Introduction to Xiangyun Sha
Xiangyun Sha, also known as “Xiangyun Sha,” “Yun Sha,” and originally named “Liang Sha,” is characterized in its weaving by the use of wild silk from mulberry silkworms. The weft threads are organized in a geometric jacquard pattern with white fabric, which after being woven into gauze or plain silk, is repeatedly soaked and sun-dried with the juice of the unique Guangdong plant, Chinese gallnut (which contains gelatin and tannic acid). This process coats the prepared fabric with a yellow-brown gel-like substance. Subsequently, it is covered with the mineral-rich river mud specific to the Pearl River Delta region, undergoing repeated processes of drying, washing, and fermentation to produce an expensive type of gauze. As the fabric makes a “rustling” sound when walked upon, it was initially called “Xiang Yun Sha.” In old Shanghai, it was referred to as “Xiang Yan Sha” due to the color of the cigarettes of that time, while people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces call it “Xiangyun Sha,” and in Guangdong, it is known as “Liang Sha.”
The Shunde district, close to the estuary of the Pearl River system, has two main tributaries: the Xi River and the Bei River, both emerging from the mountains of Guangxi and Hunan. After flowing for hundreds of miles through relatively gentle hilly terrain, they reach Zhongshan, Nanhai, and Shunde, where the main tributaries split into countless smaller channels, forming a network of rivers with slow currents. Over time, a rich layer of fine, mud-free sediment accumulates at the bottom of the riverbed, which is one of the most important raw materials in the Xiangyun Sha dyeing technique – “river mud.” At the same time, the banks of these rivers are mostly flat, making it easy to plant grass to form the main venue for the Xiangyun Sha dyeing technique – “sunning grounds.” Another key ingredient, Chinese gallnut, can be found everywhere in the foothills of Gao Yao, Lu Bu, and Xin Xing. By the early years of the Republic of China, there were over 300 dyeing factories in Shunde (Lun Jiao).
In 2008, “Xiangyun Sha Dyeing and Finishing Technique” was included in the second batch of national intangible cultural heritage lists, with Lun Jiao, Shunde becoming the inheriting site of Xiangyun Sha dyeing and finishing techniques. In 2011, the Shunde government successfully applied for “Shunde Xiangyun Sha” to receive “National Geographical Indication Protection”; in 2013, the Guangdong Provincial Quality and Technical Supervision Bureau officially approved and released the local standard for “Geographical Indication Product Xiangyun Sha.” Following its inclusion in the intangible cultural heritage list, the Xiangyun Sha market experienced a sudden surge in demand, with dyeing factories in Lun Jiao springing up like mushrooms after rain. Traditional factories take half a month and go through dozens of processes to produce Xiangyun Sha, whereas new entrants into the market use machines to produce it within three to four days, resulting in low-quality, inexpensive products that severely impact traditional Xiangyun Sha factories. The industry suffered its third decline, and the market underwent another major reshuffle. By 2011, only four Xiangyun Sha factories remained in Shunde, including the Chengyi Sunning Factory. As of 2017, the annual output of Xiangyun Sha in Lun Jiao was approximately 2 million meters, with the products sold in major distribution centers such as Hangzhou, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen.
Geographic Scope
The current administrative area of Shunde District, Foshan City, Guangdong Province.
Product Features
Xiangyun Sha is the only silk fabric in the world dyed with pure plant dyes. Its unique production process results in a limited quantity and long production time. It is characterized by its coolness, lightness, quick drying, wrinkle resistance, and body, as well as its antibacterial and insect-repellent properties, which provide health benefits for the skin. The front side is glossy black, while the back side is coffee-colored or retains the original color of the base material, often showing distinctive marks from the gallnut and river mud. It has a delicate, smooth, and resilient texture and is highly breathable and non-clinging.
Historical Folklore
Origin Myth: Fishermen in the Pearl River Delta used Chinese gallnut to soak their fishing nets, making them firmer and more durable. When soaking the nets, the fishermen's clothes would also be stained with Chinese gallnut juice. Over time, the interaction between the Chinese gallnut juice on their clothes and the river mud in their work environment caused the clothes to become glossy black and as firm as the fishing nets. The more the clothes were worn, the softer and more durable they became. Therefore, while soaking their fishing nets, the fishermen also began to soak their everyday clothing. At that time, the Pearl River Delta was full of fish ponds surrounded by mulberry trees, and people lived a life of farming and weaving. Since silk fabrics tend to turn yellow and crease easily after prolonged use, farmers producing silk gradually adapted the method of soaking fabrics used by fishermen to treat silk fabrics, which became the precursor to the dyeing and finishing of Liang Sha and Liang Chou.
According to “The Guangdong Provincial Annals of Silk Industry,” the early production of Liang Sha originated in Nanhai. According to historical records such as “The Guangdong Provincial Annals of Textile Industry,” “The Guangdong Provincial Annals of Silk Industry,” and “The Nanhai County Annals of Textile Industry,”
In the 1840s, villagers around Minle Village in Xiqiao, Nanhai, began using Chinese gallnut and river mud to dye plain silk, transforming the originally soft silk into a thicker and more rustic fabric through processes such as soaking in Chinese gallnut juice, sealing with Chinese gallnut water, and coating with river mud.
In the 1930s, during Chen Jitang's (also known as Bo Nan) tenure as governor of Guangdong, he vigorously advocated the construction of Guangdong society and the revitalization of its economy. Among other things, the silk industry was considered vital to the province's economic lifeline. In July 1933 (year 22 of the Republic of China), the provincial government ordered the establishment of the “Zhenxing Mulberry and Silk Industry General Implementation Zone” in “Twelve Mu” (a place name) in Shunde, directly under the jurisdiction of the Guangdong Construction Department. The implementation zone had six sub-zones, with Lun Jiao being the most important. After extensive research and evidence gathering by the provincial government, it was decided to establish another “Bo Nan Central Model Silkworm Village” in Lun Jiao, to serve as a demonstration base for the silkworm and silk industries in the entire province and even the country.
After World War II, a global economic crisis broke out, and rayon was first introduced to the market, priced much lower than real silk. Major silk-consuming countries in Europe and America gradually replaced mulberry silk with rayon for silk production, severely impacting the silk industry in Guangdong. Shunde's Lun Jiao was no exception; by 1949, most of the sunning factories were on the brink of bankruptcy, and only 50 silk weaving and sunning factories remained in Foshan, most of which were either idle or operating at reduced capacity.
In the early days of the People's Republic of China, the government organized production rescue efforts, mutual aid cooperation, and public-private partnerships to adjust and merge households and factories engaged in the production of “Liang Sha and Liang Chou,” establishing new factories. For example, independent sunning factories, such as the Foshan Sunning Factory and the Lun Jiao Sunning Factory in Foshan City and Shunde County, respectively, were established and no longer depended on silk weaving factories.
Manufacturing Method
Silk preparation → Soak in Chinese gallnut water once → Sprinkle with Chinese gallnut water six times → Seal with Chinese gallnut water six times → Boil silk once → Seal with Chinese gallnut water twelve times → Boil silk once → Seal with Chinese gallnut water once → Roll silk → Coat with river mud → Wash → Seal with Chinese gallnut water once → Spread out to mist → Roll silk → Inspect, measure, and package → Store finished product.
The various processes involved in soaking, sprinkling, sealing, boiling, and washing are very complex, especially important is