Maliu Embroidery

Maliu Embroidery

Maliu Embroidery is a protected geographical indication product.

Maliu Embroidery is a certified geographical indication trademark.

　　Maliu Embroidery is a form of folk cross-stitch embroidery from Liuxiang Township in Chaotian District. Local women embroider on various types of coarse cloth using colorful hand-spun threads, creating patterns depicting love and happiness, farming and harvesting, entertainment and dancing, as well as flowers, birds, insects, and fish—all rich in the flavor of North Sichuan. Due to its handmade nature, Maliu Embroidery is highly distinctive and holds significant collectible value. It is cherished by numerous tourists and collectors both in China and abroad, who take great pleasure in collecting it.

　　 Known as the "Hometown of Chinese Folk Art," Liuxiang Township is renowned both domestically and internationally for its rustic Maliu charm and traditional embroidery. Legend has it that the people of Maliu are descendants of the Qiang people who gradually assimilated into Han culture. The locals enjoy wearing garments adorned with exquisitely embroidered patterns, living in stilted houses with "main rooms paired with rotating chambers." They also take pleasure in singing mountain songs, playing gongs (and drums), and performing dragon and lion dances—their simple and honest folk customs closely resemble those of the Qiang people. Maliu Embroidery is a handicraft passed down through generations from ancestors. In the Maliu area, there is a widespread saying: "To judge how skilled a daughter is, look at her needlework." Girls in Maliu begin learning embroidery at the age of four or five and can create complete sets of exquisite dowry items by the time they are seventeen or eighteen. Maliu Embroidery does not use drafts; instead, the size and placement of the patterns are determined by "counting the threads of the base fabric." Everyday items such as curtain valances, pillowcases, aprons, sleeve covers, handkerchiefs, floral shoes, and pencil cases are embroidered with bright colors, strong contrasts, clever compositions, and strong decorative effects, giving off a rich rural charm. "Praiseworthy are the Maliu embroidery women, adorning the beauty of the Qinling and Bashan mountains" is an earnest compliment from experts and scholars regarding Maliu Embroidery. In June 2008, Maliu Embroidery was included in the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

　　Distinctive Qualities

　　　　"Maliu Embroidery" uses locally sourced materials, employing only simple tools such as needles, threads, and cloth. Using coarse fabrics in black, white, red, blue, and other colors along with colored cotton threads, it combines different shades of warm and cool tones. The stitched products feature fine needlework, vibrant colors, and clever compositions that are pleasing to the eye. The embroidered patterns depict farming and harvesting, wedding ceremonies, love and romance, as well as figures and animals. With a wide variety of designs, they carry a rich rural charm and typical flavors of North Sichuan.

　　Cultural Stories

　　　　"Maliu Embroidery" refers to the collective term for embroidery styles prevalent in areas such as Maliu, Yudong, Linxi, and Xia’an within Chaotian District, Guangyuan City. It is a form of folk art inherited through generations within families and communities, a pure and exquisite handicraft created by the ancestors of Maliu during their self-sufficient and leisurely lives.

　　Maliu Embroidery

　　 The current administrative region of Chaotian District, Guangyuan City, Sichuan Province

　　 Letter from the People’s Government of Tianzhao District, Guangyuan City, Regarding the Delimitation of the Protected Area for Maliu Embroidery Geographical Indication Product, Guangzhao Fu Han [2012] No. 114

　　 Sichuan Province Guangyuan City (regional) local standard: DB510812/T09-2012 "Maliu Embroidery"