Dragon-themed paper-cuttings become popular

Taiyuan (CNS) -- Paper-cuttings featuring dragons have become popular ahead of Chinese Lunar New Year in Taiyuan, the capital of central China's Shanxi Province. The New Year will begin in seven days.

Xin Aiying, a master craftsman at the provincial Art Museum, has received 5,600 orders for the paper-cuttings.

The dragon, a Chinese symbol for royalty and luck, is made vivid in the hands of Xin, whose designs include dragons flying with beads in their mouths, spraying water or traveling through the clouds.

The art of paper-cutting has a tradition of more than 1,500 years in China, dating back to the Northern Dynasties (386-581).