vessels made of metals such as silver or copper. The process is as follows: first, the material is worked into forms such as necklaces, pendants, lock pendants, rings, and bracelets; patterns, designs, or inscriptions are chiseled onto the surface of the base; the surface to be gilded is polished with charcoal; then pure gold or silver leaf is rubbed into fine powder, mixed with mercury to form a paste, evenly applied to the polished base surface, and baked in a furnace; once the mercury evaporates, a gold or silver film forms in close bonding with the base; finally the surface is burnished bright with an agate knife.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Jishan's gold-and-silver fine-metal craft began around Wudui Village and spread outward along the trade routes of the Yellow River Golden Triangle of Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Henan, and Sanmenxia in Henan and Weinan-Tongguan in Shaanxi. The skill shows at both ends of the process: the base surface is first polished bright with charcoal; gold or silver leaf is rubbed into powder, mixed with mercury into a paste, and applied; it is baked in a furnace until the mercury is exhausted before the film forms; finally an agate knife burnishes it to a shine. Whole-surface gilding aims to be indistinguishable from the real thing, while partial gilding is applied only to the essential parts of ritual implements and statuary. The Jishan County Annals record that the Wang family began trading in the 52nd year of Kangxi and founded the Xingyetang silver studio in the 15th year of Daoguang.
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
To this day, the family continues to pass it down. The continuously inherited and developed Jishan gold-and-silver fine-metal craft is an important component of the Chinese nation's traditional gold-and-silver working techniques. Exquisitely skilled and deeply influenced by folk culture, it vividly embodies the outstanding wisdom of Jishan artisans, a spirit of refined craftsmanship, and the local people's emotional pursuit of auspiciousness, joy, and peace, possessing considerable social, cultural, and artistic value. Wang Jiezhong (per the official archives of the associated inheritor): Male, Han ethnicity, born in October 1970, a native of Jishan County, Shanxi Province. Representative inheritor of the gold-and-silver fine-metal craft, a national-level intangible cultural heritage item in the fifth batch. Gold-and-silver fine-metal craft technician. Born into a family of craftsmen, he began learning the gold-and-silver fine-metal craft from his father Wang Dengtan at the age of 16, and later studied and trained at the Gaobeidian Craft Factory in Hebei, comprehensively improving his skills. He is proficient in the entire production process of gold, silver, and copper wares, and can make his own tools and design patterns. The auspicious patterns he has designed—such as plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum, and fortune, prosperity, longevity, and happiness—number over three hundred; he also has in-depth research into the making of Tang-dynasty gold, silver, and copper wares and Buddhist ritual implements. Over the years he has produced more than two hundred varieties of religious ritual implements and Tang-style imitation silver gilt five-legged incense burners, which are collected by institutions such as the Famen Temple in Xi'an and the Lingguang Temple in Beijing. He places great emphasis on transmitting the craft: he has taken on more than sixty apprentices, run training courses, and trained a cumulative total of over forty students; he has also introduced the gold-and-silver fine-metal craft into vocational education, cultivating a group of high-level technicians in mold-making, chasing, grinding, and polishing.
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)
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