Lacquer masters apply historic touch
China DailyLacquer art is widely applied in the making of various items, such as ornamental boxes. Related: Lacquer art: Tears of nature, timeless beauty Art form utilizes nature's resilient sap and evolves with the accumulation of time, patience and artistry, Lin Qi reports. Belonging to the Neolithic period, it suggests that people living along the Yangtze River between 6 and 7 millennia ago had sourced sap from lacquer trees and used it to facilitate their daily lives. This wooden piece, later identified as a bowl coated with a thin layer of lacquer, was excavated from the relic site of Hemudu Culture in Yuyao, Zhejiang province, in 1977. When the people of Hemudu applied lacquer to the bowl, it is believed that they also mixed the varnish with vermilion to beautify the piece, explaining the red stains.