SONGQU INCENSE

Many people have a "Tibetan dream" in their hearts where there are snow mountains and numerous villages. Stepping into this ancient, mysterious plateau, one will find that the most charm lies in Tibetan incense with thousands of years history rather than scenery. The production of Tibetan incense has been listed as national intangible cultural heritage. We found Jiancuo Qiyang, the fifth generation inheritor of the Tibetan incense of the Kazhu family in Songpan County. With sustainable materials and modern design techniques, we introduce unique wooden fragrance of the snowy plateau to young people’s life, making the traditional Chinese intangible cultural heritage a daily object. SONGQU INCENSE is 100% made from the materials at an altitude of about 4,000 meters, including more than a dozen kinds of precious medicinal plants such as snow lotus, sweet pine, alpine azalea, agarwood and sandalwood lamp. Before grinding, the materials should go through "washing" and "firing" process so as to reduce toxicity and increase their medicinal properties. Then the processed materials are ground with spices and finally are made into incense during which there are more than ten steps, mostly hand-made. Inspired by the architectural complex built near the mountains in Tibetan areas, the trapezoidal structure of the incense holder retains the natural rough feeling of pottery and soil, which shows the simplicity and natural feeling in Tibet. The material of the incense holder is made of 100% recyclable ceramics from ceramic waste and construction waste. The materials are completely recyclable and the firing time is reduced in the production process. Thus carbon emission decreases. Sustainable materials plays an important role because China's "porcelain city" Jingdezhen produces more than 10 million tons of waste porcelain every year, which is not only an epitome of China's ceramic industry, but also a legacy of uneven global economic development.