Red Network Moment News April 28 news (correspondent Chen Weiping) in Chenzhou City, Linwu County Shunfeng Town (formerly Sungxi Township) Daling Village, rich in dragon whiskers grass mat, more than 600 years of history, the Qing Dynasty was once a tribute, so also known as "Dragon Whiskers Tribute Seat". In 1954, at the World Crafts Fair in Leipzig, Germany, it was hailed as "the world's unique handicraft". The production process of dragon's whisker grass mat is very exquisite, and it is divided into more than a dozen processes such as grass picking, boiling grass, and drying grass. After drying, the dragon's whisker grass turns yellow, and it needs to be hammered with a wooden hammer and scraped with a knife until it is smooth and smooth before the grass mat can be woven. A 1.8-meter handmade piece of dragon's whisker mat requires about 8,000 dragon's whisker grass, and the artist spends more than half a month to weave it.
Hu Xiaoqin, a Daling villager represented by the dragon whisker grass mat inheritance, went to the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe in Africa in November 1987 to teach the technique of dragon whisker straw weaving for five years. Hu Xiaoqin established "Xiangfei Weaving Crafts Co., Ltd." in 2016, and has trained more than 200 women in urban and rural areas to master the skill of dragon whisker straw weaving, so that it can be inherited and carried forward.
Hu Xiaoqin (third from left) shares with the villagers of Daling the Linwu Dragon Whisker Straw Mat with the pattern "Dragon and Phoenix Chengxiang", which requires about 8,000 dragon whiskers to weave.
On September 28, 1951, Song Qingling, vice chairman of the Central People's Government, sent a reply letter to Xiong Zilie, the county magistrate of Linwu County, and Fu Yunfei, deputy county magistrate, praising Linwu's dragon whisker products.
In the early 1950s, women in Daling Village were seriously inspecting the quality of dragon's whisker straw weaving products. (Infographic)
On March 26, 2019, in Sao Tome and Principe, Hu Xiaoqin once again set foot on African soil to guide local trainees to weave daily necessities. In January 1988, Hu Xiaoqin, who was in the middle of the Tao Li nian, was sent to Africa by the state as a representative and expert of the aid project to teach the art of dragon whisker straw weaving. (Infographic)
On May 27, 2021, at an altitude of more than 1,200 meters above sea level, Hu Xiaoqin and local villagers climbed the mountain and waded through the water and returned to collect grass.
Within three days of grass harvesting, the first "boiling" process must be completed.
Cook the grass three times, allowing each new grass to be evenly proportioned and soaked in hot water.
After three cool rays in the wild grass, the dragon's whisker grass gradually changed from green to golden yellow.
After drying, the dragon's whisker grass is bundled into a bunch, and the two ends are together.
Use a wooden hammer to hammer the grass, and the hammer grass should be evenly strengthened, so that the hollow hay becomes flat.
Hu Xiaoqin and Huang Guigui, 93, of Daling Village, carefully examined the flexibility of each grass, and the flat grass was more delicate and smooth after being scraped by a knife.
In the process of weaving the dragon's whisker grass mat, the green stone is pressed on the grass mat, and the weaving method of picking two and pressing two is the main method, and the weaving is woven by the intersection of straight flowers and horizontal flowers.
In Shimen Village, Huatang Township, Hu Xiaoqin used her spare time to carry out training and volunteered to teach the villagers the art of straw weaving.
Hu Xiaoqin innovated in traditional products and developed more than 20 new varieties such as dragon whisker straw baskets, handbags, and sun hats.
The latest woven home decoration "Chu Xin". For more than 30 years, Hu Xiaoqin has used her skills to excavate, inherit and carry forward the local traditional culture, and keep this "original intention".