Abstract
Jinnan (Southern Shanxi) embroidery is a traditional Chinese folk handicraft. In this study, we collected a large number of historical resources and theoretical materials of Jinnan embroidery and randomly sampled 100 works as research objects. These works were compared, and the artistic expression and implication in these works were analysed. We found that animal patterns are the main object of Jinnan embroidery and that the colour scheme in Jinnan embroidery is simple, with red and yellow as the main colours. After an in-depth analysis of their theme and value, the embroidery patterns were shown to convey totem worship, reproduction worship and auspicious worship, reflecting the long-term aesthetic concepts and living customs in southern Shanxi.