Miao Silver CraftingTechniques of Fenghuang County

WOMEN of the Miaoethnic group in Chinalove silver ornaments.In ancient times， theMiao people were alwaystraveling rather than settling down.Legend has it that Miao people reforgedtheir valuables by placing them intofurnaces and crafting them into wearableaccessories， enabling them to carry theirassets with them when they traveled.This tradition continues to this day. Thecraftsmanship of silver ornaments by theMiao was rated as one of the representativeitems of national intangible culturalheritage in 2006. Miao people living inFenghuang County of Hunan Provinceexcel in this craftsmanship.

Miao silver ornaments come in numerouscomplicated shapes and featurean exquisitely gorgeous sheen. Theyare worn on every part of the body，literally from head to toe. For shoulderand chest， for example， silver can bemade into shawls， chains， bells， knives，swords， hooks， bows， and various otheritems as embellishments. Two types ofheaddresses， a silver phoenix crown andsilver flower hat， are the most representativeof Miao silver ornaments， comprisingof over 150 intricate and smallpieces of jewelry. In order to facilitatethe cleaning of silver jewelry， each partof the elaborately crafted headdressesis assembled in a winding way， so theycan be disassembled readily. Traditionalmotifs on the Miao jewelry includeflowers， birds， fish， and cows.

Its manufacturing process generallyinvolves around 30 steps， includingforging， drawing， hammering， chiseling，and soldering. Today， the silver jewelryindustry is seeing greater output andmore diverse designs due to technology-assisted machinery manufacturing.In Fenghuang ancient town， many"silversmiths inherit and carry on theskills passed down from their ancestorsto fashion silver jewelry by hand as theyfirmly believe that hand-made jewelryhas greater vitality.

To promote this time-honored craftingskill， the local government of FenghuangCounty founded a training center.Wen Dezhong， a well-known mastersilversmith in Fenghuang committed topromoting the traditional culture surroundingMiao silver， has been invitedto teach Miao silver making skills at thecenter. In addition to apprenticeship，live streaming， e-commerce， and onlineshort videos， other technology-assistedchannels have also contributed to thegrowing popularity of Miao silver， attractingmore and more consumers toplace orders for customized hand-madeMiao silverware.