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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription.  _This content was paid for and prepared by China Daily, an official publication of the People's Republic of China. The TIME editorial and advertising departments were not involved in the creation of this content._ Chen Liangshun instructs his son Chen Lingkai in rattan weaving. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY By YANG FEIYUE Nestled in the primeval forests of Hanzhong, Shaanxi province, grows a remarkable vine known for its unmatched flexibility, exceptional length, and a smooth, lustrous surface with superb elasticity. Since ancient times, locals recognized its potential as a premium natural weaving material, prized for the vine’s lightness, breathability and remarkable durability. The Records of the Three Kingdoms (220-280) by Western Jin Dynasty (265-316) historian Chen Shou documented its military applications, describing “vine armor” so effective it could float across rivers, repel water, and withstand arrows and blades. By the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, the vine craft enjoyed a wave of industrialization, as related products were regularly transported through Hanzhong’s waterways and docks. Rattan weaving matured into a specialized handicraft during the early 20th century, preserving techniques refined through millennia of innovation. “It is an ancient handicraft that creates functional household items using wooden or bamboo frames as structures and green vines as weaving material, employing traditional weaving techniques,” explains Chen Liangshun, who has practiced the craft for more than three decades. At his company in Huangguan town, Nanzheng district of Hanzhong, villagers have been busy weaving summer products like vine chairs and fans. “The fans have been particularly popular recently, with online sales easily reaching 1,000 to 2,000 orders daily,” says Chen in his 50s. Since the age of 7, he was mesmerized by his father’s calloused hands, from which soft rattan vines seemed to come alive, morphing into chairs, baskets, sun hats, and occasionally even a little grasshopper, playfully woven just for him. He began to realize the value of those unremarkable green rattan growing just outside their home, as his father brought home an envious income through selling rattan-woven chairs. At the age of 15, he formally made inroads into the craft under the guidance of his father. “My father constantly reminded me of the outstanding craftsmanship of my grandfather,” he recalls. The whole process is intricate, involving over 20 steps, including material preparation, frame construction, rattan weaving, polishing and finishing. After 2-year-old bamboo and rattan are harvested and air-dried in shaded, ventilated areas, they are steamed for hours to kill insect eggs and soften the fibers. Afterward, the materials are peeled, rinsed, sun-dried, and trimmed into usable strips. Next comes the frame-making stage, where high-quality wood and bamboo are bent into geometric forms using fire-and-water techniques, then fixed with bamboo nails and bound with rope. The core step is for artisans to weave rattan strands around the frame in a fill-in pattern. After securing the warp threads, the weft is woven in, incorporating various colored patterns and finishing with edge-wrapping techniques. Finally, skilled finishers trim excess fibers, apply filler, sand the surface, and add a protective coating to complete the piece. Though the rattan vines were soft to the touch, they rubbed Chen’s fingers raw. Through rigorous training, it took Chen several years to complete his apprenticeship in 1990, when he began hawking his handmade goods through the streets. “Seeing my own works turn into real income was really joyful,” he says. However, in the late 1990s, with the rapid rise of the modern furniture industry, traditional rattan-weaving businesses across Hanzhong began to shut down one after another. It was his father’s final wish for him to keep the ancestral craft going that enabled him to stay on track. His persistence eventually won him increasing support from the government. In 2007, Chen established a formal cooperative and later a rattan-weaving company. As his business experience grew, he realized it’s important to keep up with the times and diversify rattan-woven products. He then traveled to Guangdong, Yunnan and Sichuan provinces, drawing inspirations from their diverse rattan-weaving techniques and styles. To date, his team has rolled out an array of more than 300 rattan products, ranging from furniture and decor to handicrafts for tourists. He emphasizes that each item has retained graceful curves, lightweight structure and elegant color schemes, ensuring rustic beauty of nature while subtly exuding a modern aesthetic. Although many rattan factories across China now rely on machine production, Chen remains committed to preserving handcrafting. “Most machines can only handle the flat surfaces of rattan furniture, which compromises comfort and breathability. Handmade pieces, though labor-intensive, offer a superior user experience,” Chen explains. In his opinion, the intersecting strands of each handcrafted piece represent emotion, history, culture, and a deep respect for tradition. In 2021, Hanzhong rattan weaving was named as a national intangible cultural heritage, which made him even more determined to carry forward the craft. As a leading force behind the craft development, Chen has helped establish a rattan-weaving workshop, which has trained and given employment opportunities to over 3,000 people, mainly benefiting low-income households and left-behind populations in surrounding areas. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/weaving-the-past-into-the-present/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/weaving-the-past-into-the-present/"},"headline":"Weaving the past into the present","datePublished":"2026-06-18T14:28:49.621Z","dateModified":"2026-06-09T07:28:08.092Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/weaving-the-past-into-the-present/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[],"articleSection":"Paid Content","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/china-daily/weaving-the-past-into-the-present/","name":"Weaving the past into the present"}}]}] ```