Malaysia · Paper Craft / Ritual Object / Structural Craft
紙紮 (zhǐzhā); Da Shi Ye / Tai Su Yeah effigy making
The construction of ritual paper effigies and paper sculptures over lightweight bamboo or wire frameworks for Chinese funerals, temples, ancestor observances, and traditional festivals in Penang. Documented products include houses, vehicles, servants, furniture, deity sculptures, and the several-meter-tall Da Shi Ye / Tai Su Yeah effigies made for Hungry Ghost Festival celebrations. At Koh Beng Hock's workshop, a Da Shi Ye takes approximately two weeks from structural construction to final ornament; completed figures are ritually burnt at the end of the celebration. The craft combines structural frame-making, paper assembly, representational modeling, painting, and highly codified ritual detail.
Risk level: Endangered · Not individually inscribed; practiced within the George Town UNESCO World Heritage Site living-heritage context
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