Compared with gold, bronze, jade or stone, woodcarving has played a relatively modest and mundane role in Chinese art history. It was never used to record or glorify the achievements of a royal household, or to raise the status of nobility or high-ranking officials, but woodcarving has in many ways stood the test of time.
木刻，在中國悠久的歷史裡，不像金銅玉石般有顯赫輝煌的歷史，它不曾用於朝廷的記功頌德，也不曾用來顯示達官貴人的身份，更不曾被文人、雅士列入表現藝術的範疇。