Yi Chuantongjianzhu Building Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
After the Tang dynasty Chinese timber-frame architecture gradually moved towards maturity, and all-timber mortise-and-tenon structures gradually rose. Especially after the Ming and Qing dynasties, with the spread of the native chieftain system in Yi areas and the extensive use of iron tools, the traditional Yi "well-frame" structure houses gradually disappeared, and mortise-and-tenon structures represented by the post-and-lintel and the through-tenon types, built of stone slabs and wooden boards, began to be popular.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The craft of building traditional Yi dwellings in Liangshan is distributed mainly in the counties of Leibo, Jinyang, Zhaojue, Butuo, Puge and Yuexi in the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan Province. The Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture lies in southwestern Sichuan and has a complex and varied topography, with a rare subtropical dry-hot river valley savanna landscape and abundant animal and plant resources and extensive forest cover, which provided rich raw materials for traditional Yi dwellings. In the heartland of Liangshan in Sichuan Province, thanks to special natural, geographical, historical and cultural factors, traditional Yi architecture has been preserved relatively intact. Traditional Liangshan Yi dwellings use mortise-and-tenon structures with a gabled roof; inside they use through-tie beams and bracket sets, the walls are of inset construction carved with various natural patterns, and the process steps are complex with a high level of craftsmanship. In the course of construction there are no building drawings and no nails or adhesives are used; the builders rely entirely on the "drawings" already in the craftsmen's minds and on their experience, building with traditional tools. The construction process is divided mainly into the following stages: first, selecting materials, choosing round logs and boards that meet the standards as materials for through-tie beams, house columns, post-and-lintel beams, bracket sets, doors and lintels. Second, processing: axes, saws, planes, drills and chisels are used to process and shape the materials. Third, assembly: the finished columns, boards, bracket sets, window lattices, beds and doors are assembled according to the rules. According to traditional practice, through-tie beams are used upstairs, while downstairs boards or windows are used for decoration. The through-tie beams are taken in odd numbers of three, five, seven, nine or eleven layers, and the ground floor is divided into a principal place, a guest place, an activity area and a storage area. Fourth, carving and polychrome painting, whose locations are mostly the eaves, lintels, board walls, windows and bracket sets. Traditional Yi dwellings all project eaves of about two metres and are decorated with bracket sets. The bracket sets are mostly decorated in the shape of water-buffalo horns with horse-tooth patterns carved on them, while the square frames and window lattices are mostly decorated with red, yellow and black polychrome painting, in patterns of sun, moon, stars, flowers, birds, grass, insects, mountains and rivers as well as abstract symbols such as wave patterns and meander patterns. Early Yi dwellings took the form of a combination of "well-frame" wall bodies and "stilt" construction. The craft of building traditional Liangshan Yi dwellings is complex and exquisite, both decorative and practical, and is a composite of Yi traditional craft, aesthetic ideas and customary beliefs; it crystallizes the cognition and emotions of the Yi people and is of great value for studying the architectural history, craft history and cultural history of the Yi.
Archival Records of Process Steps
Traditional Liangshan Yi dwellings use mortise-and-tenon structures with a gabled roof; inside they use through-tie beams and bracket sets, and the walls are of inset construction carved with various natural patterns, so that the process steps are complex and the level of craftsmanship high. The construction process is divided mainly into the following stages: first, selecting materials, choosing round logs and boards that meet the standards as materials for through-tie beams, house columns, post-and-lintel beams, bracket sets, doors and lintels.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The craft of building traditional Liangshan Yi dwellings is distributed in a continuous belt across the six counties of Leibo, Jinyang, Zhaojue, Butuo, Puge and Yuexi within the prefecture: timber in the dry-hot river valleys is mostly taken from the sparse woodland on the slopes, while in the high-mountain Yi areas fir must be felled on the spot to make through-tie beams. The skill of each family of craftsmen is concentrated in the through-tie beams and bracket sets and in the inset construction of the walls; the through-tie beams are taken in odd numbers of three, five, seven, nine or eleven layers, and the bracket sets are mostly made in the shape of water-buffalo horns with horse-tooth patterns carved on them. The family with the longest line of transmission has reached fifteen generations.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
With the development of the social productive forces and the refinement of the division of labour, house-building skills were gradually transformed into transmission through master-apprentice instruction within communities of craftsmen possessing building skills. At present several dozen families practise this craft, and the longest line of transmission has already reached fifteen generations. In recent years the craft has made a positive contribution to integrating culture and tourism, raising people's incomes and advancing rural revitalization.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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