Sholdulphel, an ancient architectural complex at the base of the Potala Palace in Lhasa City of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, has preserved and passed down exceptional traditional craftsmanship for generations.
The cultural heritage site features the Potala Palace in a seven-part historical and cultural documentary produced by China Media Group (CMG).
Located at the southwestern side of the Potala Palace, Sholdulphel has for centuries been the palace foundry, where generations of highly-skilled artisans have cast statues of the Buddha, ritual implements and other religious objects, along with more mundane, everyday items.
"The name 'Sholdulphel' is Tibetan. 'Shol' means 'below'. Here [it] refers to the foot of the Potala Palace. 'Dulphel' refers to a craftsmen team with highly skilled and created beautiful arts," said Chen Hairong, operations management consultant of the Xizang Sholdulphel Cultural and Education Group.
"The Potala Palace commenced for reconstruction. Sholdulphel then set up 'Dulphel Lekhong' in a courtyard at the foot of the palace. At the period, the craftsmen team included local Tibetan, Nepalese and Mongolian. Besides that, there were 114 Han craftsmen specially dispatched by [Qing Dynasty] Emperor Kangxi (1654-1722). Today, if you visit the Potala Palace, such as mandalas, statues, murals and sculptures marked Sholdulphel, all those great jobs represented the highest achievements for handcrafts," Chen said.
Throughout its long history, artisans at Sholdulphel have worked with unwavering focus, infusing every creation with profound cultural memory.
"Now, Sholdulphel has become a National Cultural Industry Demonstration Base. [It] covers 12 categories of intangible cultural heritage, offering almost 30 courses. Over the years, we've trained thousands of people," Chen said.
Many artisans continue to uphold the Sholdulphel spirit of craftsmanship.
"The Shol Printing Institute is situated at the foot of the Potala Palace. It has a long association with Sholdulphel. In Tibetan block printing, picking the right materials is everything. We only use the finest, crack-resistant wood that passes super-strict inspection. At our printing institute, one workshop gets the smooth blocks ready, another focuses on the hand-carving, and the last handles the actual printing. It is a step-by-step process. We're all about performing every step perfectly. We're keeping our ancestors' craft alive. Even the tiniest mistake matters. We treat the work with respect and use our finest skills so as to protect this amazing cultural treasure," said Ze Pei, a Xizang Autonomous Region-level intangible cultural heritage inheritor.
"From the time of King Songtsen Gampo (the 33rd ruler of the Tubo Regime in Xizang who reigned from 618 to 649), murals have been around for over 2,000 years, and thangka paintings also have a history of over 1,000 years. We've kept these traditions alive. The thangka art at the Potala Palace has a long history, being passed down since the age of the 5th Dalai Lama [Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso who lived from 1617 to 1682]. Sholdulphel is a vital cultural preservation center with a reputation spanning 300 to 400 years. For our future development, we need a good environment, teachers who know their stuff and students hungry to learn. These three must come together. Only then can we expand thangka art together, share its culture far and wide, show the world how incredible it is and make sure its 1,000-year-old legacy lives on," said Kelsang, intangible cultural heritage inheritor for Karma Gadri thangka painting, a major style of thangka art.
Today, Sholdulphel is not only a witness to history but also a living example of cultural heritage preservation, where the spirit of craftsmanship rooted in the Potala Palace continues to thrive in the modern era.
"To Sholdulphel, we boil down to four Ps: Passion for craftsmanship; Patience to practice; Persistence through challenges; and Perfection on detail. We use a '5-in-1' business approach, that's [to] teach classes, do research, make products, hold exhibitions and sell items, all to share the Himalayan way of life," Chen said.
Millennial-old craftsmanship thrives at Sholdulphel in Lhasa
