Nyemo’s Three Crafts: Fragrance, Paper and Carved Wood

Nyemo’s “three crafts” bring together incense, Xuela paper and Pusong woodcarving. They are often named in one breath, yet each begins with a different material problem. Fragrant ingredients must be prepared and combined, plant fibres made into a sheet, and a block of wood cut into a form or an image.

Their geography is equally specific. A September 2026 Lhasa report describes watermills in Thunda village in Thonpa, papermaking in Xuela village in Tarong, and carving in Pusong. The county is a network of places and workshops rather than one demonstration room containing every craft.

At Thunda, river water turns mills used in incense production. Grinding is one part of a longer practice that also includes recognising ingredients, preparing mixtures and forming the finished product. The motion of water connects a valley landscape to work performed at a much smaller scale.

Xuela paper begins with plant material that is prepared and beaten into pulp before sheets are formed and dried. Pusong carvers work by removing material instead: a design becomes legible through the relationship between the surface left standing and the wood cut away. One craft makes a sheet from dispersed fibres; another finds a form within a solid piece.

Recent reporting describes these skills reaching different markets. Incense makers develop sachets and portable products; paper workshops make notebooks, lanterns and lampshades; carvers produce small ornaments and customised objects alongside established forms. These changes involve design and sales as well as manual technique.

Family teaching remains important, but cooperatives and apprenticeships broaden the circle of people involved. Seen together, Nyemo’s three crafts are a story about how material knowledge moves between generations and between uses. Their shared name draws them together; the distinct tools, villages and decisions of their makers keep each one recognisable.