Technicians build lives around ancient bronze

Yi Xinbo and Ding Jie, both in their 20s, are committed to repairing bronze artifacts at the cultural relics repair base of the Hunan Provincial Archaeological Research Institution based in Changsha, Hunan province.

Over the past four years since graduating from college and beginning work at the institution, they have repaired more 200 bronze relics, mostly weapons.

Although the weapons came in different forms, they all had serious mineralization, which causes flaking of the metal. Sticking the small flakes back onto the weapons and filling in missing parts is a difficult process, Yi said.

"When we stick the pieces on, we need to wear masks, because we're afraid exhaling will blow the pieces away," he said.

To repair a bronze artifact indoors, the first step is to test the metal by examining a sample taken from the piece. A decision is then made how to approach the project.

"We use advanced devices to clean the object. For example, earth may be attached to the surface," Yi said. "Meanwhile, we preserve the parts that are useful for research, such as decorative patterns."

Ding Jie added: "Corrosion on the piece will create further harm, so we need to remove rust. We typically spend several months cleaning the rust."

Being a cultural relic repair technician requires the ability to work alone and endure loneliness, Yi said.

"The best thing is that both Ding Jie and I have great interest in repairing the relics, which keeps us moving on."