Baimudu Bodhisattva

Chinese lacquer ware has a long history dating back as early as the New Stone Age. The original wares in China were those coated with black and red lacquers. From the Shang Dynasty to the Han, colorful painting, gold inlaying and other techniques were introduced into the making of lacquer ware. The oldest lacquer ware discovered dates back to the Warring State Period (403--221 BC) when lacquer ware was popular.Before the invention of the Chinese ink, lacquer had been used for writing. Twenty-eight bamboo clips found in a Warring States tomb at Changtaiguan, Xinyang, Henan Province, bear a list of the burial objects with the characters written in lacquer.Chinese lacquer is a natural varnish made from the sap of the lacquer tree. Exposed to air, it forms a plastic coat, resistant to water, acid or alkaline corrosion. To make lacquer ware, a base coat is applied to a core material, followed by extremely thin layers of the finest lacquer. Once these have dried, a final layer is added to make the lacquer strong and light, whilst maintaining the elegant appearance and harmonious color. It was in the Tang, Song and Yuan dynasties, when the lacquer ware production started to flourish.Fuzhou bodiless lacquer called one of 'Three treasures' of Chinese traditional crafts ' was invented in the Southern Song Dynasty. It shares the same fame with Beijing cloisonneand Jiangxi Jingdezhen ware, and gained 16 gold medals on the International Fair in Paris, Berlin, Tokyo and Panama within 39 years from 1898 to 1937. During the years of Qian Long of the Qing Dynasty, Sheng Shao an, Fuzhou famous lacquer artist, carried on the traditional lacquer art and created the unique bodiless lacquerware. Up to now, it has a history of more than 200 years. It enjoys distinctive national style and strong local feature, typical of stable quality, light weight, elegant decoration, vivid color, sturdy duration. The articles are distinguished not only by carvings in relief but by exquisite patterns inlaid with gems, gold, ivory and mother of pearl. They are of more than 3,000 varieties, including various furnishings and daily necessities like screens, folding screens, hall scrolls, characters, vases, plates, boxes and smoking sets. These articles are both practical and aesthetic mementos, and therefore quite popular with tourists. In recent years artists have developed their skills in furbishing, designing and embossing, while at the same time they have created new techniques which combine those used in jade, stone, ivory and wood carving.