Foundation
The Art of Incision
Bamboo holds what lacquer cannot
Every vessel begins with a hand-woven bamboo skeleton, soaked and coiled into form before a single drop of thitsi is applied.
Thirty coats before the first line
Each layer of thitsi sap is applied, dried in a damp cellar, and polished smooth — building the deep black ground that holds incised marks.
The needle decides the story
Kanyit engraving is done freehand with a steel stylus — scenes from the Jataka tales traced in a single continuous motion through hardened lacquer.
Pigment fills where the needle has been
Cinnabar red, orpiment yellow, and viridian green are rubbed into incised grooves — the jewel tones that have not faded in centuries.