Donghai Crystal Sculpture was once given as a national gift to Hillary

Crystal, whether in the legend of the East or in the myth of Western mythology, has been given a mysterious color. Wu Zhaojun, the “Big Crystal Sister” of Quyang Township, Donghai County, is a master of carving that turns crystal into an artwork. As one of the representative inheritors of the crystal carving technique in the East China Sea, she has won more than 30 engraving works at the national, provincial and municipal levels. The crystal gift she designed and produced was used as a national gift to the former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Crystal carving is one of the oldest carvings in China, with a long history and distinctive period features. As early as the late Neolithic era, the Chinese nation had tools made of crystal. During the Warring States period, crystal production became an industry, and crystal products became ceremonial appliances and decorative accessories. In ancient China, crystal was used as a symbol of purity and a symbol of a gentleman's style.

Donghai County is a famous “crystal capital” in China and abroad. Its crystal reserves and quality all rank first in the country. There are many kinds of crystals, such as white crystal, yellow crystal, red crystal, amethyst, tea crystal, hair crystal, titanium crystal, powder crystal, green ghost and so on. Natural crystal clear and transparent, you can enjoy through the crystal surface to see the interior of various packages formed by the scene and the pattern, to provide people with a wealth of imagination and mystery, to appreciate the magic of heaven and earth, give people a beautiful enjoyment.

“Crystal processing has become an exquisite handicraft, known as crystal engraving. Natural crystals are used by colorful craftsmen, cleverly combined and crafted to create a unique, crystal-carved handicraft with a sense of beauty.” Wu Zhaozhen introduced, In the production process, according to the natural colors and shapes of different crystal raw materials, the designer can make crystals into exquisite handicrafts after careful design and repeated exploration.

Donghai's crystal carving crafts, with its rich and colorful shapes, exquisite and unique patterns and exquisite carving techniques, has formed a unique national traditional style, with the artistic value of the times, can be regarded as "a Chinese one." The East China Sea crystal carving handicrafts are complete in variety, including people, utensils, flowers, birds and other shapes, but also reflect the theme of modern life.

“The process of crystal engraving is mainly material selection, production, polishing and packaging.” Wu Zhaolu said that the crystal carving techniques are similar to those of jade carvings, but they are also different. Making is the most critical part of the display technique, generally based on different materials and concepts. Relief, round carving, hollow carving and chain carving are used.

In the East China Sea, the inheritance of crystal carving techniques has the form of group inheritance and teacher-inheritance. It has as many as 10,000 people. Some of them are from Henan and Fujian, most of them from the jade carving industry; there are also from the native East Sea people, they are devoting themselves to research, crystal sculpture techniques to promote faster.