The "Yufenpai" art form is considered to be derived from traditional Chinese New Year Paintings. Both the layout and the rub-and-paint technique of lithographed New Year calendars as they had evolved in the Jiangnan region of China were adopted by commercial enterprises to promote their wares. They quickly discovered that featuring attractive women increased their popularity. They began printing them on heavy stock with brass reinforcing strips at both the top and bottom, which increased their durability, and in the process ensured the survival to the present of those specimens which survived the chaotic years of the Cultural Revolution.
