Waterproof varnish made by layering numerous coats of the treated sap of a tree indigenous to China and later introduced to Japan. In Chinese art, lacquer is usually the sap of the qi shu (lacquer tree), rhus verniciflua.
The sap is mixed with mineral and vegetable dyes to produce different colors. The most popular colors are red and black. When many coats of lacquer are applied to wood, paper, bamboo, cloth, ceramic and metal or other materials, and allowed to dry, they create a hard and waterproof surface.
Colors can be combined and layered in relief as well as carved. Sometimes color or metal dust is added while the surface is still wet to create sumptuous, decorative effects. Articles coated with lacquer ranged from soup bowls and chopsticks to writing boxes and tables.
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