Gujianzhumoxing Making Craftsmanship

01 · Historical Records

In ancient times, whenever a fairly large building was to be erected, several small models were first assembled and, after appraisal and revision, one of them was settled upon as the model for constructing the building; this assembling of small models is the origin of ancient architectural models. Buddhism flourished under the Tang and Song dynasties, and Mount Wutai became a Buddhist holy place in northern China; many craftsmen gathered at Mount Wutai to build temples and gradually became the professional craftsmen who, through the ages, repaired the old and built the new.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The ancient architectural model making technique is a traditional handicraft that arose along with the development of ancient building techniques: it uses timber as its raw material, is assembled with mortise-and-tenon joints, and takes shape through many process steps. The traditional ancient architectural model making technique depends on the complexity of the product. The usual sequence of steps is: drawing a rough sketch; selecting woods such as walnut, catalpa and pear; kiln-drying the stock; cutting the material; making the base platform; erecting the columns to form a column grid; joining them lengthwise and crosswise into the beam frame; laying the rafters and the flying rafters to build the roof; and fitting doors and windows and finishing them with oil paint and polychrome decoration. The building of temples always began with a small model, which was revised until the patron approved it before construction started; consequently the leading craftsmen of the time all commanded the ancient architectural model making technique. The scientific value of the ancient architectural model making technique lies in its ability to reproduce precisely the structure and craft of an ancient building, providing empirical material for architectural history, mechanical analysis and materials research.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

In Shanxi the ancient architectural model making technique is centred on Taiyuan and forms a continuous craft belt with the Datong area: before a temple or monastery was begun, a small model was first assembled and appraised and revised until the patron approved it, and only then could ground be broken, so that the region around Mount Wutai, densely dotted with temples, was the first to gather model-making craftsmen. Surviving models may be seen in the Jinci Museum in Taiyuan and the Huayan Temple in Datong. Walnut, catalpa and pear woods are used, and the columns are erected into a column grid and then joined into the beam frame. Qi Weicheng is a native of Dingxiang and took part in making the model of the Yingxian Wooden Pagoda.

04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

At present the core area of this technique is Taiyuan City and Datong City in Shanxi Province and their surrounding areas; surviving ancient architectural models may be seen in the Jinci Museum in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, the Xuanquan Temple in Yangqu County of Taiyuan City, the Huayan Temple in Datong City and the Ciyun Temple in Tianzhen County of Datong City. The finished model matches the original building in outward appearance and internal structure; it is a scale model of an ancient building, can be taken apart and reassembled, and once assembled becomes a movable building of aesthetic value. The features of the ancient architectural model making technique are these: in architectural conception, it transmits Chinese ancient architectural culture, building forms, building science, building technology, architectural art and structural characteristics; in architectural form, it transmits the axial symmetry and the square, strictly ordered character of Chinese ancient architecture; in building technology, it transmits the mortise-and-tenon joints, the "rising" and the "side splay" used in Chinese ancient architecture, providing a basis to follow in repairing surviving ancient buildings. At the end of the eighteenth century many craftsmen, in order to make a living, used their command of model making, in the intervals of building the new and repairing the old, to reduce all kinds of ancient buildings to models, and in this way the technique has been handed down to the present, still transmitted mainly within families. This technique displays the wisdom of ancient building construction and the aesthetics of craftsmanship, and its cultural value lies in carrying on and promoting traditional architectural aesthetics and in helping to deepen the public's understanding of and identification with the nation's history and culture. Qi Weicheng (recorded in the official archive of the associated inheritor): Male, Han ethnicity, born in June 1968, a native of Dingxiang County, Shanxi Province. Representative inheritor of the ancient architectural model making technique, a project of the fifth national-level batch of intangible cultural heritage. Senior engineer. He later studied at the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; in 2006 he was promoted to senior engineer of ancient architecture and engaged by the Shanxi Ancient Architecture Company as chief engineer. At the end of the 1980s he began to work independently, and took part in making the models of the Yingxian Wooden Pagoda and the Guanque Tower that the Shanxi provincial government presented as gifts to celebrate the return of Hong Kong and Macao. For many years he has devoted himself to training successors, and together with his disciples he has made more than thirty sets of ancient architectural models, while also writing the monograph Techniques for Making Chinese Ancient Architecture.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

• Qi Weicheng 05-2909

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

1. Gujianzhumoxing Making Craftsmanship (Taiyuan, Shanxi) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Qi Weicheng · National Representative Bearer Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗