An inheritor demonstrates the traditional cotton-weaving technique at the Tianjin Art Museum in Tianjin, June 5, 2019. [Photo/Xinhua]

Traditional cotton-weaving technique

Since cotton arrived in China from India in the seventh century, China's textile industry has focused on spinning cotton instead of bast fiber, a woody fiber mainly derived from plants. The traditional cotton-weaving technique, listed as national intangible cultural heritage in 2008, can be seen in the material used to make hanfu.