Four Treasure of Study:
Writing Brush, Ink Stick, Ink Slab, Paper, Other Accesories
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Chinese respect study and stress their tools for the study. What Chinese calligraphy supply do you need? To write Chinese characters, you need a brush, ink, paper and ink stone, commonly referred to as the four treasures of the study. In order to learn calligraphy, it is necessary to learn about these tools, select them carefully and take care of them. |
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Among the various tools of calligraphy, writing brush is peculiar to China. The brushes are varied, and white goat's hair, black rabbit's hair and yellow weasel's hair are three major types. On the basis of the function of tip, the brushes are classified into three groups: "Hard", "Soft" and "Both". The handle is made of not only bamboo, wood, lacquer and porcelain, but also some precious materials including mother-of-pearl inlay, ivory and jade. Writing brush has such a long history that prehistoric painted pottery, inscriptions on oracle bones, bamboo slips and silks are all writing materials for brush. Some ancient writing brushes were also excavated in the graves of the Spring and Autumn Period, the Warring States, the Qin and Han Dynasties. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, Xuanzhou became the national writing-brush-producing center, whose products were called "Xuan-bi", and "Zhuge-bi" was the best in quality in Xuanzhou. After the Yuan Dynasty the brush-producing industry of Huzhou boomed, and "Hu-bi" replaced "Xuan-bi". The characteristics of "Hu-bi" were sharp, neat, round and tough. |
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Other topics in this chaper:
Inkstick, Inkslab, paper, Accesories |
Other chapters:
Introduction, Art, Dress, Tea |
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The ink-stick is the unique pigment of Chinese traditional painting and calligraphy. At the initial stage natural ink or half-natural ink was generally used. It was during the Han that artificial ink appeared. At that time the most famous ink-stick was "Yumi-mo" produced at Qianyang, Shaanxi. The raw materials of ink-stick were pine, oil and lacquer.
Before the Five Dynasties the ink-producing center was in the North, then it reached the South. The most celebrated South ink-stick was "Hui-mo", which was produced in Huizhou of Anhui.
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Other topics in this chaper:
Brush, Inkslab, paper, Accesories |
Other chapters:
Introduction, Art, Dress, Tea |
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Ink Slab is the most important of "four treasures of the study". Because of its solid texture inkstone can be handed down from ancient times. In the ruins of primitive society the archaeologists discovered simple stone ink-slab that needed a pestle to grind pigments. After artificial ink-sticks appeared in Han, pestle gradually disappeared. There were pottery ink-slab, lacquer ink-slab and copper ink-slab in the Han Dynasty as well as stone ink-slab. Among the stone ink-slabs, the round tripod pieces were the most typical. During the Wei, Jin and Northern-and-Southern Dynasties, round tripod porcelain ink-slabs were in vogue. It was in the Sui and Tang that "Piyong" inkstone having circular legs appeared. |
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Other topics in this chaper:
Brush, Inkstick, paper, Accesories |
Other chapters:
Introduction, Art, Dress, Tea |
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Paper is one of the most famous Chinese inventions. It is widely accepted that paper was invented by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han. However the archaeologists have discovered paper of Western Han such as "Fang-ma-tan" paper, "Ba-quao" paper, "Xuan-quan" paper, "Ma-quan-wan" paper, "Ju-yan" paper and "Han-tan-po" paper. After the Eastern Jin Dynasty, paper was extensively used instead of traditional writing materials such as bamboo slips and silks. Various methods of producing paper emerged one after another. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the paper producing industry was very thriving. Celebrated products in best quality appeared one after another. In the Qing "Xuan-zhi" produced in Jing Prefecture of Anhui (Xuanzhou), became the special paper for painting and calligraphy, and was regarded as "the king of the paper" |
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Other topics in this chaper:
Brush, Inkstick, Inkslab, Accesories |
Other chapters:
Introduction, Art, Dress, Tea |
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Other accessories: |
Heavyweight, Penholder, Brushpot, Seal & Inkpaste |
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The heavyweight is used to press the study materials and prevent them turning the page automatically or by the wind. |
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The penholder is used to hold brush and prevent the paint pasting on the paper or the desk. |
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Brushpot is used to contain several different kind of brushes for the scholar. |
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Seal-cutting is traditionally listed along with painting, calligraphy and poetry as one of the "four arts" expected of the accomplished scholar and a unique part of the Chinese cultural heritage. A seal stamp in red is not only the signature on a work of calligraphy or painting but an indispensable touch to liven it up. The art dates back about 3,700 years to the Yin Dynasty and has its origin in the cutting of oracle inscriptions on tortoise shells. It flourished in the Qin Dynasty of 22 centuries ago, when people engraved their names on utensils and documents (of bamboo and wood) to show ownership or authorship. Out of this grew the cutting of personal names on small blocks of horn, jade or wood, namely the seals as we know them today. As in other countries, seals may be used by official departments as well as private individuals. From as early as the Warring States Period (475- 221 B.C.) an official seal would be bestowed as token of authorization by the head of a state to a subject whom he appointed to a high office. The seal, in other words, stood for the office and corresponding power. Private seals are likewise used to stamp personal names on various papers for purposes of authentication or as tokens of good faith. |
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Other topics in this chaper:
Brush, Inkstick, Inkslab, Paper, |
Other chapters:
Introduction, Art, Dress, Tea |
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| Introduction | Study Treasure |