[Yahoo News Report]Zhang Shunjing, a master of hand-carved sparrows, has only done one job well in his life. Uncle Jing lived through the golden age of Hong Kong. In the past, night clubs and sparrow halls were very popular, and hand-carved sparrows crafts were also very popular. However, the golden age is no more and there are only fewer than 5 hand-carved mahjong shops in Hong Kong, including Uncle King’s “Marked Sparrow”. The Buildings Department recently issued a removal order for the sign on the Temple Street stair shop. Uncle Jing seemed empty: “I want to stay here, but it’s not my control.”
Textual reporter: Lu Peiyao
Photojournalist: Davies
Video: HH
Junction: WT.Wong
Before the visit began, Uncle Jing took the time to get the goods for the guests and put several surnames and blessings on the engravings of the sparrows. No matter the number of blows, Uncle Jing can always drop the knife accurately on the white sparrow without the slightest tilt or mistake, which is the power of 50 years of practice.
In the golden age of the past, “many people bought new sparrows for the Chinese New Year”
Uncle Jing was over seventy years old and has been raised by sparrows for three generations. Grandpa is a polisher, who uses his hands to thin and polish the sparrows until they are smooth without scratching his hands; his father takes care of carving the plaques and passing the craftsmanship to Uncle Jing, “‘Mark’ is my old name at Dou’s!” Opened in Canton Road some 60 years ago, Uncle Jing is the eldest son of seven brothers and sisters. He was arrested at the age of 15 as a shop assistant. “I usually do the coloring, but the teacher doesn’t do it.”. Using old sparrows, he devoted himself to practicing carving skills for several years. “In the past, when people bought new cards, they didn’t need the old ones. They could practice.” The results of his efforts were finally recognized by The Chief.
The age that Uncle Jing entered the business world was the golden age of Hong Kong. In the 1950s and 1960s, sparrow halls, nightclubs and gambling stalls spread throughout the Nathan Road Temple Street area. Sparrow hunting was a social activity for every family. At that time, there were more than 10 hand-carved sparrows shops on Canton Road alone, and Mark was one of them. Since the 1980s, with the reform and opening up of the mainland, factories have all moved north and machine-carved sparrows have appeared, cheap and mass-produced for export. by hand it was bleak., I have no business, I sit and sit there every day.
“As soon as I dropped the knife, I knew if a sparrow was cute or not!” Said Uncle Jing as he prepared the equipment to carve the sparrow. The carving knife is the protagonist and 80% of the sparrows need to use it. “If the material is good, the knife has to be sharpened every day. If it isn’t nice it will fall off like ‘tofu’, so don’t use force.” When carving a rope, a rope scraper was used. Uncle Jing looked at him and measured the straight line of the rope with his hand. With two knife strokes, a “two string” was scraped off, then the carving knife was used to modify the outline.
5,500 yuan per pair must be booked six months in advance
The package has at most “frame holders”, including wooden frames and drill bits of various sizes. Uncle Jing fixed the drill nozzle to the wooden frame and suddenly became silent: “The drill pipe must be very concentrated, you can’t talk to others, if one is wrong, the others will follow wrong.” Press on the wooden frame to drill a circular shape. “The coil is the easiest to straighten, but it’s the most dangerous, because the drill bit will easily fit into your hand if it breaks.” The scars on his palms are testimony to the craftsmanship, and he also experienced “the blood doesn’t stop all night”. Wanzi has more hits and takes longer. In the past, Uncle Jing could cut two to three decks of cards a day, however, due to his advanced age, production has been reduced and customers now have to wait around six months before picking up the goods.
Uncle Jing pointed out that the hand-carved sparrows contain the master’s style: “The carving machine is only as rigid, and the hand carving has only one blade, and each master carving is different.” He also rigorously selects the material of the sparrows. Cheap sparrows are more prone to yellowing. The hand-carved sparrows can last for 20 years, and the price of each pair is 5,500 yuan. “My art is worth this price. I am myself first, I dedicate myself to my work!”
Over the past 60 years, Mark has moved his shop four times due to demolition and rent increases. Finally, he settled at the stair shop on Jordan Road. After 30 years, he said: “Moving relatives is all in Jordan, it’s easy for you!” However, last month Mark received a notice from the Department of Buildings indicating that the deadline for the relocation was approaching because the stair shop violated the Unauthorized Building Ordinance. But Uncle Jing is making his last efforts himself, hoping for the opportunity to resume business after the related projects are completed.
“I want to stay here, but it’s not my control, it’s none of my business.” Uncle Jing put his high voice aside and it sounded empty. “I’m about to retire, can I sit in the park at sunset? Personally, I can’t stand it, my generation can take it.” Uncle Jing checks the shop by himself for 12 hours a day and relies on the stairs to connect with the neighbors: “I praise you and say ‘Come on’, I’m so happy if you don’t have to help.”
At present, there are only about 12 hand-carved mahjong shops in Hong Kong. Uncle Jing pointed out that if the bunk had been demolished, he would still have made sparrows at home.Tag the sparrow’s facebook pageorder. In recent years, Uncle Jing has held seminars at various institutions and schools, covering participants aged 20 to 60, leaving a small footprint for this all-time Hong Kong craftsmanship under the giant wheel of times, ” One pass and one is brought back, if you don’t care. The real system is quietly eliminated, so I’ll teach it when I get the chance. “
