Luzhou Red Umbrella

Luzhou Red Umbrella

　　When it comes to the Luzhou Red Umbrella, many locals over the age of 40 in Luzhou feel a special sense of pride and nostalgia. Before the founding of the People’s Republic of China and prior to the 1970s, the Luzhou Red Umbrella was a renowned brand name both in China and abroad. It was produced in what is now Fenshui Town, Jiangyang District, Luzhou.

　　In the early years of the Republic of China, Luzhou’s specialty—the red paper umbrella—was a well-known product, exported as far as foreign countries and Southeast Asia. People praised the exquisite craftsmanship, meticulous techniques, and beautiful production of the Luzhou Red Umbrella.

　　The main raw material for the Luzhou Red Umbrella is bamboo, primarily sourced from the mountainous areas around Naxi in Luzhou. At Fenshui Market, there was a family surnamed Liu, with the head being Liu Rongsheng, who specialized in making paper umbrellas. Three generations of his family, men and women, young and old, were all skilled in umbrella-making. Meanwhile, Yang Bingsheng, a craftsman from Fenshui Market engaged in handicrafts, moved to Dawangchang in the early years of the Republic of China and focused on making umbrella frames. The frames, ribs, and handles were all made from nanmu bamboo. Each umbrella had 36 ribs, each 14 inches long, with a single independent handle in the middle. There were eight steps in making the umbrella frame: trimming the tops, scraping the green, marking the slats, planing, grooving, checking the ink lines, drilling holes, and threading the ribs.

　　In addition to nanmu bamboo, the materials for making red umbrellas also included paper—mostly kraft paper—as well as oils such as persimmon oil, tung oil, and huang oil, and even lacquer. After assembly, the frame was covered entirely with paper, then coated with oil, dried in the sun, folded into shape, and finally coated with red lacquer before being dried again to make it waterproof—hence the name “Big Red Umbrella.” Apart from the most famous Liu Rongsheng in Fenshui Town and Yang Bingsheng in Dawangchang, hundreds of local residents were involved in producing umbrella frames, with an annual peak output of 500,000 umbrellas. During the Korean War, the Luzhou Military Sub-district assigned the task of producing 300,000 red umbrellas to support the frontlines. Led by Yang Bingsheng of Dawangchang, the task was completed with guaranteed quality and quantity. The logistics department even awarded a bonus of two million yuan at the time (with one yuan equal to one ten-thousand yuan back then).

　　However, as various types of fabric umbrellas gained popularity, the paper umbrella industry gradually declined. Nowadays, it is rare to see red umbrellas, and the Luzhou Red Umbrella has become a relic of the past.