The trainees bid farewell to tourists. [Photo by WANG XIWEI/China Daily]

Over time, the techniques for making the pottery have developed and matured, as has the aesthetic of the items made using them. Artisans taking up the medium have injected new life into the pottery through exquisite design.

In recent years, Zamtang county issued a directive to promote cultural innovation and development, which allocates millions of yuan in subsidies each year for cultural institutes, supporting the performance of Tibetan operas, along with the production of thangka (Tibetan art of scroll painting), Tibetan incense, Tibetan tea, Tibetan medicine, as well as stone carving, pottery, traditional costume and folk songs in northwestern Sichuan.

Now 27 institutes have been built, and at present, there are more than 3,000 farmers and herdsmen in the county engaged in preserving intangible cultural heritage, learning folk skills, making cultural products, increasing the income of the locals, promoting the integration and development of cultural tourism, and establishing the cultural industry as the most important economic driver in the county.