"Yongzi"

"Yongzi"

　　   Go, one of the traditional “Four Elegant Arts” — music, chess, calligraphy, and painting — is a cultural treasure of the Chinese nation. The "Yongzi" pieces invented in the Ming Dynasty by people from Baoshan are universally recognized as the finest chess pieces throughout history. As Xu Xiake said 360 years ago, “Chess pieces come from Yunnan, but those made in Yongchang are the best.” …

　　   Yongzi, also known as “Yunzi,” is documented in historical texts such as the Yongchang Prefecture Records and the Dian'nan Magazine. These pieces were made by grinding agate and amethyst stones into powder, then combining them with lead nitrate and other medicinal ingredients. They were formed by “dipping a long iron rod in the mixture and dropping it to shape the pieces.” The refinement of the materials, the sophistication and complexity of the craftsmanship, make Yongzi almost a high-tech product of ancient times. With extremely limited production, they were cherished not only by nobility, officials, literati, and poets, but were also presented as tributes to the imperial court. For hundreds of years, they have been highly sought after yet rare across the world.

　　   In an unassuming home in Baoshan City, there is a family heirloom set of Yongzi pieces from the Ming Dynasty. The texture is fine and smooth like jade, firm yet gentle to the touch. Their luster is glossy like beautiful pearls — radiant without being harsh. Their shape is slightly raised yet unobtrusive, flat but not noticeably thin. The white pieces are ivory-toned and gleam with a soft glow, while the black ones have the sheen of jasper with emerald highlights around the edges. Paired with a chess box finely crafted from purple teakwood, they are truly a beautiful combination of precious stone and elegant container. It’s said that playing with this set feels soothing to the touch, and each piece makes a crisp sound as it is placed on the board. Due to their low thermal conductivity, they remain cool in summer and warm in winter.

　　   In the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period, the craft of making Yongzi was temporarily lost. In 1964, Marshal Chen Yi visited Yunnan and inquired about the status of Yongzi. He remarked, “I just can’t believe no one in Baoshan can make Yongzi anymore.” By the mid-1970s, someone commissioned by the Yunnan Provincial Sports Commission collected several old Yongzi pieces from the public. After hundreds of chemical analyses and trial productions, the traditional formula was finally rediscovered, and a new generation of pieces similar in quality to Yongzi, called “Yunzi,” was produced. Once launched in the market, Yunzi won multiple provincial and ministerial-level quality awards and, in 1986, was officially designated by China’s State Physical Culture and Sports Commission as the official chess set for major competitions. Chess masters such as Chen Zude and Nie Weiping also spoke very highly of it. At the same time, Yunzi has frequently been used as a “national gift”: Chinese leaders once presented it to former Japanese Prime Minister Nakasone, and Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom happily accepted a set of Yunzi during her visit to Yunnan in 1986. (Baoshan)