Shu Brocade: A Thousand-Year-Old Splendor, the Soul of Shu Land
As the top of China's Four Great Famous Brocades, Shu Brocade is an iconic craft of Chengdu and a milestone in the history of Chinese brocade weaving. Shen Congwen clearly defined it as "the figured brocade woven in Chengdu, Sichuan" in his work "Brocades of Shu". This traditional handcraft, relying on the ancient flower-loom, has thrived in the Land of Abundance for over 2,000 years, earning Chengdu the reputations of "Jinqu Cheng" (Brocade City) and "Jinguan Cheng" (Brocade Official City). Even the Minjiang River encircling the city is renamed "Jinjiang" (Brocade River) for washing brocades, and place names like "Jinli" and "Jinguan Yi" (Brocade Official Post) all witness its profound connection with the city.
The Evolving Journey Over Millennia
The development history of Shu Brocade is a scroll resonating with the Chinese civilization. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, the textiles of the Shu State were famous for vivid patterns and exquisite weaves, and the name "Shu Brocade" spread far and wide to the feudal states. In the Han Dynasty, special officials were appointed to supervise brocade weaving, making Chengdu's brocade industry flourish. Supporting venues such as "Jinshi" (Brocade Market) and "Jinli" emerged as a result. The Tang Dynasty marked the heyday of Shu Brocade, with a wide variety of exquisite works exported to Japan, Persia and other regions, fully demonstrating its "unrivaled craftsmanship under heaven".
In the Song and Yuan dynasties, Shu Brocade continued to innovate while inheriting the styles of the Han and Tang dynasties. The Chengdu Brocade Courtyard in the Song Dynasty was on a large scale, and the government set up additional brocade yards for tea-horse trade to exchange brocades for horses, boosting production. The late Ming Dynasty wars led to the destruction of brocade workshops and the loss of patterns. After the Qing Dynasty stabilized, the craft gradually recovered but faced competition from the booming silk industry in the Jiangnan region. After the Opium War in modern times, the influx of foreign goods pushed Shu Brocade into a slump. It was not until the founding of New China that it regained vitality with government support, reweaving lost patterns and creating new works with regional characteristics. The 1980s witnessed its last prosperity, but the 1990s brought a decline due to industrialization. Since the 21st century, through the combination of intangible cultural heritage protection and innovation, Shu Brocade has regained its glory.
Exquisite Types and Craftsmanship
Shu Brocade boasts a rich variety of types, each with unique features. Yusi Jin (Rain Thread Brocade) features alternating transitions between white and colored warp threads, forming light and dark rain-like stripes with a brisk rhythm. Fangfang Jin (Square Brocade) has colored squares arranged on a single background color, adorned with ancient patterns such as plum blossoms and magpies vying for spring, and phoenixes piercing peonies. Pudi Jin (Carpet Brocade), also known as "adding flowers on brocade", uses geometric patterns as the base and embeds large flowers (some with gold threads), appearing magnificent and grand. Huanhua Jin (Washing Flower Brocade) originated from the ancient "Luohua Liushui Jin" (Falling Flowers and Flowing Water Brocade), combining curved water patterns with falling flowers, elegant and primitive. In addition, Sanhua Jin (Scattered Flower Brocade) with ethnic styles, Minzu Jin (Ethnic Brocade) with golden and silver luster, and Caiyun Jin (Color Gradient Brocade) with brilliant color transitions together form the colorful spectrum of Shu Brocade.
Shu Brocade is "as valuable as gold" thanks to its complex and exquisite craftsmanship. From initial design, pattern drafting, to loom setup and weaving, it goes through multiple core processes, each hiding unique skills. Weavers need to tie twelve seamless knots with fine silk threads in one minute, pattern drawers must accurately pull threads among thousands of strands, and weavers coordinate their hands and feet to step on 16 heddles, throw shuttles with both hands, and frequently go down to the loom pit to check threads. This weaving method, combining pattern drawers and weavers, along with the delicate structure of the flower-loom, makes Shu Brocade unique in its rich patterns, exquisite weaves and elegant color matching.
The Cultural Mission of Inheritance
As a carrier of cultural and trade exchanges on the ancient Silk Roads (both northern and southern routes), Shu Brocade has long been a link between China and the world. It provided military funds for the unification of the Qin Dynasty and served as the economic pillar of the Shu-Han State during the Three Kingdoms period, witnessing ethnic integration and cultural mutual learning. In 2006, Shu Brocade Weaving Craft was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list, and its protection and inheritance entered a new stage.
Today, inheritors adhere to both preservation and innovation. They have not only replicated ancient Qing Dynasty flower-looms and restored the Han Dynasty brocade weaving workshop but also developed and reproduced nearly 60 classic Shu Brocade works from the Han and Tang dynasties. Works such as "Persian Script Brocade" and "Zodiac·Maze" have broken through the limitations of traditional craftsmanship, showing the vitality of modern innovation. Chengdu Shu Brocade and Embroidery Museum, the only thematic museum dedicated to displaying the history and traditional craftsmanship of Shu Brocade in China, vividly presents the entire set of handcraft techniques and has received visitors from more than 40 countries and regions. Through the "master-apprentice" training model in master studios, young apprentices with an average age of 31.6 have become the new force in inheritance, allowing this thousand-year-old craft to continue to shine in the new era.
Would you like me to prepare an English version of Shu Brocade's key knowledge checklist, making it easy to grasp its historical milestones, representative types and craft highlights at a glance?