Villagers make popcorn, which the children eat with joy. [Photo/Xinhua]

A 60-meter long 3D scroll made of more than 2,000 clay figures was recently on public display at the Qixin Manor in Ninghe District, Tianjin. The project was initiated in 2014 and even today, it is still not completely finished. The entire work is anticipated to contain 3,500 clay figures.

The pottery master who began this great project is Tian Jingfeng, who intended to use clay sculptures to record all of China history.

He said he is promoting the craftsman's sprit of a great power and, however difficult it may be, he will persevere and eventually present a traditional Chinese craft work with the entire modern Chinese story.

A villager is having noodles. [Photo/Xinhua]

Villagers whip tops, a traditional Chinese folk toy. [Photo/Xinhua]

All the clay figurines feature exaggerated faces and actions, but every mud-man's facial expression and body positioning is carefully carved and different from all the others.

Tian has been living in the village for more than 20 years, observing how villagers of different ages live their lives and learning various life conditions that villagers used to live with, allowing him to make the long clay scroll vividly reflect Tianjin villagers' daily lives. He hopes the whole scroll can span a 70-year history of China, documenting the lives of all sorts of people.

Various scenes of village life are contained in the scroll — thatched cottages, villas, seniors in homespun cotton, and small shop owners wearing half-Chinese, half-Western style clothes.

A tofu seller weighs tofu for consumers. [Photo/Xinhua]

China underwent an eliminating illiteracy campaign in the 1950s, and Tianjin villagers followed the orders. [Photo/Xinhua]

Tian said every group of figures tells a different story.

For instance, in a playing-card scene, villagers sit on a tukang (a heated adobe sleeping platform), playing with traditional narrow, long cards which are now rare in modern China. A granny sits besides the card players, making shoe soles, and another granny watches the game while picking lice from a child's hair.

He added that some figures are modeled on real people living in villages nearby and such scenes can show the real living conditions for Tianjin villagers.

A groom's family welcomes the bride. [Photo/Xinhua]