*Yangmei Jade Carving

*Yangmei Jade Carving

Nominating Unit: City of Jieyang

People in Yangmei Village of Pandong Township, Dongshan District, City of Jieyang, has started to make a living by reonovating used jade wares as early as the 32nd year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu(1906) in the Qing Dynasty. The jade carving history has gone through three phases, namely the infant age when the craftsmen explored different techniques, the growing age when the techniques and types of products grew, and the maturing age when large scale manufacturing and fame are attained. Especially after reform and opening-up, most of the villagers went into this business in Yangmei Village which has a geographic area of less than a square kilometer and a population of less than 4,000. A rather competitive Yangmei Group stock holding company was also formed and its influence reached into neighboring villages. It created a wonder in the jade carving history of Guangdong Province.

Yangmei Jade Carving is very peculiar about the quality of raw jade it uses. It invariably uses high quality jade from Myanmar and China. Its techniques borrow from the many rich styles in Chaozhou wood carving and the expressing styles of textures and light and shade in Chaozhou Embroidery. The style of its products makes full use of the textures of raw jade and is renowned for its delicacy. Yangmei Jade Carving belongs to the southern genre, but with northern styles too. Its products have been sold around China and in Hong Kong and Macao as early as the 50s and 60s of the last century.(https://www.daowen.com)

Jade Carving is a difficult craftsmanship and requires a long period of time to really master it. Most of today’s young people are reluctant to learn it. With the modern machines and chemical products used in this industry, Yangmei Jade Carving has endured severe impact, and its transmission is faced with a challenge. Therefore, robust support from relevant authorities is urgently called for.

Yangmei Jade Carving was enlisted into the list of the second batch of state-level intangible cultural heritage in 2008.