# Gansu: inventory and research for seven collections

Researched on 4 October 2026. This is an artistic brief, not evidence of an already completed generation. The map is a visual source; its captions and geographical placement are not automatically accepted as verified facts.

## Inventory of the source map

The map shows: Mazong and Qilian mountains; Kumtagh, Badain Jaran and Gobi deserts; dunes with an oasis; Mogao Caves with a Buddhist image; Jiayuguan Fort, the western end of the Great Wall, a caravan of Bactrian camels and a guide; Jiuquan, Dunhuang, Wuwei with pagodas/gates; Crescent Moon Spring with a pavilion; layered Zhangye Danxia; Jinchang with modern buildings; Lanzhou with a bridge and the Yellow River; Linxia with a mosque; Bingling Temple Caves; Tianshui and Maijishan Grottoes; Labrang Monastery; Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sangke Grasslands with yaks, a herder and a tent; humid southern hills, Wenxian Green Tea (leaf and glass), Longnan with a bridge and old buildings; Eight Treasures Tea in a gaiwan and dried fruits. Neighboring regions and the administrative outline are not transferred to the print. The map is decorative: Dunhuang/Jiayuguan and the southern tea valleys require a semantic, not literal, binding to its coordinates.

## Verified tea contexts and limitations

**Cultivation:** Gansu cannot be depicted solely as a desert with imported tea. The Longnan administration confirms three southern clusters: Wenxian/Bikou, Kangxian/Yangba and Wudu/Yuhe (S2). Wenxian material separately confirms harvesting in Bikou, Zhongmiao, Fanba and the existence of Wenxian green tea (S3). In the drawing these are three distinct small humid valleys, not plantations along the entire Hexi Corridor.

**Brewing:** Sanpaotai is tea in a three-part gaiwan with a variable mixture of dried fruits/flowers/sugar; we do not fix a single correct set of eight ingredients (S4). Guanguan tea is associated with a small pot on a stove; Tianshui describes tea, toasted dates, and longan (S5). Butter tea and dairy dishes of Gannan are confirmed by a state tourism source (S6).

**Trade/landscape:** tea.travel is useful as a route framework, but its detailed claims about specific museum exhibitions, the tea-brick-for-horse exchange rate, tea drinking in Mogao frescoes are not confirmed here and are not included in the prompts. The camel caravan is a common Hexi motif, without a fictitious label “ancient tea caravan.” Rock Buddhist complexes are depicted respectfully as architecture; tea scenes nearby are a modern artistic juxtaposition.

## Sources

- **S1** — [tea.travel — Gansu](https://tea.travel/en/region/gansu/). Route context; specific unconfirmed historical details excluded.
- **S2** — [Longnan: development plan and southern tea clusters](https://credit.longnan.gov.cn/bszc/7931835.jhtml). Official source: Wenxian, Kangxian, Wudu; Bikou, Yangba, Yuhe.
- **S3** — [Wenxian: spring tea harvest](https://credit.longnan.gov.cn/bsdt/8930164.jhtml). Material from the Wenxian administration: real places of cultivation and processing.
- **S4** — [Gansu supervision recommendations: Sanpaotai](https://www.bypc.gov.cn/zfxxgk/bmdwxzjd/bmdw/qscjdglj/fdzdgknr/xfzwq/art/2023/art_42448a8b696a4a02ae540a100978554a.html). Government source on composition and three-part vessel.
- **S5** — [Tianshui: Guanguan tea](https://www.tianshui.gov.cn/wlj/info/2462/155502.htm). Municipal culture department: stove preparation.
- **S6** — [Ministry of Culture: Gannan heritage](https://zhuanti.mct.gov.cn/fymstslvxlzs/xl_detail/9703.html). Regional milk/butter tea culture.

## Seven compositional solutions

- **C1 — Tea Constellation:** Two colors: a large gaiwan links three southern tea clusters and northern rituals.
- **C2 — Large letters — tea worlds:** The living word GANSU: tea actions interact with the letters, without turning into a set of emblems.
- **C3 — Tea territories:** Two climatic arcs meet at the sanpaotai table; three production valleys retain their differences.
- **C4 — Illustrated atlas:** Atlas from Jiayuguan to tea Wenxian through bridge, mountains and highland hospitality.
- **C5 — Parade of Attractions:** A good-natured procession: gaiwan, camels, Danxia, yak and picker; double outline of the name.
- **C6 — Travel lines:** Movement from stove and caravan to bridge and tea valley; energetic diagonal.
- **C7 — Based on real cups:** Ten large unequal episodes in simple outline: six tea contexts and four map groups.

## General parameters

English only. C7 contains only the main title; C1–C3 allow short verified captions. Native RGBA 3840 × 1280, significant elements in x60–3780/y110–1170; final central export 3840 × 1152, 250 × 75 mm. No mockup, opaque backing or fixed empty space. Region palette: #564238, #B97D2E, #428A99, #9E4F39, #8E8A54. C1 uses the first two inks, C2–C3 all five, C4–C7 the first three. The reference defines the manner, not the transfer of Guangdong subjects.