Fangjiuhua Engraving

Engraving is an independent traditional craft in China. Shanghai engraving craft represented by Fangjiuhua Jewelry Store has a unique artistic style. In 2014, engraving was listed by Xuhui District People’s Government in the list of the sixth batch of District-level Intangible Cultural Heritage in Xuhui District. With a history of over 3,000 years, engraving emerged during the Xia and Zhou dynasties and flourished during the Tang dynasty. In the engraving craft, after vessel shape and pattern is designed, special tools and specific techniques are used to make various relief-shaped patterns on a metal plate according to a certain process. The shapes of engraving crafts are mainly divided into plane “sheet product” and solid “round product”. The former was installed on some utensils or hung for appreciation, while the latter was mainly used as a practical utensil. More than ten procedures are needed to complete a fine engraving work. In addition to good techniques, the operator shall be able to produce easy-to-use engraving tools according to the object to be engraved. Since Fangjiuhua Jewelry Store was founded in 1856, Fangjiuhua has absorbed Shanghai-style and Western artistic patterns on the basis of inheriting and developing Chinese traditional engraving craft, forming the unique Shanghai Fangjiuhua engraving artistic characteristics of “careful engraving, decoration and gilding, combination of Chinese and foreign styles, material mixing, and luxury and magnificence”.