Ｅｔｈｎｉｃ　Ｑｉａｎｇ　Ｃｕｌｔｕｒｅ　Ｓｕｒｖｉｖｅｓ　Ｅａｒｔｈｑｕａｋｅ.docVIP

Ｅｔｈｎｉｃ　Ｑｉａｎｇ　Ｃｕｌｔｕｒｅ　Ｓｕｒｖｉｖｅｓ　Ｅａｒｔｈｑｕａｋｅ 　　 　　MA Jihui, 41, is bent over a piece of embroidery in front of her tent. In the distance behind her loom the ruins of a village ?C Luobozhai, home to her and hundreds of other Qiang families before the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. Dense cherry trees encircling the area have come into full bloom, heralding spring and foretelling a fruitful summer. Beyond them is a lotus-shaped, snowcapped mountain veiled in fluffy clouds. 　　The village, which is 20 kilometers from the seat of Wenchuan County, marks the site of the Qiang Kingdom’s capital of 5,000 years ago, and boasts the largest cluster of Qiang buildings in the Qiang-inhabited area. Their walls are a mixture of mud, cobble and jute, and their construction a product of time-honored craft rather than modern tools and design. To defend it from invaders, the village was laid out like a huge labyrinth in which all houses were arranged to facilitate the withdrawal and concealment of its residents. Unfortunately, this masterpiece of architectural genius and cultural richness didn’t entirely escape the massive destruction of the May 12 earthquake last year. 　　Even today Ma Jihui still shudders at the memory of that dark day. “I was back from the field at noon, and about to feed the pigs. I had barely reached the sty when I heard a strange sound coming from the mountains, then noticed the sky dim. A few seconds later my two-story house cracked in the middle, seemed to heal again, then suddenly toppled down. Its front gate catapulted over me, stunning me out of my state of fear and confusion. I dashed out of the yard, following my neighbors in a headlong run down the mountain.” Her community of 1,080 lost 42 people, including seven children and 15 elders, one of the highest tolls in Wenchuan County. Eighty-five people were injured. 　　 　　A New Life for Qiang Embroidery 　　 　　 　　Compared with many of her neighbors, Ma Jihui was twice lucky: none of the dozen members of her famil