Watch · Make
Wuxi · Jiangsu
Huishan Clay Figures
A little clay. A world of character. Huishan’s colourful figures bring auspicious symbols and theatrical stories into the palm of your hand.
LIVING HERITAGEExperience China’s
Experience China’s
living heritage.
Meet a different China through the things people make, the stories they perform and the traditions they keep alive.
Find your cultural connection ↓
Discover Bai tie-dye ↗
PLACES & PRACTICESBeyond a site.
Beyond a site.
Into everyday culture.
World Heritage recognises extraordinary places. Intangible heritage lives in the skills, knowledge, performances and stories people carry forward. Our collection brings selected traditions into a journey through their local settings.
Search all heritage recognitions ↗Choose how you connect
Try a craft, watch a performance, follow a flavour or listen to a story. Place-linked oral traditions sit alongside hands-on encounters; not every literary work belongs in an intangible-heritage directory.
A curated collection
This is a selection for travellers, rather than a complete official register. Recognition is identified on each entry: a Chinese project record and a UNESCO inscription are different. Labels refer to the underlying tradition, rather than certifying a particular visitor workshop.
Explore the culture before you travel
CCTV’s Intangible Heritage in China (《非遗里的中国》) offers a visual introduction to many traditions. Linked features on individual entries give further context; filmed venues and demonstrations are distinct from local visitor arrangements.
Visit the official CCTV programme collection ↗LOOK CLOSER. TAKE PART.
Find what moves you.
Watch a tradition unfold, try a new skill or follow a flavour to its roots. Choose a starting point for your own journey.
53 cultural encounters
Watch · Make
Watch · Make
Dali · Yunnan
Bai Tie-Dye
Fold, tie, dye — then unfold the surprise. In Dali’s Bai communities, blue-and-white cloth carries a living language of pattern.
Watch
Suzhou · Jiangsu
Kunqu Opera
A sleeve, a glance, a line of song. Kunqu tells its stories through lyrical music and wonderfully precise movement.
Watch · Taste
Hangzhou · Zhejiang
West Lake Longjing Tea
Follow a cup of tea back to the hills. Longjing connects Hangzhou’s tea landscape with the skilled hands that shape its leaves.
Watch · Make
Suzhou · Jiangsu
Suzhou Silk Embroidery
Images made one thread at a time. Fine silk stitches and subtle changes of colour invite you to slow down and look closer.
Watch · Make
Beijing
Beijing Cloisonné
Colour held within fine wire. Discover the patient craft behind Beijing’s richly decorated enamel vessels and ornaments.
Watch · Make
Luoyang · Henan
Luoyang Sancai Ceramics
Glazes that flow into colour. Luoyang’s Tang-style sancai tradition connects familiar museum forms with a continuing craft.
Watch · Make
Zhangjiajie · Hunan
Tujia Brocade · Xilankapu
Meet Zhangjiajie through Xilankapu: woven patterns, time at a traditional loom and a small craft you can make yourself.
Watch
Beijing
Peking Opera
Singing, movement and martial arts combine with vivid costumes and symbolic make-up. An introduction to its characters and gestures offers a way into Peking opera's stories.
Watch · Make · Taste
Nanxiang · Shanghai
Nanxiang Soup Dumplings
Thin wrappers, careful pleats and a savoury filling define Nanxiang's soup dumplings. The making process offers a close look at one of Shanghai's distinctive food traditions.
Watch · Make
Yixing · Jiangsu
Yixing Zisha Teapots
In Yixing, specialist tools and local clay shape vessels made for tea. Hand-building reveals how a teapot's body, lid and surface come together.
Watch
Nanjing · Jiangsu
Nanjing Yunjin Brocade
A large wooden loom and the coordination of two weavers lie behind Nanjing's richly patterned brocade. Watching the process reveals the work hidden inside the finished silk.
Watch · Join
Nanjing · Jiangsu
Qinhuai Lantern Traditions
Around the Lunar New Year, Qinhuai's lantern traditions turn evening walks into a celebration of light and local life. The displays form part of a seasonal festival culture.
Watch · Taste
Jingshan, Hangzhou · Zhejiang
Jingshan Tea & Chan Culture
At Jingshan, tea is connected with a tradition of monastic hospitality. Learning about its ceremonial sequence opens a window onto the relationship between tea and Chan culture.
Watch · Make
Huangshan · Anhui
Huizhou Inksticks
Before a brush meets paper, there is the craft of making ink. Huizhou inksticks connect the material world of the workshop with the visual traditions of Chinese writing.
Watch · Make
Shexian, Huangshan · Anhui
She Inkstones
The texture of the stone guides the design of a She inkstone. Carving and polishing turn a natural material into an object used for grinding ink and appreciated for its form.
Watch · Make
Jingdezhen · Jiangxi
Jingdezhen Porcelain
Shaping, trimming, decorating and firing each contribute to Jingdezhen's porcelain tradition. Following these stages gives familiar blue-and-white surfaces a deeper material story.
Watch · Make
Qianshan, Shangrao · Jiangxi
Liansi Bamboo Paper
Bamboo and skilled handwork lie behind Liansi paper from Qianshan. The workshop process reveals the time and care contained in a seemingly simple sheet.
Watch · Make
Pingyao · Shanxi
Pingyao Polished Lacquer
Layered lacquer, decoration and hand polishing create Pingyao's distinctive lustre. The craft connects small decorative objects with the furnishings of historic homes.
Watch
Xi’an · Shaanxi
Xi’an Drum Music
Wind instruments and percussion meet in Xi'an's traditional ensemble music. An introduction to the instruments and performance setting helps visitors hear more than rhythm alone.
Watch · Make
Huazhou, Weinan · Shaanxi
Huaxian Shadow Puppetry
Detailed figures become characters when light reaches the screen. Huaxian shadow theatre brings together craft, music and the puppeteer's precise movements.
Watch · Make
Fengxiang, Baoji · Shaanxi
Fengxiang Clay Figures
Bright painted patterns give Fengxiang's clay figures their character. The craft offers a colourful introduction to the folk imagery of western Guanzhong.
Watch · Join
Lanzhou · Gansu
Lanzhou Taiping Drums
Large drums and coordinated movement give Lanzhou's Taiping drum tradition a strong visual presence. It is an energetic way to encounter local performance culture.
Watch
Dunhuang · Gansu
Dunhuang Quzi Opera
Beyond the cave paintings, Dunhuang has its own local theatre tradition. Quzi opera brings folk stories to life through regional melodies, dialect and performance.
Watch · Make
Chengdu · Sichuan
Chengdu Shu Brocade
Pattern design and skilled weaving lie behind Chengdu's Shu brocade. The loom offers a different view of the city through silk, colour and the coordination of its makers.
Watch · Make
Rongchang, Chongqing
Rongchang Pottery
Local clay gives Rongchang pottery its material identity. Following the shaping and finishing process offers an encounter with a craft rooted beyond central Chongqing.
Watch
Lhasa · Tibet
Lhasa Appliqué Thangka
Layered textiles give Lhasa's appliqué thangka a distinctive presence. Looking at the materials and construction offers insight into an art with religious and cultural meaning.
Watch · Make
Nyemo · Tibet
Nyemo Incense-Making
Follow Tibetan incense from water-ground wood to a hand-shaped stick. In Nyemo’s Thonpa area, the river, the workshop and the drying racks are all part of the story.
Watch
Derge, Garzê · Sichuan
Derge Woodblock Printing
Woodblocks, ink and paper meet in a living printing tradition at Derge. Watching the coordinated work reveals how texts continue to be reproduced by hand.
Watch · Make
Danzhai · Guizhou
Danzhai Miao Batik
Wax-drawn patterns resist the dye and emerge on the finished cloth. Danzhai's Miao batik offers a distinct encounter with textile making and local visual traditions.
Watch · Join
Quanzhou · Fujian
Quanzhou Marionette Theatre
Skilled hands bring marionettes into a world of movement and story. Quanzhou's puppet theatre offers an engaging introduction to the region's performance traditions.
Watch · Join
Xi’an · Shaanxi
Tai Chi · Movement & Mindfulness
Discover taijiquan through relaxed, flowing movements, steady breathing and mindful attention. A guided introduction in Xi’an offers a different way to connect with Chinese culture.
Watch · Make
Weifang · Shandong
Weifang Kite-Making
Bamboo, paper and painted wings. Discover how a light frame becomes a flying work of folk art in Weifang.
Watch · Make
Yuxian, Zhangjiakou · Hebei
Yuxian Coloured Paper-Cutting
Delicate cuts meet vivid colour. Yuxian's paper art turns a thin sheet into flowers, figures and stories.
Watch · Make
Yangliuqing · Tianjin
Yangliuqing New Year Prints
Printed outlines, painted colour and wishes for the year ahead. Yangliuqing brings Tianjin's festive visual traditions to life.
Watch · Join
Wudang Mountains, Shiyan · Hubei
Wudang Martial Arts & Movement
Meet the Wudang Mountains through movement as well as their temples. Discover a martial tradition closely connected with Daoist culture.
Watch · Taste · Join
Chaozhou · Guangdong
Chaozhou Gongfu Tea
Small cups, careful brewing and generous hospitality. Chaozhou's gongfu tea tradition turns a shared drink into a close cultural encounter.
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Guangxi
Guangxi Zhuang Brocade
Bold colour, repeated motifs and the rhythm of a loom. Zhuang brocade offers a vivid encounter with Guangxi's textile culture.
Watch · Make
Baoting · Hainan
Hainan Li Textile Traditions
Spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidery tell another story of Hainan. Explore the skill and visual language of Li textiles.
Watch · Make
Huzhu · Qinghai
Huzhu Tu Pan Embroidery
Colour gathers into carefully worked patterns. Tu pan embroidery brings Qinghai's textile traditions into close focus.
Watch · Make
Ningxia
Ningxia Hui Paper-Cutting
A sheet of paper becomes a window onto everyday life. Discover the patterns and stories of Hui paper-cutting in Ningxia.
Watch
Xinjiang
Xinjiang Uyghur Muqam
Voice, instruments and movement meet in Muqam. Discover a rich musical tradition within the Uyghur communities of Xinjiang.
Watch · Join
Inner Mongolia
Inner Mongolia's Horsehead Fiddle
A carved horse's head, bowed strings and an expressive sound. Meet the morin khuur through music and the stories around it.
Watch
Foshan · Guangdong
Foshan Lion Dance
Drums sound and a lion comes to life. Foshan's southern lion dance combines athletic movement with expressive character.
Watch · Taste
Wuyishan · Fujian
Wuyi Rock Tea
Tea grown among rocky hills, shaped by skilled processing. Follow Wuyi oolong from its landscape into the cup.
Watch · Make
Dehua, Quanzhou · Fujian
Dehua White Porcelain
A world of detail in white. Dehua's porcelain tradition draws attention to form, surface and the possibilities of clay.
Learn
Beijing · Knowledge & tradition
Acupuncture & Moxibustion Traditions
Look beyond a technique to the knowledge behind it: materials, teaching and the cultural language of a tradition passed between generations.
Learn · Move
Beijing · Movement traditions
Daoyin & Seasonal Movement
A small movement, a change of season. Daoyin opens a window onto the relationship between posture, breath and attention in Chinese cultural life.
Watch · Learn
Suzhou · Jiangsu
Suzhou Daoist Music
Discover Xuanmiao Temple’s musical heritage, where ritual chant and Jiangnan sound worlds meet.
Watch · Learn
Wudang Mountains, Shiyan · Hubei
Wudang Daoist Music
Explore the role of chant and instrumental music in the religious life of the Wudang Mountains.
Watch · Learn
Shanghai
Shanghai Daoist Music
Discover a regional Daoist musical tradition within one of China’s most contemporary cities.
Watch · Try · Learn
Dengfeng · Zhengzhou
Shaolin Kung Fu
Explore a martial tradition in the cultural landscape around Shaolin Temple, with room to watch, ask questions and try the fundamentals.
Listen · Learn · Walk
Hangzhou & Zhenjiang · Zhejiang / Jiangsu
The Legend of the White Snake
A bridge, a lake and a love story. Follow the White Snake legend through the places that have given it a living voice.
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