Xuan paper [Anhui Xuancheng specialty]

What is Xuan paper? Authentic Anhui Xuancheng specialty: Xuan paper

Content summary:Do you want to know what Xuan paper is? This article is a detailed introduction to the Anhui Xuancheng specialty - Xuan paper. It was compiled and edited by the editorial team of China Specialty Network after reviewing and collecting relevant information on Xuan paper. The full text takes about 11 minutes to read, mainly including the basic introduction of Xuan paper and the product characteristics of Xuan paper? How did the history of rice paper come about? How to make rice paper and identify its authenticity? Wait

Introduction to Xuan Paper

Xuan paper is a traditional Chinese paper used for classical calligraphy and painting, and is one of the traditional paper-making techniques of the Han ethnic group.

. Originating from Jing County, Anhui Province, it is named after Xuancheng, the capital of Ningguo Prefecture, hence it is called "Xuanzhi"

Xuan paper has the characteristics of "toughness and lubrication, light but not slippery, white and dense, pure texture, non-destructive rubbing and folding, and strong ink lubrication", and has unique penetration and lubrication properties. Writing is a combination of bone and spirit, while painting is full of vitality, becoming the most representative of Chinese art style in calligraphy and painting paper. The so-called "ink is divided into five colors" means that one stroke is completed. In addition, it is resistant to aging, does not change color, has less insect infestation, and has a long lifespan

How did the history of rice paper come about

The production method of rice paper

The selection of materials for rice paper is closely related to its geographical origin in Jing County. As the green sandalwood tree is one of the main tree species in the area, its bark has become the main raw material for rice paper. In the initial stage, there was no straw used as raw material. Later, during the leather processing, straw was used to fill the pile feet, and it was found that it could also become pure white pulp. In the future, straw became one of the main raw materials for rice paper. Among the rice straw, the high-quality Shatian long stem indica rice straw from Jing County is the best. This is because this rice straw has stronger fiber properties, is not easy to rot, and is easily bleached naturally than ordinary rice straw. Therefore, there has been a saying since ancient times: "It is better to have the grass from Jing County than the skin from Tongling. After the Song and Yuan dynasties, more than ten types of raw materials were added, including mulberry, bamboo, and hemp. After 18 processes including soaking, ash masking, steaming, bleaching, pulping, water fishing, gluing, and flood coating, it takes one year to produce. In addition, during the pulp making process, starfruit vine juice is also added to the pulp because it contains gum, which can make the pulp more uniform. The wet paper that is taken out is easy to stack and improve the paper yield. Therefore, starfruit vine, also known as kiwi fruit, has become an indispensable raw material

The texture of rice paper refers to its hand feel, sound, water absorption, and ink wetting properties. The rice paper should feel soft and not stiff when touched by hand, "like a ball of cotton when held in the hand"; When swinging, a soft sound is emitted, forming a sharp contrast with the clattering sound of machine-made paper (made of wood pulp and straw pulp). Xuan paper has high and rapid water absorption, and when dropped with ink dots, the paper surface will appear as a circular halo. These are incomparable and incomparable to other papers. The curtain pattern of Xuan paper refers to the dark patterns on the surface of the paper. If you look at Xuan paper in front of the light, you can see many stripes (called curtain patterns). Machine made paper does not have this feature

The curtain pattern is obtained by using the bamboo curtain paper picking process, which can be found in ordinary handmade paper. However, there are some "cloud flowers" on the curtain pattern of Xuan paper. It's like floating clouds in the sky, either thick or light, more or less. There are many clouds and flowers, indicating that the paper contains more green sandalwood fibers; vice versa. However, for ordinary leather paper, although there are curtain patterns of different widths and some have cloud flowers, there are no significant cloud flowers. Especially the cloud flowers that match the curtain pattern. This is a dividing line

The thickness of rice paper is also something that must be noted to distinguish different varieties of rice paper. The commonly referred to Xuan paper mainly refers to "Sheng Dan Xuan", which is a single-layer Xuan paper that has not been further processed. The thickness of the single paste is relatively thin and even, which is caused by a single scoop of pulp. There are also Jiaxuan, three-layer Gongxuan, etc., which are synthesized after two or three times of slurry extraction. It should also be noted that due to the varying amounts of sandalwood fibers in rice paper, and the high level of skill required for manual paper tape retrieval, which varies with the operator, sometimes there may be differences in certain indicators between this batch of paper and that batch of paper. However, the overall performance meets the basic requirements. Of course, identifying genuine rice paper also requires the accumulation of experience and a certain foundation in calligraphy and painting. Mastery is the key to skill