According to legend, pyrography originated in the Qin Dynasty, but there is no evidence and historical data. According to folklore, it began in the late Western Han Dynasty and has a history of more than 2,000 years. According to legend, there was a pyrography craftsman named Li in Nanyang at that time. He is a famous master of pyrography. Whether it is a ruler, chopsticks, walking sticks or fan pendants, all kinds of figures, flowers and birds, landscapes and animals are lifelike, lifelike and exquisite, and they are called the king of pyrography. He is honest and kind. He has opened a facade in the city and is very famous in Fiona Fang. Legend has it that "Wang Mang drove Liu Xiu out" (Nanyang folklore), Wen Li once saved Liu Xiu and gave him a burnt gourd for travelling expenses. Liu Xiu was not grateful. After all the hardships, he never sold the burnt gourd. After Liu Xiu proclaimed himself emperor in 25 AD, he still remembered the salvation of the pyrography king. After visiting him, he announced that he would go to Beijing, gave him 1,200 silver, made him the "king of pyrography", and listed Nanyang pyrography as a tribute of the court. Since then, Nanyang pyrography culture has flourished and become famous all over the world. The story of "Pyrola King" has also been passed down to this day. There are many stories and folklore about the origin of Nanyang pyrography, and here is just one of them.

According to records, in the third year of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty (AD 1877), Zhao Xingsan, a native of Nanyang who was good at painting, became interested in painting once after smoking opium. After a long time, he used a red-hot cigarette stick to make a ghostwriting on a cigarette stick, which was overjoyed. Then he performed art on other wooden toys, all of which were very successful. He devoted himself to research, and over time, he grinded out a set of pyrography one by one. His pyrography works gradually became the best gift among dignitaries, and even entered the Qing Palace as a tribute to Nanyang. Some top-grade pyrography is favored by the royal family. Later, Zhao Xingsan accepted four apprentices. Li Fanzhi, a great apprentice, can write and draw, master all kinds of colors and skills, and specialize in characters; Qiu Yiting, the second disciple, is good at Bo Gu; Yang Diankui, the third disciple, specializes in flowers and birds; Zhang Xifan, the four disciples, is the only one.

In the 1920s, pyrography has formed a special handicraft industry, and pyrography has also become a well-known folk art in Nanyang. At that time, there were six or seven shops specializing in pyrography in Nanyang, among which "Fujuheng" chopsticks shop in Fang Yutang was the most famous, and four disciples of Zhao Xingsan became the pillars of "Fujuheng". Fujuheng's business is booming, and its products are well-known at home and abroad and exported to Beijing, Xi, Tianjin, Kaifeng and other places. By the early 1940s, Fujuheng alone had more than 30 shop assistants and artists, which had begun to take shape.

In addition to Nanyang, pyrography in Henan, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui and other places is also very active, and it can be said that there are many masters. In the Qing Dynasty, Wu Tian, a famous pyrography artist in Wuding County, Yunnan Province, could pyrography "Yingzhou Bazi" by Yan, a famous painter in the Tang Dynasty, on a chopstick that was not long enough. His characters "whiskers, eyebrows, clothes pleats, swords and shoes" are as delicate as silk, but vivid and ingenious.

In the 13th year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1874), Chen Wan, a painter from Xinhui, Guangdong Province, created a fire painting fan, and burned paintings on the fan with an iron needle, among which the fine works were sought after by wealthy businessmen and dignitaries. Chen Wan sent Zhong Heng an apprentice, which was handed down from Zhao family. For example, Zhao Zhaoming, who was alive in the early years of the Republic of China, was able to draw pictures of people and complicated backgrounds on a sunflower fan, such as the Seven Sages of Bamboo Forest and the Good News of Dongshan. Zhao Huang, Zhao's younger brother, died at 1960, and engaged in pyrography for 50 years. Zhao Yuan, the son of Zhao Zhaoming, is also a household name in Xinhui County, Guangdong Province. His fifth-generation descendants are still engaged in the production of fire painting fans.

Famous pyrography artists such as Zhang Youqin, Qian and Pan Sansi also appeared in Suzhou and Hangzhou, Jiangsu. Liu Jintang has exquisite skills, mainly fan bones and combs, and is good at scalding flowers and birds and ladies; Qian is good at calligraphy and painting. His works are mainly fan bones and pen holders. He doesn't need to type the manuscript. His thread branding is as thin as hair, and he is good at branding high-quality people. Li is a student of Qian, and he is also good at shaping Gao Shi's image. Gong Ye, a famous pyrography artist in Suzhou who was famous for pyrography at the beginning of reform and opening up, was a student.

After liberation, the party and the government attached great importance to the excavation, arrangement and development of this traditional folk art, organized pyrography artists scattered all over Nanyang, and successively established mutual aid groups and cooperatives. Under the correct leadership of the party and the government, pyrography artists continue to inherit and carry forward the excellent traditions of their predecessors, and constantly innovate and improve their own techniques and tools, thus pushing pyrography art to a broader development path.