失蜡铸铜 (Shī Là Zhù Tóng) — lost-wax casting
Traditional Chinese bronze casting using the lost-wax (失蜡 shī là) and piece-mold (范铸 fàn zhù) techniques is a tradition stretching 4,000 years — producing the ritual bronzes (礼器 lǐ qì) that are among the supreme achievements of world metalwork. The revival tradition in Beijing and Hebei produces ceremonial vessels (ding tripods, gui bowls, hu wine vessels) using piece-mold casting — the ancient Chinese method distinct from the Western lost-wax tradition. Chinese piece-mold casting requires carving design into a clay model, taking sectional ceramic mold pieces from that model, then disassembling and reassembling the pieces around a clay core to form the casting void. The assembly of 20–40 mold sections without visible seam lines on the finished casting is the defining tacit knowledge — mold section alignment is achieved by eye and feel alone.
Risk level: Endangered · China National ICH List (2008)
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