Potter's wheel spins out ancient culture

LANZHOU — Potters in Lintao county are using traditional techniques to make pots in the ancient Majiayao style, shaping the clay on a spinning wheel, then painting the pots with a brush and finally firing them in a kiln. The process involves dozens of steps, but the end result is pots that are, at first glance, indistinguishable from original pieces made thousands of years ago.

"Majiayao painted pottery witnessed the Chinese culture of 5,000 years ago, and it should be handed down through the generations," said Yan Xiaohu, from Lintao county in Gansu province.

His family has been in the pottery business for four generations. His father, 64-year-old Yan Jianlin, has practiced the craft for 36 years.