Fruit_pit_carving
Fruit pit carving
Chinese folk handicraft
Fruit pit carving (Chinese: 核雕; pinyin: hédiāo) is a Chinese folk handicraft in which the pits of peach, apricot, walnut, Chinese olive, yumberry and other drupes are used to create minute patterns of the Buddha, nature, or the Chinese zodiac[1] that are said to repel evil spirits. The carved pits are also used to create jewelry and decorations.[2] However, the art is now facing extinction because few black olive trees are planted in China and there are very few people interested in learning this art. Olive core carving has recently been recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Guangdong Province of China.[3]