Folk craft products unique to Guangyuan, Sichuan

White flower stone carving, a unique folk handicraft in Guangyuan, Sichuan.

Baihua stone carving is a traditional carving art based on Baihua stone in Daba Mountain, which is popular in Guangyuan City, Sichuan Province. White marble is as hard as iron and as thin as skin. Local artists use their natural colors and textures of red, white or green and white to carve, creating a unique art of white flower stone carving.

Guangyuan stone carving art has a long history of development. From the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, there were many grotto carvings and cliff statues in Guangyuan, which remain to this day. Since the Qing Dynasty, Baihua stone carving has been greatly developed, forming a carving art with local characteristics.

There are many carving techniques such as deep carving, shallow carving and hollowing out. Landscape, people, flowers, birds and animals are often the themes, and the products are mostly practical products such as cigarette cases, stationery, flower pots, flower stands, stone screens and so on. Baihua stone carving artists are good at using art according to materials, and skillfully unify the natural beauty and exquisite conception of stones in their works, reflecting exquisite craftsmanship and unique artistic characteristics.

Development history

As early as the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Guangyuan stone carving gradually evolved from cliff stone carving to stone carving. In the long-term production practice, Guangyuan folk artists carved stone screens, inkstones, pen holders, flower pots and pen holders with bright colors, such as landscapes, figures, flowers, birds and animals.

In modern times, Baihua stone carving has gradually formed its own unique humanistic style. With its rich local characteristics and exquisite carving skills, it is known as one of the four famous sculptures in China and enjoys a good reputation at home and abroad.

According to the section of Carving Technology in Cihai Arts and Crafts, the thin and soft stones produced in Guangyuan, Sichuan Province have a layered feeling of white, grayish white and light green among the pork liver and dark green stones, which are used by local artists to carve stationery, kettles, sugar pots and other practical handicrafts, and are known as Guangyuan White Flower Stone Carving at home and abroad.

"Guangyuan County Records" cultural volume, the sixth arts and crafts of the second part of mass literature and art, first introduces Guangyuan Baihua stone carvings. The historical situation of Baihua stone carvings in Guangyuan County Chronicle. According to county records, Baihua stone carving began in Xianfeng period of Qing Dynasty. Folk artists choose Baihua Stone (a fine, soft stone with pig liver-colored white lines and green stone layers) from Beitaiping Town of this county to carve the inkstone platform for sale.