The history and culture of Yu County paper-cutting
Yuxian County was called Weizhou in ancient times. There have been traces of human activities here as far back as the Neolithic Age. The Nihewan Formation, Zhuangan, Sanguan and other sites record the earliest human activities here. The development of civilization that lasts for thousands of years has created Yu County’s profound cultural connotation.
(1) Although it was a small town outside the Great Wall in ancient times, its important military and economic status nourished its rich culture and intelligent people. It is an important tradition of Yu County to attach importance to lectures and teaching. In the middle of the Yuan Dynasty, a local academic palace covering an area of ??more than 50 acres was built here, and there were also many academies. “In the thousands of years of ancient history of Yu County, there were only 355 Jinshi and Jinshi people.” The education and education of the mountains have cultivated the people of Yu County who are smart, intelligent, hard-working and pragmatic, studious and thoughtful. In the old days, there was a saying in Zhangjiakou area: "There are 13 provinces in the world, but none can be better than the people of Yuxian County." It was the paper-cutting artists among them who created Yuxian paper-cutting and continuously improved and enriched the paper-cutting skills.
(2) Yu County has a profound cultural heritage and a wide range of opera categories. "According to "Yuzhou Chronicles", the drama departments active in Yu County during the Guangxu period include Yuzhou Yangge, Yuzhou Drama, Yuzhou Xianzi Tune, There are eleven types, including Yuzhou Daoqing, Shanxi Bangzi, Yuzhou Lantern Shadow Opera, Yuzhou Luoluo Qiang, Yuzhou Childrens Play, and Kyoto Troupe." "Every village and every castle in Yu County has a theater, which is known as "Eight Hundred Villages and Eight Hundred Theaters". "According to statistics, there are nearly 200 ancient theaters that are relatively well preserved and still in use in Yu County. "Seat", it can be seen that the people here love watching theater very much. The props used in Yuzhou Lantern Shadow Play - shadow puppets, and the carving and dyeing methods used in their production provided a reference for the birth of Yu Countys point-dyed paper-cutting. The carving and dyeing techniques of the two are quite similar. The people of Yuxian County grew up under the influence of many operas and pursued spiritual enjoyment. The obsession of Yuxian paper-cutting artists with operas was revealed from the production of window grilles. They absorbed nutrients and creative inspiration from operas and founded the Xiren Paper-cutting, a unique variety, is very popular among people.
