Basic Introduction to Song Brocade
Song Brocade, also known as “Suzhou Song Brocade” due to its primary production base in Suzhou, is renowned for its splendid colors and exquisite patterns. Its firm yet soft texture has earned it the title of “Crown of Chinese Brocades.” Alongside Nanjing Cloud Brocade and Sichuan Shu Brocade, it is celebrated as one of China's Three Famous Brocades. In 2006, Song Brocade was listed as part of the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage.
Product Characteristics
Song Brocade boasts excellent practicality, characterized by its soft yet sturdy texture, exquisite patterns, wear-resistance, and suitability for repeated washing. Combining traditional craftsmanship with modern aesthetics, Shangjiu Kai successfully innovated the application of Song Brocade into various fields such as luggage, clothing, home textiles, and crafts, making this material that was once exclusively used for mounting calligraphy and paintings accessible to the general public.
History and Folk Customs
Suzhou Song Brocade developed from Tang Dynasty Shu Brocade. During the end of the Jin Dynasty, the southward migration of Han people due to the Five Barbarians' invasion brought weaving techniques to the south. In the Southern Song period, the governor of Song Prefecture, Shan Qianzhi, invited brocade weavers from Shu to establish the official brocade workshop, Douchang Brocade Office, in Danyang (near Nanjing, the capital of the Liu Song Dynasty of the Southern Dynasties), spreading the skills of Shu Brocade to Jiangnan. During the Wuyue period of the Five Dynasties, King Qian Liu set up a handicraft workshop in Hangzhou, gathering over 300 skilled weavers. In the early Northern Song Dynasty, the capital Bianjing established the “Lingjin Institute,” housing over 400 looms, and moved many skilled weavers from Sichuan to serve as core personnel. Another “Transshipment Office Brocade Institute” was set up in Chengdu.
After the Southern Song court relocated to Hangzhou, they established a Song Brocade weaving office in Suzhou, moving the weavers and machines from Chengdu, gradually shifting the silk weaving industry's center to the south. During the Song Dynasty, silk weaving in Jiangnan entered its heyday, and a new, very fine and thin variety of brocade emerged in Suzhou, ideal for mounting calligraphy and paintings. From the surviving brocaded scrolls from the Song Dynasty, there were over 40 varieties of Song Brocade, including “Blue Terrace Brocade,” “Narrow Brocade,” and “Purple Hundred Flowers Dragon Brocade.”
Suzhou Song Brocade was initially exclusively used for mounting calligraphy and paintings. “The Record of Bing Mountain of Tianshui” lists various types of Song Brocade in Yan Song's collection, including red, dark sandalwood, greenish-white, and jade colors. Among them are three kinds of gold-woven brocades: Blue Gold-woven Crane Song Brocade, Blue Gold-woven Flowered Phoenix Song Brocade, and Blue Gold-woven Qilin Song Brocade.
During the Song Dynasty, especially after Emperor Gaozong of Song moved south, brocade saw significant development to meet the needs of court attire and calligraphy mounting, forming a unique style. As a result, when discussing brocade, later generations would invariably refer to the Song era.
Differentiating Authenticity
There is an intuitive method to distinguish authentic Song Brocade and kesi: the pattern should have a strong sense of depth but feel smooth to the touch without any unevenness. For high-quality pieces, consider the following:
1. Observe the density of the entire piece; the tighter the weave, the finer the workmanship.
2. Check if the color and pattern appear distorted.
3. Carefully examine the gradation of colors; high-quality pieces transition naturally, with no obvious signs of color changes.
4. The fineness of the silk threads; the higher the quality, the finer the threads.