What to buy
Wutai Mushroom
Wutai mushroom, or Tai Mo, is one of the most popular and fine quality Mt. Wutai special local products. Tai is Mt. Wutai for short and Mo is mushroom in Chinese for short. The mushroom is tasty and nutritious with fine quality. It used to be chosen as a royal recipe since Tang and Song Dynasties. Except for its outstanding value in nutrition, the mushroom also serves an important role in medicine. The mushroom features in special effect in fighting against hypercholesterolemia, arteriosclerosis, diabetes and kidney diseases.
Ink Stone of Mount Wutai
The ink stone of Mount Wutai is called Tai Yan or Duan Yan for short. The stone is from Mount Wen, so it is called Mount Wen ink stone as well. Tai Yan has some other names like Duan Yan, Feng Yan and Guo Yan due to the names of the mountains and the changes of the administrative districts. In Qing Dynasty, a legal official Jinshi wrote an essay for Guo Yan to praise Guo Yan, because of the great reputation of Mount Wutai, the name Tai Yan has been adopted and inherited while other names are gradually forgotten and out of use. There are four kinds of stones used to make Mount Wutai ink stone: black, green, red and purple, which are pure and beautiful. The ink stone is smooth but not slippery. When you beat it, there is hardly any sound. It feels as cold as ice. The ink will be integrated with water quickly on the ink stone and the density is just appropriate for use, so it was always very popular among the writers and scholars.
Paper-Cutting
Paper-cutting is highly skilled and delicate practice that is popular in many places and Taiyuan is one of them. In the rural area of Shanxi Province, people like to make various cut-out designs from colored paper and paste them on their windows as decoration.
Polished Lacquer Ware
Polished Lacquer ware is well-known for its elegant finish and graceful designs. The wooden craftwork is coated with paint manually for several times and polished after each coat. It will be brighter after each polishing procedure. Such process makes the craftworks endure heat and moisture thus keeps the color forever. It was reported that it was first made during the early Tang Dynasty (618-907). Popular lacquer items include jewelry boxes, cabinets for TVs and wine, wardrobes, large and small screens, bowls and plates. Famous lacquer items include jewelry boxes, wardrobes, large and small screens, bowls and plates.
Where to buy
Yanglin Commercial Street
Yanglin Commercial Street is in Taihuai township, the center of the Mount Wutai area. There are many souvenir stores and shops.
Liu Xiang Commercial Street
Liu Xiang, a very famous and bubbling pedestrian street in the city. With the participation of large department stores, it has become ever more popular in recent years. Huayu Supermarket, Guidu Department Store and Wanjia Dasha are the largest of them. Gongmao Department Store is famous for its wide range of clothing materials.