The interaction between humans, materials, and the environment cannot be separated from technology. However, technology is a concept that is difficult to define precisely. In English, the term technology originates from the Greek word “tekhnologia,” with its root “tekhne” meaning “art or craft.” Since the 17th century, “technology” has been primarily used to describe systematic studies of art. By the 18th century, the definition of “technology” particularly emphasized the study of “mechanical” arts. It was not until the 19th century that “technology” became specifically associated with “practical art.” On one hand, technology is described diversely as having strong personal characteristics, but at the same time, it is not exclusive to individuals but rather belongs to communities or networks. Most scholars see an “unseamless web” between “society” and “technology,” even in the field of “pure science,” there is no pure technological dominance. On one hand, technology is embodied knowledge that requires long-term practice and is integrated into the practitioner's body and sensory organs. On the other hand, it is “embedded” within social relationships and reproduced through the community of practitioners, social hierarchy, and assumptions about division of labor. That is to say, “technology” includes both “individual” and “social” dimensions. From the perspective of the Western social sciences' research history and definitions of “technology,” the superiority of technology is also established alongside modernity. As a system of knowledge and equipment that enables the production of efficient or inefficient material products and controls the environment—technology—is a core element of Western superiority discourse. Within this epistemological framework, Western technology becomes a symbolic hierarchical structure where modernity contrasts with tradition, progress with stagnation, science with ignorance, the West with the East, and masculinity with femininity.

Although serious studies have been conducted on indigenous technologies in non-Western societies, Joseph Needham's multi-volume work Science and Civilisation in China directly aimed to demonstrate that science and technology are not unique products of Western minds. However, Needham's concept of technology is relatively conservative, with science being theoretical and technology being practical. In the overall arrangement of his series, Needham divides Chinese knowledge into theoretical and applied, with craft technology falling under the category of applied science. Fernand Braudel emphasized the study of ordinary people's daily lives and material culture, proposing that production and consumption must be combined and local technologies examined within broad geographical and social contexts. However, Emile Durkheim was the first to explicitly recognize and articulate the “spiritual” aspect of “technology.” Durkheim believed that all forms of social behavior have a specific connection with religion, and the skills and techniques that ensure moral life (law, ethics, art) and material life (natural sciences, craft technology) also originate from religion. As Durkheim's successor, Marcel Mauss further emphasized “socialized techniques,” pointing out that “the invention of power or tools, the use of their traditions, and this use itself are essentially social products.” In recent years, Francesca Bray, after conducting in-depth analyses of “technological control” and “gender division of labor” in traditional Chinese society, describes technology as “a useful and traditional act,” suggesting that in this sense, technology is no different from “a ritual, religion, or symbolic act,” which leans more towards the Chinese term “art.” Jacob Eyferth, who also focused on handicrafts in rural Chinese communities, noticed the coexistence and mutual penetration of written texts and “oral texts” in the production of “craft knowledge.” However, he believes that it is difficult and unnecessary to convert “tacit knowledge” into written knowledge, and texts recording craft knowledge focus more on promoting moral values than transmitting technology.

The “traditional craftsmanship” (traditional craftsmanship) is one of the five categories included in UNESCO's classification and definition of intangible cultural heritage. The Interim Measures for the Declaration and Assessment of National Representative Works of Intangible Cultural Heritage, promulgated by the General Office of the State Council of our country, defines intangible cultural heritage as “various forms of traditional cultural expressions passed down through generations among ethnic groups and closely related to the lives of the masses (such as folk activities, performing arts, traditional knowledge and skills, and related tools, objects, handicrafts, etc.) and cultural spaces.” Within China, many scholars have engaged in discussions around the concept of “intangible cultural heritage,” with some scholars paying attention to the professionalism and ambiguity of the term “cultural space” and providing explanations for it. However, concepts such as “traditional handicraft,” “traditional knowledge and skills,” “tools, objects, handicrafts,” and others have been viewed as “self-evident” and thus received less attention. This has led to the neglect of the “cultural translation” and “misinterpretation” that occurred during several linguistic transformations as the concept of “intangible cultural heritage,” originally an Eastern (Japanese) concept, was promoted by UNESCO. The term “craftsmanship” appearing in the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage is translated as “traditional handicraft,” yet concepts such as “technology,” “craft,” “skill,” “handicraft,” “craft,” and “manual work” are very similar, but few scholars make specific distinctions between them. Professor Peng Zhaorong noted that in Chinese history, “the art of manual work” (art) and “the industry of manual work” (industry) have always been interdependent and passed down together. The distinction between “manual work” and “art” emerged only when the traditional Chinese form of expression was replaced by the Western disciplinary classification system following the introduction of Western “fine arts” disciplines. There exists a close relationship between “art,” “craft,” and “manual work,” as they are both an “existential community” and a “community of expression.”

In this article, using the “production technique of Wuyi Yancha (Da Hongpao)” listed as part of China's first batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage as an example, I will attempt to demonstrate: the traditional craft technology of China—a part of “traditional handicraft” in intangible cultural heritage—is a rich world of meaning. It is not only the combination of “the art of manual work” (art) and “the industry of manual work” (industry), but also the integration of “technique” (Technology) and “art” (Witchcraft). As the link that maintains the inheritance of handicrafts in the community and as a weaving of power that connects and organizes artisans engaged in different processing stages to work together, “technique” and “art” are always intertwined and inseparable. At the same time, the invention of “technique” is formed through the comparison, reference, borrowing, and integration of “written texts” and “oral knowledge.”

The first flush is picked after Qingming and before Guyu; the second flush is picked after Lixia; and the third flush is picked after Xiaozhi. The first flush is fragrant and robust, the second flush lacks fragrance and is thin in flavor, while the third flush is quite fragrant but thin in flavor. The planting areas should be exposed to sunlight and wind but not too much wind. Too much sun makes the Tea less tender. Tea should be picked on sunny days, not rainy ones, as rain reduces its aroma and flavor. Famous rock areas include Baiyun, Tianyou, Jiesun, Jingu Cave, Yuhua, Donghua, and so forth. Picking and baking must be done appropriately to achieve both excellent fragrance and taste. However, rock teas are not overly refined, and they have various names such as Xiao Zhong, Huaxiang, Qingxiang, Gongfu, and Songluo. When brewed, they have a natural true flavor, and their color is not red. Rock teas grow everywhere in the southeast mountains and plains. Only Cao Dun in southern Chong, which is part of the Wuyi range, produces the best rock teas in the southeast. Lotus seeds, white tips, purple tips, and sparrow tongues are all made from young shoots from outer mountain and riverbank teas. Although they are considered good due to their fineness, their flavor is actually shallow. If we talk about the Song dynasty trees, they are even rarer. There is also a special tea called Sanwei tea, which can relieve hangovers and bloating. It is found in both the rock mountains and outer mountains, but it is not abundant.

Jing Can says that there are four levels of tea names and four levels of tea quality. Nowadays, people in city governments and wealthy households compete to enjoy W