Shu Brocade Weaving Technique

Shu brocade weaving is a traditional craft that originated in Chengdu, recorded as far back as the Spring and Autumn and Warring States eras. In Qin and Han times brocade so flourished that Chengdu set up a "Brocade Officer," earning the city the names Brocade City and Jinguan City, and Shu brocade with Shu embroidery is called a treasure of Shu.

Shu brocade is woven mostly from dyed, degummed silk and excels at warp-patterned figuring, with intricate motifs and rich color; the traditional drawloom requires a draw-boy working in concert with the weaver, throwing one weft at a time to build symmetrical, continuous brocade patterns, an exacting process.

Shu brocade is among the representatives of Chinese brocade craft, carrying more than two thousand years of Chengdu's silk-weaving tradition and civic memory; it entered the first national intangible-heritage list in 2006 and is an important object and technique for studying ancient Chinese figured weaving.

The traditional looms and weaving of Shu brocade can be seen demonstrated in Chengdu's Shu brocade and embroidery museums, where the towering drawloom is itself a living artifact.