The craft of making Puxi
Puxi originated before the Tang Dynasty, developed in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, and flourished from the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty to the 20th year before the Republic of China, with a history of more than 1,400 years. In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it became one of the three famous mats in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, along with Suxi and Ningxi. Puxi combines the styles of the north and the south. In the weaving process, the materials are carefully selected, the process is rigorous, and the skills are unique. The woven straw mats have the characteristics of "green color, tight and thick, smooth and comfortable". It is praised by the world for its "dense, exquisite, simple, comfortable and durable". It enjoys the reputation of "watertight, standing and not falling, and not breaking for 20 years". In the long-term practice of weaving mats, Puxi people give full play to their intelligence and wisdom, and pass on the unique handcrafts from generation to generation through oral transmission. For example, the baking technique is a process unique to the country and is the biggest feature of Puxi. The proficiency of the baking technique determines the quality of the mat. Each process of Pu Xi is very particular about the word "uniformity", such as selecting the grass to be uniform in thickness, shaking the tendons to be uniform in strips, buckling the tendons to be uniform in tightness, buckling the palms to be uniform in density, and baking the mats to be uniform in arrangement. All these unique and rigorous processes have made Pu Xi unique in quality and popularity. These unique skills are the precious wealth of traditional Chinese hand-woven mats, and have invaluable craft value for future research and compilation of the history of Chinese straw mats and the history of straw mat making skills across the country. The name of Pu Shu Bay was changed to Pu Xi because of the prosperity of the straw mat industry in the area, reflecting the era context and development trajectory of the Pu Xi area. The grand scene of "Three Bays, Nine Wells and Eighteen Alleys, and Every Household is Busy Weaving Mats" made Pu Xi famous all over the world and also gave Pu Xi a profound regional cultural value. (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)