The origin of blue calico

Blue calico originated in Qin and Han Dynasties and flourished in the commercially developed Tang and Song Dynasties. In the Ming and Qing dynasties when capitalism was in its infancy, patch cloth was widely popular among the people. The styles of blue calico seen in modern times are mostly works of Ming and Qing Dynasties. These daily necessities, such as mosquito nets, quilts, bags, headscarves, door curtains, etc. Made of blue calico, simple and generous, with fresh and bright colors and simple patterns, it has always been very popular.

Therefore, the dyehouse industry once became a prominent local industry. During the Song and Yuan Dynasties, Tongxiang blue calico was extremely prosperous, forming a spectacular scene: looms were everywhere, and dyeing workshops were woven all over the streets. Among them, the "Fengtongyu" and "Tai Sen" dyehouses in Shimen (formerly known as Yuxi) became the best in the industry for a while. Products such as "Ruihe Xiangming", "Three Friends in Cold Year", "Mei Kai Five Blessingg" and "Liu Kai Bai Zi" have long enjoyed a good reputation.

Nantong is one of the main producing areas of blue calico in China. Nantong is one of the main cotton producing areas in China, where there is a kind of blue grass that can be used as pigment, and indigo industry is developed. So basically every family in Nantong weaves, and every family can dye blue cloth.

The history of Nantong blue printed cloth can be traced back to the Southern Song Dynasty (1 127-1279). At that time, oil-paper umbrellas were widely circulated among the people, and folk printing and dyeing artists cleverly combined oil-paper with woodcut, and invented a new printing and dyeing production process with soybean flour, lime and rice bran as anti-dyeing slurry, which promoted the anti-leakage and anti-dyeing of oil-paper umbrellas.

With the development of cotton textile industry in the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty, the dyeing technology of Nantong blue calico was gradually formed. The dyes used at that time were mainly blue, followed by black and red, all of which were natural dyes. Indigo was dyed blue. According to records, indigo was produced in Nantong in the Ming Dynasty. Because homespun needs dyeing, dyes are sold not only to dyehouses, but also to weavers and farmers.

According to legend, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, there was a store in Nantong that specialized in selling dyes, named "Indigo Store", which was handed over to the court as a major tribute in local products. The Qing Dynasty's "Guangxu Tongzhou Zhi" also specifically recorded the process of making indigo with blue printed cloth in Nantong.

Extended data

Blue calico can be generally divided into two forms: white flowers with blue background and blue flowers with white background. White cloth with blue background only needs to be printed with patterns, and the spots that make up the patterns are not connected with each other, such as plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum. The production method of blue cloth with white background is usually overprinted with two flower plates, the first printing is called "flower plate" and the second printing is called "cover plate". The function of the cover plate is to cover the connection points of the flower board and the places that need to be left blank, and set off the blue pattern more clearly.

Another way to print blue flowers on a white background is to use a separate printing plate, which is lined with meshes, and the patterns of the printing plate do not need to be connected everywhere. After the carving is completed, the printing plate is glued and painted on a large-area reticular substrate, and then scraped. Some blue printed fabrics are still double-sided, so it is necessary to scrape the pulp on the front, aim at the front pattern on the back with a copying table and then scrape the pulp, so that you can get double-sided blue printed fabrics after dyeing.

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