With a history exceeding 2,000 years, Suzhou
embroidery is considered the "pearl of oriental art" for its beautiful designs,
varied stitches, superb workmanship and elegant colors.
Early in Song Dynasty, it was already given the
reputation of being "delicate and close in stitch and meticulous and wonderful
in colour"; and up to Qing Dynasty, Suzhou embroidery has developed into a
period of great prosperity, and "embroidering fair" became one of the
flourishing scenes of Suzhou.
The craftsmen and women of Suzhou embroidery
have worked industrously with merely small embroidery needles, pouring all their
wisdom and talent into Suzhou embroidery, or as the people would put it "wonder
can be made with needle points and spring born under fingers". All that has
given the famous Suzhou embroidery the charm of distinction between near water
and distant mountains, the feature of deepness of chambers and pavikions, the
interest of liveliness of human activity, and the attraction of feacefulness of
flowers and birds, making this flower of art higgly appreciated on all of the
five continents.
