Willow weaving technique (Xindu willow weaving technique) is an extension of the traditional skills category of the fourth batch of representative items of municipal intangible cultural heritage in Huai'an. Historical evolution Willow woven baskets and baskets have appeared in the Neolithic Age. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, cups and plates were woven with willow branches and painted with lacquer, which were called cups and bowls. In the Tang Dynasty, the willow boxes in Cangzhou (now Cangzhou, Hebei and the area north of Ningjin, Shandong) were already very famous. In the Song Dynasty, people took thin strips of Chinese willow and "forced them to bend by fire to make boxes and chests." Since then, the willow weaving technique has continued to develop. The Xindu area in Huaiyin District, Huai'an City is dominated by traditional willow weaving varieties, mainly including clothes boxes, baskets, dustpans, etc. Basic content Xindu willow weaving must first process the raw materials. Every autumn, the cut willow branches are buried under the silt taken from the riverbed. Around the Qingming Festival of the second year, they are dug out and peeled. The treated willow branches have a smooth surface, fresh color, soft and firm, and are insect-proof and anti-corrosion. Then, using tools such as hammers, knives, awls, hemp, thread rollers, darts, tendon shuttles, and other tools, using twisting, weaving, and wrapping techniques, the willow branches, supplemented by hemp ropes, bamboo pieces, and cowhide tendons, are woven into production and living utensils for storing grain, clothes, and food, including fences, dustpans, plaques, baskets, boxes, helmets, etc. Willow products are characterized by being sturdy, durable, and economical. Xindu's willow weaving also pays attention to structure, which is generally divided into warp and weft structure and skeleton structure. Warp and weft structure refers to weaving mainly with willow branches according to the arrangement of certain warp and weft lines. The skeleton structure is made of wooden strips, rattan strips, bamboo pieces, etc., and then woven on the skeleton with willow branches, willow skin, cowhide tendons and other auxiliary materials. With the development of the economy and society, plastic products have gradually replaced willow products as the mainstream of people's daily utensils, and willow weaving skills are gradually declining. Traditional willow weaving skills are in urgent need of protection and inheritance. (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)