City offers help to save major ink brand

The city’s cultural and tourism administration has offered to help Shanghainese old ink brand Cao Sugong to have its ink factory settle in a new place as soon as possible and preserve its cultural relics during removal and relocation.

More than 60 political advisers had called on the city government to save the 352-year-old local ink brand from its current troubles brought about by a removal and relocation plan and find it a new place to settle down, according to a joint proposal made to the CPPCC Shanghai Committee's annual session.

Cao Sugong was founded in 1667 during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

With its special ink-making skills and experienced workers, it became one of the top calligraphy tool brands in Shanghai. It customized inksticks for important figures such as Cao Yin, grandfather of "A Dream of Red Massions" author Cao Xueqin, Li Hongzhang, a Qing Dynasty prime minister and pioneer in building modern industries, and patriotic general Feng Yuxiang.

Cao Sugong had been having difficulties since 2000 with serious economic losses and loss of employees. In 2008, with the support of the Huangpu District government, Shanghai New World Co Ltd restructured and merged Cao Sugong with local brush brand Zhou Huchen to set up the new Zhou Huchen Cao Sugong Brush and Ink (Shanghai) Co Ltd.

However, it hasn’t had much support when facing removal and relocation from the Nanshan Road area, site of its ink factory.

Besides a place for inheriting ink-making skills, which are listed as intangible cultural heritage, the ink factory is also where the company stores its precious cultural relics, including tens of thousands of inksticks from the Qing Dynasty to today. They had been saved by numerous factory workers during the “cultural revolution” (1966-76) and other changes.

The company was offered relocation compensation of 30,000 yuan (US$4,374) per square meter, far less than the amount given to local residents. If the ink maker fails to find a proper new place, that means production, people's work and intangible cultural heritage inheriting events will all be suspended.

Since the company was registered in Huangpu District but the factory is in Jing'an, there could be problems in coordination with district governments about finding a new location and getting support on issues such as tax and management.

The political advisers urged the city government to attach great emphasis to the protection of local old brands and the intangible cultural heritages behind them.

In this case, they thought the removal and relocation plan should be improved, and suggested the government help Cao Sugong find a new place the brand can use for a long time and discuss the rent with the landowner as well as provide other support.

The new site could become a center with multiple functions. Besides producing ink, it could also be a place for tourism, intangible cultural heritage inheritance, research and promotion.

The advisers cited Japan's ink producer Kobaien's park in Nara as an example. In the Qing Dynasty, people from Kobaien traveled to China to visit Cao Sugong to learn ink-making skills, which made it place a plaque in its lobby saying that its skills came from Cao. The park receives visitors from all over the world.