In an open courtyard workshop a craftsman in a blue sash chisels a half-hollowed zither body at the right end of a long bench strewn with shavings, while a red lacquered board dries on a bamboo rack; at the left are a tray of chisels, planes, a mallet, a lacquer jar and leaning boards.
Making the Qin
Choosing wood, carving and lacquering: how a qin is made
Introduction
A qin is traditionally said to have a paulownia top and a catalpa bottom. Today the top is usually paulownia or fir and the bottom catalpa or nanmu, joined with fish glue. The top is coated with a lacquer ground, covered with a layer of fine hemp cloth, then coated and polished again and again. The ground often contains powdered deer antler. One qin workshop in Beijing lists ten steps: choosing wood, shaping, hollowing the body, joining the boards, the lacquer ground, grinding, setting the studs, polishing, fitting the feet and stringing. The whole process takes two to five years.