Oil-paper umbrella

Oil-paper umbrella

　　When apricot blossoms begin to bloom and spring rain falls gently. Holding an exquisitely crafted small floral umbrella over one's head adds even more charm to the spring scenery of the Jiangnan region.

　　Handmade oil-paper umbrellas—tourist craft umbrellas—are a local specialty of Shigu Town in Xiangtan County, with production dating back to the Song and Yuan dynasties. Over the 300-plus years of the Qing Dynasty, their production reached its peak, with the entire area around Qingshanqiao, Shigu, and FenShui, within a hundred-mile radius, producing paper umbrellas. Types included handmade small floral umbrellas, large canopy umbrellas, and oiled cloth umbrellas, as well as imitations such as FeiFei umbrellas. Even Chen Pengnian, the Governor of River Transport, gave them his endorsement, with annual production reaching as many as 1.2 million umbrellas at that time. By the late Qing Dynasty, in order to increase military revenue, Zeng Guofan’s Xiang Army group vigorously developed industry and commerce, setting up umbrella retail shops in cities along the Yangtze River such as Hankou, Anqing, Nanjing, and Shanghai, and exporting them to Southeast Asia, Singapore, the UK, France, the US, and other countries. These umbrellas were often adorned with calligraphy and paintings by renowned artists, making them important collectibles. In the 1980s, cloth umbrellas with metal frames and compact, portable folding umbrellas gradually took over the umbrella market. Entering the new century, the winds of reform and opening-up blew into the small town of Shigu, and the umbrella-making craftsmanship here seemed to bloom anew like an ancient tree in spring, regaining vibrant vitality.

　　Today, the umbrella industry in Shigu is divided into three major series: tourism, craft, and decoration, comprising about 10 patterns and over 500 varieties. Their functions have expanded from simply providing rain protection to also offering shade, aesthetic appreciation, decoration, gifting, and collection, and they are widely used in advertising, business etiquette, food decoration, photography, and stage props. The umbrella, a tool passed down for thousands of years, has had its single function as rain gear completely redefined by today’s standards.

　　Nowadays, the market for Shigu umbrellas is focused on large and medium-sized cities in developed countries and regions, as well as scenic tourist areas. The main consumer group is positioned among middle- to high-income individuals. In 2005, Shigu tourist umbrellas were sold domestically in cities such as Beijing, Hangzhou, Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Guilin, and Nanyue, and exported to countries including the US, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Italy, as well as Taiwan. Exports accounted for 90% of total production. The umbrella-making industry has grown to employ over 1,200 people. It produces over 4.6 million umbrella ribs and more than 3 million finished umbrellas annually, with an output value of approximately 15 million yuan. A number of “umbrella industry entrepreneurs” have emerged.

　　The beautiful natural landscape, vast rural areas, and abundant umbrella-making raw materials such as nan bamboo, xiangfei bamboo, mixed wood, and tung oil all provide fertile ground for the development of the umbrella industry here. At the same time, it helps transfer over a thousand surplus rural laborers locally, contributing to the local economic development.

　　Exquisitely crafted, delicate floral umbrellas add boundless splashes of color to people’s lives.