Traditional hand-made cloth of Miao ethnic group

Liang Zuying (R) pounds the cloth with the traditional "Liang Bu" hammer in Wuying Village on the border between south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and southwest China's Guizhou Province, on Aug. 31, 2023. Wuying Village is a Miao ethnic group hamlet that nestles snugly in the towering mountains stretching across the border between Guangxi and Guizhou.

"Liang Bu", named for its glistening appearance, is a kind of traditional hand-made cloth of Miao ethnic group.

Women of Miao ethnic group in Wuying plant woad in spring and harvest it in fall. They soak woad in water for days before mixing it with materials such as lime, to make the dye for "Liang Bu". It usually takes months to make a piece of "Liang Bu" after repeated process of dip-dyeing, drying, pounding, applying egg white and steaming. The cloth gradually becomes glistening owing to tens of thousands of poundings by villagers with traditional wooden hammers. After cutting, sewing, embroidery and ironing, a set of glossy "Liang Bu" clothes is finally done with up to one year spent from the planting of woad in general.

Subject to its complicated producing techniques, "Liang Bu" was once rarely seen. In recent years, it was gradually favored again thanks to the development of local tourism and the improvement in people's awareness of traditional cultural protection. (Xinhua/Hu Xingyu)