Making Kites

Making Kites

Banyao (banyao) Kites (板鷂風箏)

The banyao kite is a traditional kite, also known as the “board kite” (板箏) due to its flat, rectangular shape; yao means “birds of prey”. The kite is made using a bamboo frame covered with paper or silk. One of the unique features of the banyao kite is its ability to produce a humming sound when flown. The kite’s design often features images of birds of prey or other animals.

Fig. 1  Master Guo Chengyi (郭承毅) making a banyao kit in Nantong (南通) of Jiangsu Province in March 2015.

Source: Pan Wenlong (潘文龍) and Gong Wei (龔為), Old Trades of Jiangsu: A Glimpse《江蘇老行當百業寫真》, Phoenix Education Publishing Company, 2018. Permission to use the photo has been obtained.