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Quick History of Papercutting

The art of papercutting has been around almost as long as paper has been around. And by paper, I mean the precursor to the modern paper. Of course, ancient Egyptians and Mediterranean cultures wrote on papyrus since at least the fourth millennium BCE. But papyrus is thick, more like parchment, and not considered "true paper." Both papyrus and parchment "paper" are also not conducive to be easily cut.


Traditionally, the invention of true paper is credited to Cai Lun, an imperial court official of the Han dynasty in China circa 104 AD. However, archeological evidence indicates that papermaking evolved hundreds of years before. The exact date or inventor cannot be deduced, but the earliest fragments of paper found in China have been dated to 179-141 BC. Rather than being the true inventor of paper, Cai Lun's contribution might have been improving the skill of papermaking by fixing a 'recipe' for papermaking in a more systematic and scientific manner. Cai Lun addited pulp from tree bark and hemp ends which resulted in the large-scale manufacture and worldwide spread of paper. For a more complete history of papermaking, see the blog post "Quick History of Papermaking."


The earliest surviving papercut found is a symmetric circle from 6th-century Xinjiang China. Its possible that papercutting art was done before this, but we simply do not have any surviving pieces. It is a circular, geometric design that looks a bit like a cross between a gear and a snowflake.


Earliest surviving papercut from 6th century Xinjing, China. A symmetrical circle with a geometrical design.
The earliest surviving papercut from the 6th-century Xinjing, China. Source: Berliner, Nancy Zheng. Chinese Folk Art, Canada: Little, Brown and Company, 1986. https://boveylee.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/earliest-papercut.jpg

Papercutting grew as a popular form of decorative art during the Tang and Song dynasties in China (618-907 AD and  960-1279 AD, respectively.) Around 610 AD, papermaking  was brought to Japan and commercialised. By 800 AD, Japan's papermaking skills, especially of development tesuki washi paper were renowned. The Japanese quickly developed their own style of papercutting from this washi paper.



One of the earliest known papercuts recovered by Paul Elliot in the Dunhuang grotto in China and dated to the 19th century.  Papercut illustrates a shrine.
One of the earliest known papercuts, recovered by Paul Pelliot in the Dunhuang grotto in China and dated to the 10th century.

As papermaking technology spread around the world, each culture developed their own unique style of papercutting. In a subsequent blog post, we'll take a look at these different styles and techniques. Papermaking migrated through the Middle East from East Asia, but didn't become widely used in Europe until the 11th century.


By 1500, Mexico developed their own unique style of papercutting referred to as "papel picado." (Again, more about styles coming up.) Through the Middle Ages, papercutting was a common Jewish art form connected to various customs and ceremonies, especially marriage contracts called ketubot. Papercutting continued to be popular through the 17th century, then fell in decline. The art of Jewish papercutting was revived in Israel in the 20th century and continues to grow in popularity today.



Brightly colored tissue papercut from Mexico called "papel picado" hanging from wood rafters.
Papel picado papercuts from Mexico.

Mizrah papercut from Eastern Europe dated to the 19th century.
Mizrah papercut from Eastern Europe dated to the 19th century.

Various European cultures developed their own papercutting styles much later, between 1500-1900.  Unfortunately, as paper become incredibly common throughout the world by the late 19th century, papercutting as an art form began to decline. Thanks in part to China reviving the art form in the 1980's, papercutting has seen a surge in popularity.


For much of the history of papercutting, this type of art form was considered a "folk art." It was a decorative art form used mostly for religious and cultural celebrations. When the Chinese revived papercutting in the 1980s, they made a place for paper artists in the current art marketplace. Papercut artists started to make unique pieces that were not necessarily for religious or cultural celebrations, but more along the lines of "fine art--" that is, art made primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, versus having a cultural practical function. This shift to fine art has helped usher in a revival worldwide of papercutting as a major art form, including fine papercut artists who continue to use traditional techniques or work within various traditional styles.




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