Dachang Hui Autonomous County 大厂回族自治县

Getting oriented

The county covers about 176 square kilometres, with five towns and one subdistrict. The county government puts its boundary 4 kilometres from Lucheng (潞城镇), where Beijing's municipal offices sit, and 42 kilometres from Tiananmen. Expressways run on every side: the Jingping and Jingqin to the north, the Beijing–Harbin and Capital Region Ring to the south. The Beijing–Tangshan intercity railway stops at Dachang Station (大厂站).

History

Local tradition says the land was an imperial horse farm in the early Ming dynasty and that the first settlers called it Dachang, 'great ground' (大场); the written name later shifted (to 大厂) so it would not be confused with threshing floors. Through the Ming, Qing and Republican periods the area belonged to Sanhe County (三河县). A Hui autonomous district was formed here in 1952, and the State Council approved the autonomous county in March 1955. It was merged into Ji County (蓟县) in 1958 and restored in 1962.

Crafts and local products

Cloisonne (景泰蓝) was added to the national heritage list for Dachang in 2014. Craftsmen shape a red-copper body, glue on flattened copper wire bent into patterns, fill the cells with enamel fired three or four times, then grind the surface smooth and gild it. The county government dates the local industry to the 1950s; Dachang was named a 'Hometown of Chinese Cloisonne' in 2018 and again in 2023, and the county vocational school has taught the craft since 2014.

Filigree inlay (花丝镶嵌), listed in 2008, works gold and silver drawn into fine wire or hammered into sheet and set with gems and pearls. The heritage entry links it to the Yongle reign, when smiths from the Western Regions followed the court to Beijing, settled among Dachang's Hui communities and brought Persian patterns. Chinese Wikipedia adds that most chalk used in Beijing's schools is made in Dachang.

What to see

The county names its museum of culture (县文博馆) alongside four non-government craft halls: the Baohuasheng Cloisonne Exhibition Hall (宝华生景泰蓝展馆), the Gold Lacquer Inlay Art Museum (金漆镶嵌艺术博物馆), the Jingrui Cloisonne Exhibition Hall (京锐景泰蓝展馆) and the Liangshengda Filigree Inlay Hall (良盛达花丝镶嵌展馆). Events over the 2024 National Day holiday included a cycling ride from the cycling town in Chenfu (陈府镇), performances marking the opening of a nature and science park on the Chaobai River, and a Chinese-style wrestling (中国式摔跤) tournament.

Highlights

• Dachang cloisonne 景泰蓝: Copper-bodied enamel ware listed as national intangible heritage for Dachang in 2014.
• Dachang filigree inlay 花丝镶嵌: Gold and silver wirework set with gems, listed as national intangible heritage for Dachang in 2008.
• Liangshengda Filigree Inlay Hall 良盛达花丝镶嵌展馆: One of four non-government craft halls the county government lists with its museum of culture.