Hard-shell gourd grows into tea canister
Trip to Xishan Mountain, a painting from famous artist Fan Kuan in the Song Dynasty (960-1279), has appeared on a small tea canister made from a hard-shell gourd.
The art work was made by Zhang Guichun in Suzhou of Jiangsu province.
Hard-shell gourds used for tea canisters have to be grown in special moulds. Zhang makes them according to customer requirements. Every tea canister is unique in the world.
Zhang said many people ordered tea canisters before Spring Festival. Popular themes include natural scenes, Chinese zodiacs, flowers, animals and insects.