Ethnic Dai artists embroidery thread together story of Yunnan's wandering elephants

Inspired by the wandering wild Asian elephants in Southwest China's Yunnan province, artists of the Dai ethnic group have created a series of embroidery creations depicting the elephant herd's epic trek. The unusual expedition by these elephants has attracted global attention.

The embroidery techniques have been passed down to over 500 local craftswomen by 12 inheritors of this traditional handicraft legacy in Yuxi, a central city in Yunnan that is home to the Dai people.

Qian Xiaoli, an inheritor of the art in Yuxi, was awarded the title of the China Textile Intangible Cultural Heritage Promotion Ambassador. She said these craftswomen have been paying particular attention to the elephants that arrived in Yuxi in April and remained around the area.

Since leaving their forest home in southwestern Xishuangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture in March 2020, the herd of 15 elephants has traveled over 500 kilometers, deviating from the historical migratory routes. Instead, they walked northwards through forests, villages and highways, without any clear sign of a destination.