Tu

Tea

Receiving end of the Hunan — Qinghai route. Hunan-made brick tea 茯砖茶 fúzhuānchá arrived in Xining and in Dangar 丹噶尔 (present-day Huangyuan), which under the Qing served as the gateway to Mongol and Tibetan nomad lands and the province’s only assembly point; goods were divided and transferred by brokerage firms 歇家 xiējiā, and in 1822 Xining listed forty-three of them, four run by Tu families. The brick was split in the courtyard, measured with a wooden measure, and sent out to the pastures, from which hides and wool came back on the return leg. At home, the Tu boil 熬茶 áochá from the same brick with green salt 青盐 and Sichuan pepper.

Headwear

Everyday felt hat of the Tu people (毡帽): low round crown of rolled felt in a warm light-gray tone, narrow brim turned up evenly all around and slightly extended forward into a beak (the “eagle’s beak” variant), a wide dark-brown trim along the brim edge and crown base breaking up the light field. Worn normally, crown intact — the slit and rear panel are removed. The accent is a thin dark braid around the crown, with a sprig of two dried tea leaves tucked under it at the left temple.

Object

The boiled-soft corner of a brick traveled from the crown to a belt tally pouch: the dry upper part of the chunk sticks out of the pouch in straight ribs and a layered cross-section, the lower corner — the one that had been in the cauldron — has swelled and darkened, one soaked and unraveled strand of leaf hangs below the pouch flap.

Clothing

White shirt with sleeves in seven colored bands, dark sleeveless vest, wide sash with a brass buckle, tally pouch of the firm at the belt.

Palette

White felt, dark-brown trim, sleeve bands in ochre, carmine and indigo, chestnut tea, brass buckle.