Tongren Tangzhongyiyaowenhua
01 · Historical Records
Beijing Tongrentang is a time-honored name in Chinese traditional medicine, founded in 1669, with a history of 337 years to this day. From 1723, when it began 'undertaking the preparation of official medicines' for the court, until 1911 — a span of 188 years — Tongrentang followed the imperial standards for selecting medicinal materials, strictly adhered to palace secret prescriptions and pharmaceutical methods, and developed a strict quality supervision system. The organic integration and mutual influence between Tongrentang and the Qing Imperial Medical Department and the Imperial Pharmacy gave rise to the distinctive style and traditional knowledge of Tongrentang's Chinese medicines.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The traditional Chinese medicine culture of Tongrentang is concentrated in the following: the values of 'cultivating benevolence together and aiding the world and preserving life'; the quality philosophy that 'however complex the processing, no labor is ever spared, and however precious the ingredients, no material is ever cut'; the business philosophy of 'valuing good faith and harmony among people'; the professional ethic of 'deceiving neither the old nor the young, treating all alike'; the Tongrentang brand and its distinctive marks; the works 'Leshi Shidai Zuchuan Wan San Gao Dan Xia Liao Peifang' (The Leshi Family's Hereditary Formulas for Pills, Powders, Ointments, and Pellets) and 'Tongrentang Qianxiu Zhumen Yingzheng Wan San Gao Dan Zongmu' (Tongrentang's Piously Prepared Catalogue of Pills, Powders, Ointments, and Pellets for All Conditions); Tongrentang's traditional Chinese medicine processing techniques; and Tongrentang's pharmaceutical characteristics — the fusion of traditional Chinese medicine with court pharmacy — which are summarized as 'unique prescriptions, superior selected ingredients, exquisite craftsmanship, and remarkable efficacy.' However, under the influence of Western modernization, Tongrentang's original traditional Chinese medicine processing techniques and pharmaceutical characteristics face difficulties of survival and development; traditional pharmaceutical methods have been constrained, and its distinctive techniques face the risk of being lost.
Judging rare and precious materia medica
Rare materia medica runs to dozens of varieties and hundreds of grades; laboratory testing cannot fully replace the trained eye, and the inspector's experience decides the verdict.
Formula and weighing of pills, powders, pastes and pills
The family formula book fixes the ingredients, weights and order of weighing for every remedy, and remains the working reference in the workshop today.
The catalogue of remedies
The house catalogue lists every remedy prepared, so that dispensing can be checked against a record shaped by two centuries of court service.
Verifying the court dispensary formulas
Drawing on dispensary records and catalogues from 1669 to 1950, the compiler sorted out the formulas, traced their sources, and wrote a brief analysis of each.
The house quality-control system
From the start of court supply in 1723, imperial standards for selecting material shaped a strict system of oversight that later governed both manufacture and sale.
Distinct prescriptions, superior material
Distinct prescriptions, superior material, refined workmanship and proven effect—four phrases summing up where folk and court pharmacy met.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Tongrentang's traditional Chinese medicine culture has Beijing as its single source and flows outward from there: the standards for court medicines, the official medicines it prepared, and the orally transmitted processing techniques from master to apprentice all spread from the head office, with branch shops and pharmaceutical workshops relying on the same set of texts, 'Leshi Shidai Zuchuan Wan San Gao Dan Xia Liao Peifang' and 'Tongrentang Qianxiu Zhumen Yingzheng Wan San Gao Dan Zongmu'. The work of the two inheritors, Lu Guangrong and Jin Aiying, follows the same path: one guards the identification of rare and precious medicinal materials, and the other guards the 'Peiben' (formula books) and 'Yaomu' (medicine catalogues) from 1669 to 1950.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Tongrentang has made unremitting efforts to protect this excellent traditional culture, which urgently needs the respect and protection of society as a whole. Lu Guangrong (recorded in the official file of the associated inheritor): Female, Han ethnicity, born in 1937, from Tianjin. Rare and precious Chinese medicinal materials comprise dozens of varieties and more than 300 specification grades; most are scarce resources and expensive. Modern testing techniques are still hard to substitute for traditional identification techniques. The traditional identification techniques for Chinese medicinal materials are broad in scope, the causes of quality problems are complex, and they place high demands on the personal qualities, experience, and skills of the inspectors, requiring strong identification ability. Lu Guangrong has taken on eight apprentices in succession, using the traditional method of apprenticeship. In the course of teaching, she also instilled in her students the thinking and concepts of traditional Chinese medicine culture, as well as principles of personal conduct, pharmaceutical ethics, and scholarly character. Representative inheritor of Tongrentang Traditional Chinese Medicine Culture, a first-batch national-level intangible cultural heritage item; one of 500 senior veteran experts of traditional Chinese medicine nationwide; recipient of the State Council's special government allowance. For her special contributions, Lu Guangrong was named an 'Advanced Female Worker of the Nation' by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions. Jin Aiying (recorded in the official file of the associated inheritor): Female, Manchu ethnicity, born in 1940, from Beijing. She has conducted in-depth study and research on Tongrentang's traditional pharmaceutical techniques, pharmaceutical texts, and quality management methods. Through research on nearly two centuries of history in supplying medicines to the Qing court, she excavated and systematized the historical origins of Tongrentang's traditional Chinese medicine culture, defining it as 'a distinctive body of Tongrentang-specific knowledge of disease, traditional Chinese medicine processing techniques, and traditional preparation methods, formed by organically fusing Tongrentang's Chinese medicine processing techniques and traditional preparation methods with the medication standards of the Qing imperial court, together with a form of guarantee prioritizing quality and integrity in the medicines supplied to the Qing court.' She led the completion of theoretical projects such as 'The Collation and Study of the Leshi Family's Hereditary Formulas for Pills, Powders, Ointments, and Pellets'. She collected historical materials including Tongrentang's 'Peiben' (formula books) and 'Yaomu' (medicine catalogues) from 1669 to 1950, completed the collation of traditional formulas, verified the sources of prescriptions and provided brief explanations for some varieties, summarized and organized the special processing techniques for Chinese medicinal materials, compiled a supplementary edition of 'Methods of Processing Chinese Medicines', proposed the practical value of Tongrentang's traditional formula books and methods for protecting Tongrentang's intangible assets, and made outstanding contributions to the transmission and development of Tongrentang's traditional Chinese medicine culture. Representative inheritor of Tongrentang Traditional Chinese Medicine Culture, a first-batch national-level intangible cultural heritage item; senior engineer; recipient of the State Council's special government allowance.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Lu Guangrong 01-0215
- Jin Aiying 01-0216
- Guan Qingwei 01-0217
- Tian Ruihua 01-0218
- Zhao Xiaogang
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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