What kind of top-secret ancient calligraphy seal can leave such a shocking and most beautiful calligraphy signature? Super-full knowledge sharing!

Hello everyone, here is the blog of young Chinese calligraphy and painting teacher Lin Lan. Teacher Lin Lan is the pioneer of Chinese painting and calligraphy research, education and training. The platform of Lin Lan painting and calligraphy education has cultivated many outstanding students, enthusiasts, teachers, and foreign students.  , Teacher Lin Lan’s original teaching method has won unanimous praise and recognition from all students. 


If you were given a good pen, what kind of signature would you sign? For convenience and efficiency, people just engrave their own signatures on various materials. However, the calligraphy in the signature is very important. When children are young, they usually read a certain word, 
but they start to learn to write by reading. After writing Chinese calligraphy characters, he became a happy boy who wrote Chinese characters well. Follow Teacher Lin Lan into the greatest stone calligraphy seal in Chinese history!


THE ORIGIN OF THE ANCIENT SEAL

The most ancient Chinese carved characters include Yin's oracle bone inscriptions, Zhou's Zhong Dingwen, Qin's carved stones, etc. All characters carved on gold, bronze, jade and other materials are commonly called "Golden Stones."

The seal is included in the "Golden Stone".  The origin of the seal is either the Shang Dynasty or the Yin Dynasty, and there is still no conclusion yet.


According to relics and historical records, it has appeared at least during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, and has been widely used in the Warring States Period.  At first it was only used as a certificate for commercial exchange of goods.

After Qin Shihuang unified China, the scope of the seal was expanded to prove the rights and interests of those in power, which was held by those in power and used as a tool to rule the people.

During the Warring States Period, Su Qin, who advocated unity, wore the seal of the Six Kingdoms.  In recent years, the unearthed cultural relics have advanced the history of the seal for hundreds of years.  In other words, the seal was present in the Zhou Dynasty.


Most of the ancient seals handed down from the world come from the ruins of ancient cities, rivers and ancient tombs.  Some were abandoned by the defeated in the war when they went into exile, and some were abandoned on the battlefield by those who died in the war. At that time, it was customary that all the seals captured on the battlefield had to be handed in, and the officials had to be removed from their posts after their deaths. 

Many others, such as the official title company's name, as well as the Jiyu seal and Xiao Xingyin, are generally sacrificial objects rather than actual products.  Other pottery and standard measuring instruments of the Warring States Period, as well as the gold coins of some vassal states, were stamped with names and recorded the names of craftsmen or signs and symbols, and they were also handed down.

Ancient seal is the general name of the pre-Qin seal.  Most of the earliest seals we can see are ancient seals of the Warring States Period.  We still understand many of these ancient seals.  Most Zhuwen ancient seals are equipped with wide edges.

The strokes of the printed calligraphy are as fine as a few strokes, all of which are forged.  Most Baiwen ancient seals have side fences or a vertical border in the middle, and the characters are cast or chiseled.  The seal of the official seal includes the names of "Sima" and "Situ", as well as various irregular shapes, and the contents are also engraved with auspicious language and vivid patterns.

 


THE HISTORY AND APPRAISAL OF THE SEAL

After passing through the Southern and Northern Dynasties where you conquered us and seized the regime, history finally broke away from the narrow bottleneck once again, and suddenly opened up.

The ancient seal art has not regained its glory with the advancement of history.  The Qin-Han seal style based on the classic Miao seal was finally withdrawn from the stage of history after 800 years of vigorously blowing in the printing world. 

Jiudiewen dominated the public seal, and the public seal lost its status as a leader in printing art for several hundred years.  The mechanical winding on the practical road in the year was finally concealed by the flames of literati and seal carving that rose up in the Ming and Qing dynasties.



THE INNOVATION OF THE SEAL OF THE SUI AND TANG DYNASTIES

Following the Qin Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty opened a new historical stage in the system and style of ancient Chinese seals.  This is manifested in the following aspects:

First of all, since the bamboo slips have completely withdrawn from daily life and the widespread use of paper in government documents and other aspects, the public seal is no longer limited to the narrow and small planes that can be obtained on the bamboo slips. The side length has suddenly increased from about 2.3 cm (Qin and Han).  To about 5.4 cm (approximately two inches in the Sui Dynasty).

Due to the increase in the size of the seal, the official seal was not issued to the officials themselves as in the Qin and Han dynasties, but was instead issued to the official office represented by the official, completing the transformation from the official seal to the official seal.  The official seal was no longer worn and turned into a box, which was placed in various government offices.

second, because the seal no longer restrained the seal of mud but turned into a seal on paper, the age of seal of mud was over, and the age of seal was coming.  Inkpad (usually red) appeared.  Also for the purpose of pursuing eye-catching and practical purposes, the historical calligraphy on the public seal has also been changed from Qin and Han inscriptions to positive inscriptions.

Third, the Qin and Han seals are mainly divided into casting and chiseling, so the Miao seal used is rigorous and precise.  The public seal of the Sui Dynasty was formed by bending a thin copper disc and then welded on the printing surface, so it was also called the pantiao seal.  The inscriptions of its printed discs are mostly round strokes.  In the later generations, to fill the wide printing surface, the text strokes were arbitrarily overlapped and twisted to develop into Jiudianwen.

Fourth, in the Qin and Han dynasties, the official seal never signed any money.  Starting from the Sui Dynasty, the official office had the habit of engraving.  There are three cases in which the Sui Gong seal is printed, and the casting time is engraved, such as the "Guanyang County Seal", and the back is chiseled "made on October 15th in the 16th year of Kaihuang (596)".

fifth, the seal button style in the early Tang Dynasty took another step from the nose button close to the Han and Wei dynasties to the prong button after the Song Dynasty.  In the late Tang Dynasty, the seal has disappeared and completely evolved into a prong button, such as the "Qianniufu Seal" of the Tang Dynasty collected by the Xi'an Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology.

sixth, the seal back is often engraved with regular script seals, such as the 5-character "Wuyi County seal" on the back of the Tang "Wuyi County Seal", which is no longer like the time of the Sui Gong seal.


THE EVOLUTION OF GONG YIN IN SONG DYNASTY

At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, the official seal was used for five generations.  Soon when the public seal was recast, the seal was often embedded with the words "new" or "new cast" to distinguish it from the five-generation public seal, such as the "New cast seal of Dongguan County" in the Northern Song Dynasty Taiping Xingguo 5th year 980).  The 100 official seals are all cast in copper, and the size varies according to the rank of the official.

In the early Song Dynasty, the seal of the public seal was similar in thickness to the seal, and the seal gradually widened. For example, in 989, the seal of "The Arch of the Seventh Capital of Yuhou Zhuji" was nearly twice as wide as the seal, reaching 0.1 cm.  By the first year of Jingding in the Southern Song Dynasty (1260), the "Jiaxing Mansion Jinshan Anti-Sea Force Commander Seal" was cast, and the seal edge was 0.3 cm wide.

The seals of Song Gongyin are no longer made by the strip method like the seals of the Sui Dynasty, but are directly cast.  There is no perforation on the rectangular handle button.

Unlike Sui and Tang public seals that occasionally have a back inscription, in the early Northern Song Dynasty, the public seals were often engraved with calligraphy and date to indicate the date of the stamping, such as "Dongguan County New Stamping" and "Taiping Xingguo Five Years September Cast" on the back.  

After the mid-term, while carving the annual payment, there was also the name "Shaofu Supervisor", an institution that also issued casting.  Such as "Bao Jie brother one hundred and third brother and six commanders Zhu Ji".  The Southern Song Dynasty Gongyin was transferred to the charge of Wensiyuan, and "Shaofujian" in the back paragraph was replaced by "wensiyuan".

After the Jingkang disaster in the first year of Jingkang (1126), officials of the Song Dynasty went south in a hurry, and many of the seals were lost.  The Southern Song Dynasty recast the public seal again, but "adding the word "Xing Zai" before the seal, or crowning the name to distinguish the old and the new" ("Song History·Yufu Zhi").


THE STYLE OF THE XIA, LIAO, JIN AND YUAN SEALS

During the Song Dynasty, the ethnic minority regimes confronted the Han regime in the Central Plains. There was Liao in the north, Xia in the northwest, and Jin in the northeast.  Later, the Liao was destroyed by the Jin, and the Mongols who came from behind unceremoniously cleaned up the Xixia and Jin, and finally destroyed the Song and established the Yuan Dynasty.  

The regimes and dynasties established by these four ethnic minorities were all influenced by the Gong Yin system of the Song Dynasty to varying degrees in terms of the Gong Yin system, but they also created some unique characteristics of their own, and interesting phenomena appeared in the printing.  Xixia Gongyin is in Xixia script, some of Liao and Yuan Gongyins are in Chinese; some are in Khitan or Basiba script, and Jin Gongyin is all in Chinese.

1.  Xixia Gongyin  

Xixia (1038-1227) was a political power established by the Dangxiang clan. Its characters absorbed some characteristics of the strokes of Chinese characters, but they were completely different from Chinese characters.  Xixia Gongyin has the following characteristics.

A)The public seals in ancient China were basically squares, and the Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan Dynasties were no exception, but the Xixia public seals used rounded corners exclusively.

B)Since the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the Zhu Wen Gong seal has been popular for 400 years, but the Xixia Gong seals are all in Manchu, with extremely thick strokes and borders.  The seal has absorbed the characteristics of Jiudiewen popular in the Song Dynasty, and the seals are arranged neatly and plumply.

C)The seals range from two to six characters.  Among them, the two-two characters "leader" have the most seals, accounting for 90% of the existing Xixia Gong seals.  The two characters "Chief" in Xixia are arranged up and down, which is different from the arrangement of the two characters in Han people.

D)Generally, only the year and month (some are accurate to the date) and the institution are engraved on the back of the two Songs Gongyin.  The Xixia public seal is engraved on the left side of the back of the seal with the age of the imprint.  The name of the person carrying the seal on the back of the Niuyou seal has never been seen in the public seal system of the Han people.  Sometimes the Xixia Gongyin also uses the Xixia script to engrave the word "上" on the top of the back button, which is obviously influenced by Song Yin.


2.  Liao Yin  

Liao (916~1125) was a regime established by the Khitan people.  His people are divided into Han and Bohai people who are mainly agricultural, and Qidan and Xi people who are mainly animal husbandry.  To this end, Liao implemented a system of paralleling officials from the south and the north, based on the principle of "ruling the Qidan by the state system and treating the Han people by the Han system" ("Liao History-Hundred Official System").  The public seal also uses Han seal script and Khitan script respectively.  The Khitan script is divided into big Qidan characters and small Qidan characters.

The Khitan script was derived from the half-increasing and loss of Chinese characters in the official script for the fifth year of the Liao Shenshu (920 years).  After Jin extinguished the Liao Dynasty in 1125, it continued to be used until the second year of Jin Mingchang (1191), and it was used for 300 years.  No one has known it since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and it has become a real "unknown".

3.  Jin Dynasty Public Seal

The Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) was built by the Jurchen ethnic minority, a long-standing minority in Northeast my country.

At the beginning of Jin Jianguo, the official seals of Liao and Song looted during the conquest of Liao and Song were used.  In the first year of Zhenglong (1156), King Hailing reformed the official seal of the Jin Dynasty and recovered the old seals of the Liao and Song Dynasty used in the attack.  

The period of King Hailing and King Sejong (1149-1189) became a model period for the public seal of the Jin Dynasty. The public seal was cast with fine craftsmanship, and the appearance was smooth and smooth, and pores and burrs were rarely seen.  

The gold seal usually engraves the name of the institution on the left side of the back, such as the Shaofu Supervisor, the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Shangshu and the Ministry of Xinggong etiquette.  The year and month are engraved on the right.  

The name or the serial number of the seal is engraved on the side of the stamp table.  For example, the gold "Kuprigan must pierce for the key seal" in 1200 AD, the left side of the stamp table is engraved with the "Kuprigan must pierce for the key seal", and the right side of the back of the seal is engraved with the year and month "Yongan 5th Leap February"  , The engraving and printing organization on the left is "Made by the Ministry of Rites".

In the late Jin Dynasty, due to internal and external troubles, Jin Ting had no choice but to expand the army and add more officers, resulting in a sharp increase in the number of official seals of the same-?military-level and same-level military institutions, and the same names had to be numbered sequentially.  

There are two systems for numbering, namely the five elements (gold, wood, water, fire, earth) system and the thousand-character text (heaven, earth, mystery, yellow, yu...) system.  This type of numbering seal was mainly popular in the period of King Weishao from the end of the Jin Dynasty to Aizong (1209~1234).

4.  Yuan Dynasty Official Seal

The Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) was a regime established by the Mongols.  Its official seal has two types: Chinese calligraphy seal and Basiba calligraphy seal.  

The former was used in the early Yuan Dynasty before the promulgation of the Basiba script, such as the Zhiyuan unearthed at the site of the Liaozhongjing Damingcheng in Ningcheng County, Zhaowu Dameng, Inner Mongolia.  ", the seal is the standard Chinese nine-fold seal.

In the sixth year of the Yuan Dynasty (1269), Kublai Khan ordered the national master Ba Si Ba to create the Pinyin character one-Ba Si Ba Wen, the so-called "Mongolian New Characters". After that, the number of Chinese characters Jiu Die Wen Gong seals became less and less.  

Basipa was originally the Saxon ruler of Tibetan Lamaism. Unlike the Liao, Jin, and Xia characters, the new characters he created have a certain origin with Chinese characters, but were developed from Tibetan.  Its Basiba script has absorbed the characteristics of Song Yinjiudian script, which is extremely well-proportioned and neat, with sharp edges and corners.  

One of the main features of the official seal of the Yuanba Siba script is that all the memorials are Chinese characters, which is also the most important basis for us to identify the Basiba script today.   

A major feature of the seal composition of the Yuangong seal is the widening of the seal edge, sometimes reaching 6-10 times the width of the seal stroke.  In the Sui, Tang and early Song Dynasties, the seal and the seal were often equal in width, and the seal continued to be widened afterwards.



CHARACTERISTICS OF MING AND QING GONG SEALS

The emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the treasure of the royal palace, used jade chopsticks and jade seals.  This kind of seal calligraphy "the strokes are evenly fat and thin at both ends, and the end will not show the front." The imperial Treasure House's two Song Jiudie writings and the jade chopsticks dating back to the Tang and above means that the iceberg of the Jiudie writings that imprison the public seal has been loosened.

In addition, the cabinet of the Ming Dynasty used the jade chopsticks silver seal, straight buttons, one inch and seven cents square, six cents thick; general seals used willow leaf writing, Pingqiang, Pingman, Zhengxi, 

Zhenshuo and other generals used Chiding writing,  All the tiger buttons are printed in silver, three inches and three minutes in square, and nine minutes in thickness; the other hundred official seals are all in nine-fold script, and the copper-printed straight buttons have the largest proportion of this type of printing.  

For example, in the Hongwu 22nd year of Ming Dynasty (1389) in the Palace Museum's collection, "Duoyanweidu Commander's Seal" was made.   The straight button in the Ming Dynasty has changed from a rectangular plate button in the Song Dynasty to a large elliptical column with a small upper and a lower one.  

The official seals of the Ming Dynasty are all chiseled year and serial number.   It should be pointed out that in the Song Dynasty, the so-called "nine" in Jiu Die text was-'an approximate number, it is very much, not necessarily Jiu Die, it may only be five Die, Qi Die, Die means horizontal painting in one character.  The number of layers.  

However, the vast majority of Ming Dynasty Jiudiewen did have nine horizontal paintings.   The classification of 100 official seals in the Qing Dynasty was also very strict, and the seals were generally enlarged.  Its fonts include Mongolian regular script, Manchu, Han seal, etc.  

The most common is that the Chinese and Manchu scripts appear on the seal at the same time, which is also a major feature of the Qing Gong seal.  Among the Han seals, the Jiudie script is not very prosperous, and there are jade seals, hanging needle seals, willow leaf seals, Zhiying seals, and so on.

 

TYPES OF SEALS

There are many types of seals, which can basically be divided into official seals and private seals.

Official seal: The official seal.  The official seals of the past dynasties have their own systems, not only in their names, but also in their shapes, sizes, seals, and New Zealand styles.  The seal is issued by the royal family to represent power to distinguish official ranks and show noble ranks.  The official seal is generally larger than the private seal, rigorous and steady, more square, with nose buttons.

Private Seal: The collective term for seals other than official seals.  The private printing system is complicated and can be divided into various categories in terms of word meaning, text arrangement, production method, printing materials and composition form.

1. From the meaning of the word, it is divided into: name and font size seal: the name, table, or number of the person is printed.  The name of a Chinese has one more character, and the three characters are printed. 

If there is no "print", it will be printed.  Since the Tang and Song dynasties, the word printing began to use the two characters Zhu Wen as the correct form, and there were also some cases where the word "Chou" was added under the surname.  

Modern people also have their pen names engraved, and they fall into this category.  Zhaiguan Seal: The ancients often named their rooms and studies, and often made seals with them.  Tang Liqin has a seal of "Duanjushi", which is about the earliest such seal.

Simplified book seal: In the seal, add "announcement", "funnel", "information" after the name.  Today there are people who "worship again", "should be honored", and "stop the head".  This kind of seal is dedicated to the exchange of letters.  Collection Appreciation Seal: This kind of seal is mostly used to cover calligraphy and painting cultural relics.  

It flourished in Tang but better than Song.  Tang Taizong had "Zhenguan", Xuanzong had "Kaiyuan", and Song Huizong had "Xuanhe", both of which were used in the imperial collection of calligraphy and painting.  In the collection category, add "collection", "collection", "collection", "collection painting", "treasure", "confidential play", "book" and other words.  

For the appreciation category, add words such as "appreciation", "treasure appreciation", "clear appreciation", "heart appreciation", "overlook", "eye blessing" and so on.  For the proofreading category, add the words "revision", "testing", "verification", "appraisal", "Zengding" and so on.

Jiyu Seal: The seal is engraved with auspicious language.  For example, the common words in the Chinese and Indian seals include "Da Li", "Ri Li", "Da Xing", "Chang Le", "Chang Xing", "Chang Fu", "Yi Zi Sun", "Chang Kang Shou", "Yong An Ning", "  "A day enters a thousand stones", "A day gains tens of millions", etc., all fall into this category.  

Xiao Xi in the Qin Dynasty wrote "? Diseases, Yongkangxiu, Wanshouning".  There are also those who add auspicious words to the top and bottom of their names, which are mostly seen in the two-sided seals of the Han Dynasty.

Idiom seal: Belongs to the free chapter and the like.  Calligraphy seals are engraved with idioms, poems, or complaints, wind and moon, etc., and are generally sealed on calligraphy and painting.  The idiom seal prevailed in the Song and Yuan dynasties. 

It is said that Jia is like saying that there are "sages and then enjoy this", Wen Jia has "Zhaoxi is more than a good name", Wen Peng has "to steal than my old Peng", both are the Chinese words in "Li Sao",  Makes Rennin can't help but laugh.  The idiom into the seal evolved from the Qin and Han Jiyu seals. With a moment of play, it should be timeless and elegant.

Xiao-shaped seal: also known as "pictographic seal", "pattern seal", a collective term for seals engraved with patterns.  Ancient Xiao-shaped seals generally engraved images of people and animals. They were drawn from a variety of materials, including dragons, 

phoenixes, tigers, dogs, horses, fish, birds, etc., winning with simplicity.  Xiao-shaped seals are mostly written in white, some are pure pictures, and some are added with text. In Han seals, there are often dragons and tigers, or "four spirits" (blue dragon, white tiger, Suzaku, and Xuanwu) attached to the name.

Signed seal: also known as "flowered seal", it is signed by the engraving of the name on the flower, so it is not easy to imitate, because it is used as a credential for obtaining trust.  This kind of seal began in the Song Dynasty and generally has no frame.  Most popular in the Yuan Dynasty were rectangular, generally engraved with the surname on the top, and the Basiba script or Huabao on the bottom, also known as "Yuan Piao" and "Yuan Zha".


2. In terms of text arrangement, there are: Bai Wenyin, Zhu Wenyin, Zhu and Baijianyin, and Palindrome.

3. From the production method, there are: casting, chiseling, cutting, and jet printing.

4. The printing materials are divided into: gold seal, jade seal, silver seal, bronze seal, iron seal, ivory seal, rhino horn seal, crystal seal, stone seal, etc. Today, there are wood seals, plastic seals, plexiglass seals, etc.  

5. From the form of composition, there are: one-side printing, two-side printing, six-side printing, master-printing, overprinting.



APPRECIATION OF THE SEAL

The aesthetic value of the seal can be attributed to two aspects: the artistic beauty of the seal and the beauty of the material of the seal.  The beauty of graphic arts can be divided into four parts: stamps, stamps, stamps, and stamps.

To appreciate seal characters, you must first grasp the characteristics of artistic expression techniques, such as calligraphy, chapters, and swordsmanship, and then experience the interest and meaning contained in the seal content, and combine them to taste and appreciate slowly.



CALLIGRAPHY

Achieving printing artists have always attached great importance to calligraphy. We have already understood in the previous chapter that "no mistakes" is an important prerequisite to ensure that the seals have appreciative value.  Everyone knows that calligraphy is the art of handwriting. 

If you can't even read the characters, what kind of artistic appreciation is there.  The reason why the seal has been respected and loved by the intellectuals of the ages is precisely because of his incompetence and the challenges brought about by his difficulties have been tempted.  What's at your fingertips is not challenging, not tempting, let alone appreciative value.  

For appreciators, seal recognition has become a primary task.  At first glance, seal characters are a bit unfamiliar, but in fact they are easy to learn, but difficult to master.  The seal character was developed with the "shape" as the center. Although it has become the "image" later on, there is always a tangible trace to follow when exploring its origin. Therefore, the seal character is artistic from the beginning.


CONSTITUTION

The printing method is the method of position arrangement and overall layout between characters, lines and lines.  Reasonable constitutions can give people a high-grade enjoyment, and unreasonable constitutions can be discerning, and people will know at a glance that they are insufficient or even counterfeit.  

The basic requirements of the chapter law are balance, honesty, generosity, and correctness. Most of the Han seal law is based on this, and further requires naturalness and vividness, and no interest in it, so that it can be negotiated and played.



KNIFE

The ancients chiseled copper and carved jade, which was difficult and difficult, and the process was more complicated.  Jiashi is very suitable for force, just like the brush and ink of good paper. 

Wherever the stylus moves, the stone chips are scattered, showing the effect of natural cracking, leaving the traces of the lines with the ancient and vigorous gold and stone atmosphere.  Knife method can be roughly divided into two types: punching knife and cutting knife.  

The punching knife travels quickly and swiftly, which is very similar to the straight strokes in calligraphy, which can show a vigorous and vigorous vigor; the cutting knife travels slowly, using a short-cutting knife to cut continuously, one step at a time, just like the astringent brush in calligraphy.  , It can show a strong, solid and stable atmosphere.  Sometimes the two methods of knives are combined for better results.


INTEREST AND MEANING

We know that many writers, poets, calligraphers and painters in the past have a special liking for seals. Many printers also work in poetry, calligraphy and painting. 

They often use some idioms, poems, poems, or slang as the content of the free chapters.  Surprisingly winning, full of fun and meaning.  When we appreciate this kind of sentence, we will also find it extraordinarily interesting and interesting.


APPRECIATION OF THE MARGIN

The side section is the written record of the name, year and month etc. engraved on the seal or circumference.  According to the name of Zhong Ding and other inscriptions, "the style is the indentation of the yin character, and the cognition is the one who protrudes the yang character." 

However, in the field of seals, regardless of yin and yang, they are usually collectively referred to as border style or style identification.  The type of knowledge is called "side knowledge".

Ancient seals were rarely signed, and Wen Peng developed the ethos of double-knife writing. After that, the sealers showed their talents, and the seal margins quickly rose to an important part of the art of seals, which played a role like painting inscriptions.  

In the engraving of the signature, it also shows the wonderful knife skills and superb calligraphy realm of the printers, which is worthy of our careful appreciation and appreciation.

In addition to being used as calligraphy and rubbing works for appreciation, seals and signatures are also highly literary.  It can be memorable or lyrical, or talk about art or taste, it is fascinating to read, and it can be sent back to the past.  

The so-called "Across the square inch, there are thousands of things", not only refers to the seal, but also suitable for the knowledge. Both have the subtle feeling of gold and jade. They are equally fascinating, evoke our endless associations, and bring us endless meaning.



APPRECIATION OF YINPU

Yinpu is the carrier of seal and signature.  The exquisite prints of the seal not only allow us to fully appreciate the masterpieces, but it is also a work of art in itself.  Before the Qing Daoguang period, the seals were printed with ink pad and Zhu rubbing seals instead of ink rubbing. 

It was not until the late Xiling seal art period that Lin Yunlou used rubbing rubbing methods to rub Zhao Zhishen's ink rubbings.  Section, placed behind the printed score.  After that, everyone followed suit and it became a common practice.

The engraving of the seal score is divided into two steps, one is the engraving of the script on the bottom of the seal, and the other is the ink engraving of the identification of the seal.  You must use high-quality ink pads for the seals. Good ink pads are delicate and glossy, do not lose oil, do not change quality, and are thick and uniform. They have a three-dimensional effect.

Ink rubbing printing is more complicated to operate. On the one hand, you must have proficient skills, on the other hand, you must grasp the time, which requires carefulness and experience.  In the production of imprinted musical scores, 

the ink style is generally first drawn, followed by the seal. The ink styles are divided into ink drawn and wax drawn. Wax drawn is not as subtle and clear as ink drawn, and can only meet immediate needs and is not suitable for making musical scores.

Mo Tuo is divided into "Wu Jin Tuo" and "Cicada Wing Tuo" according to the intensity of the ink. The former has a strong contrast and luster, while the latter is plain and gentle, so don't be elegant.  

The quality of the spread and extension of the printed spectrum is directly related to the expression of the seal and the seal, so there is the saying "6 merits of engraving and four merits of extension", which shows the importance of seals and extensions.  

The exquisite seals are elegantly bound, and the paper is made of pure skin cotton, single xuan or Lianshi paper. Each type of paper is printed and each style is printed. The main choice is touch, Zhu Danxuan ink, which complements each other. It is pleasing to the eye.  Research and discussion have thus become a valuable item for people to appreciate and collect.



THE ARTISTRY OF SEAL DESIGN

As a work of art, the value of a seal is generally manifested in two aspects. One is its shape design, that is, the design of the button, the casting technique and the later higher-level deep processing technique.  The second is the art of calligraphy and engraving of printed characters.


The design of printed buttons was primarily practical at first, and was used to wear ribbons and tie them around the waist, such as tile buttons and nose buttons.  The main patterns of button printing in ancient my country are listed as follows:

Nose button: This is the most common seal button in the early ancient times of our country. It is named after the hole is as small as the nose.  The official seals and private seals of the pre-Qin Dynasty adopted a large number of this form. After the Han Dynasty, the official seals of the nose button became larger, so they were also called wa button and bridge button.

Turtle button: Turtle button is also the most common button system in official seals.  The combination of tortoise and snake is called Xuanwu, Xuanwu is a personality god, and evolved into the famous Zhenwu land.  In addition, the tortoise is the same as the noble, which is a symbol of longevity and good fortune.

Snake button: Snake button is rare, but the seal awarded to the King of Dian uses snake button.

The sheep button, horse button and rabbit button have been awarded to leaders of other ethnic groups.

In addition, sacred animal buttons such as deer button, 罴 button and fish button are also found in historical records and unearthed cultural relics.  Especially worth mentioning is the Chi button, also known as Chihu Button, which was used by the emperor and empress seals.  Chi is a type of dragon, and the emperor's seals in the Ming and Qing dynasties all use Chi as a button.

Due to the large and extensive use of seals by the government and the private sector, and the diversification of printing materials, a wider space was created for the design and production of buttons. Therefore, by the end of the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, the art of seals had unprecedented prosperity.

The design of the printed button has also broken through the above-mentioned button system. Various zodiac fish and insects, characters, flowers and birds are also present in the design of the button. 

 In the competition of stone-made printing materials that appeared in the late Qing Dynasty, not only did not decline, but a large number of fine copper seals appeared on the market and passed down to future generations. 

According to the memories of the predecessors of the Beijing seal, the copper seal firmly occupied 70 to 80% of the Beijing market during the Republic of China.

There are several well-known bronze seal workshops, which gather skilled craftsmen, gather the essence of royal craftsmanship, and keep fireworks day and night, providing ample supply for the Beijing seal market, ranging from copper stamps for apprentices to the royal family of the Qing Dynasty.  The masterpieces that are played by national relatives, scholars, writers, and collectors.

Compared with other printing materials, such as stone, wood, horn, ivory, plexiglass, etc., copper printing materials have the advantages of durability, strong handing down, rich artistic expression forms, and suitable for processing.  

The color of the copper printing material is solemn. It can be more detailed and hollow than the above printing materials. With the surface deep processing technology of wrong gold, wrong silver, gilt, and engraving, the copper seal can express the royal eternal, lasting, solemn,  Noble style.

Today, the design of bronze seal buttons has been further developed, such as birthday stars, dragons and phoenixes, lions, beasts, tigers, pulao, zodiac, etc. As a representative of Chinese seal culture, we need to further understand and renew the bronze seal.  Recognize its value.


SEAL HISTORY AND TYPES

1. Ancient Seal of the Warring States Period

The ancient seal in history is the general name of the pre-Qin seal.  Most of the earliest seals we can see are ancient seals of the Warring States Period.  Many of the calligraphy characters of these ancient seals are unknown to us.  

Most Zhuwen ancient seals are equipped with wide edges.  The printed strokes are as fine as a few strokes, all from casting.  Most Baiwen ancient seals have side fences or a vertical border in the middle, and the characters are cast or chiseled.  

The seal of the official seal has names such as "Sima" and "Situ", as well as various irregular shapes, and the contents are also engraved with auspicious words and vivid patterns.

2. Qin Yin  

Qin Yin refers to the popular seal from the end of the Warring States Period to the beginning of the Western Han Dynasty, and the characters used are called Qin Zhuan.  The script is very similar to the Qin and Han Dynasties, Qin stone inscriptions and other characters, and all of them are easier to understand than the ancient texts of the Warring States Period.  

Qin seals are mostly chiseled in white, and the seal often has the word "Tian". The official seal used by low-ranking officials is about half the size of the general official seal of the square.  Tongyin".  Private seals generally like to be rectangular, in addition to round and elliptical forms. 

In addition to official names, names, and auspicious words, there are also mottos such as "respect for things", "xiangxiangdezhi", "hezhong" and other idioms into the seal.

3. Han official seal

Broadly speaking, it is a collective term for the official seals from the Han Dynasty to the Wei and Jin Dynasties.  Compared with Qin seal, the seal is more neat, the structure is straight and square, and the style is strong and classic.  

At the end of the Western Han Dynasty, the handicraft industry was very developed, so in the Xin Mang era, ("Xin" is the name of Wang Mang's dynasty) official seals were particularly exquisite and vivid.  

The official seals of the Han Dynasty were mostly written in white, all of which were cast.  Only a small number of military forces urgently use it and don't cast it for the officials of the fraternal nation. This will be introduced later.

4. Han private printing

The private seal of the Han Dynasty is the private seal of the Han Dynasty.  Not only are there different shapes, but also both vermilion and white are available. 

There are also vermilion and white combined into one seal, or four spirits and other patterns are added as decorations, and there are multi-face printing, overprinting (child-and-mother printing), and hook printing.  

In addition to the name, the seal is often accompanied by Ji language, hometown, table characters, and auxiliary characters such as "Zhiyin", "Private Seal", "Xinyin", etc. The button system is extremely diverse, which fully demonstrates the ingenuity of the craftsmen of the Han Dynasty.    

In the Han Dynasty, the private seals were still mostly written in white, the Western Han Dynasty was dominated by chiseling, and the Eastern Han Dynasty was mainly used for casting and chiseling.

5. General seal

The general seal is also one of the official seals of the Han Dynasty.  These seals are often rushed to make temporary appointments during the march, and they are carved on the surface of the seal with a knife in a hurry. 

They are also called "emergency seals."  The general seal has a unique style and a vibrant atmosphere, which has a great influence on the later artistic style.  The general seals of the Han Dynasty were generally called "Zhangs" instead of "prints". This is a major feature of military seals.


 6. Hanyu seal

The jade seals of the Han Dynasty are very precious and rare among the ancient seals.  "Peiyu" was also an elegant fashion of famous officials and scholar-officials in ancient times.  

Generally, the jade seals are well-made, rigorously structured, and the gestures are round and round, and the strokes are square and upright, but there is no sign of sluggishness.  

Because the jade is hard, it is not easy to be cut by a knife, so a special seal cutting technique is produced, which is the so-called "cutting method" of "flat knife straight down".  And because the quality of jade is not easy to be corroded and damaged, the handed down Xiayin can better retain its original features. 

7. The Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties

The official and private seal forms and button system of the Wei and Jin Dynasties all followed the Han Dynasty, but the casting was not as exquisite as the Han seal.  The official seals handed down to brother nations have many characters. They are carved with a knife like a chisel, and the calligraphy style is relaxed and natural, thus becoming a representative of the seal cutting style of a period.  There are not many seals handed down from the various countries in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. The official seal is slightly larger, the characters are sloppy, and the official seal is not cast.

8. Zhu Baiwen Seal

The Indian style of Zhu Baiwen is very ingenious in the Han Dynasty, and it is said to have originated from the Eastern Han Dynasty.  Its methods are extremely diverse, and the position and number of Zhubai characters can be flexibly changed without limitation.  

This can be seen in the number prints exemplified here.  Zhu Bai’s principle is roughly determined by the number of strokes. Most of Zhu Wen's strokes are determined by the number of strokes. Most Zhu Wen has few strokes, and Bai Ruzhu is the opposite, so as to achieve the harmonious effect of Zhu Rubai and Bai Ruzhu. This type of seal is mostly stable and private.  See used for official seals.

9. Letter seal

It began in the Eastern Han Dynasty and prevailed in the Wei, Jin and Six Dynasties. It is a seal made of two or three sides.  If a person's abdomen is empty, one or two small seals can be fitted appropriately to form the shape of a mother's embrace and a child.  

There is also a set of two seals (such as the "Guo Yi" seal in the right column) into a set of three parties.  In the volume of one seal, the use value of several seals is combined, which shows the craftsmanship level of ancient printers.

 10. Six-sided printing

There are fewer real objects handed down on six sides.  This kind of "convex" shaped seal has holes on the nose of the seal, which can be worn with a belt. A small seal is made on the end of the nose, together with the other five seals, so it is called a six-sided seal.  

A typical style handed down for six-sided printing is white text with borders, each word is one line, dense and sparse, and the vertical pens of the seal are often elongated and drooped, and the ends are thin, like hanging needles, so it has the common name of "hanging needle seal"  .  

Although this style still has the advantages of spreading the brushwork and matching the density, it is easy to become vulgar and far less than the Xiangmao of the Han Dynasty. Therefore, seal carvers have always done it only occasionally.

11. Miao Zhuan Seal (with bird and insect book)


 12. Miscellaneous Seal

Among the seals since the Warring States period, the mixed-shaped seal is also very unique.  The style is not fixed, and the size ranges from a few inches to a few minutes. 

The changes are extremely rich. In addition to the length and width of the square, there are embossed seals, square, round, and triangular seals, two-round and three-round beads, and three-leaf spreading.  

And so on, Zhu Bai has, too many to mention.  Because of its unique humor and the solemn and calm requirements of the official seal, the mixed seal is only used for private seals.

13. Pattern printing

The pictures have been printed from the Warring States Period to the Han and Wei Dynasties, with the Han Dynasty as the most.  Also known as Xiao-shaped seal or pictographic seal.  

Various forms, simple and vivid, in addition to figures, birds and beasts, bicycles, auspicious sheep, fish and geese, etc., the four spirits of auspicious sheep (? dragon, tiger, bird, (phoenix, tortoise)) are often printed in this type of seal.  Also known as the "Four Spirit Seals".

14. Idiom seal

 Idioms have been printed since the beginning of the Warring States Period, and there are more than 100 kinds of aphorisms and idioms used.  For example, "zhengxing", "respect for things", "rili", "days into ten million", "going in and out of good luck", etc., the number of idioms varies, starting with one or two characters, up to two crosses, and their use is not only to indicate auspiciousness  In addition, it is also used for burial of the dead.

15. Flower printing  

Hua Bian Yin is also called "Bai Zi", prospered in the Song Dynasty, prosperous in the Yuan Dynasty, so it is also called "Yuan Biao".  Yuanbao are mostly rectangular, usually with the surname in regular script, and the Basiba or Huabao in the next.  

From a practical point of view, most of the seals of the past have the function of preventing rape and distinguishing forgery. As individuals write arbitrarily, the changed "characters" (some are no longer a kind of characters, only as personal signs), naturally it is more difficult to imitate and achieve  The effect of anti-counterfeiting, so this bet has been used until the Ming and Qing dynasties.

16. Seal mud  

Seal mud is also called "mud seal". It is not a seal, but a relic of ancient seals—dry and hard mud masses with ancient seals—preserved precious objects.  

Since the original seal is in inscription, the seal on the mud becomes a positive inscription, and its side is a mud surface, so it forms a wide side with unequal surroundings.  

Seal mud was used from the Warring States to the Han and Wei Dynasties, and it was not possible to not use seal mud until after the Jin Dynasty, paper and silk gradually replaced the exchanges of bamboo and wood letters.  

Later generations of seal cutters learned from these precious seal mud rubbings and used them for printing, thus expanding the scope of seal cutting art.  Basic training and creation.

17. Button system  

Most of the ancient seals had buttons, so that the buttons were perforated and tied to the belt, which was the ancient "pearl seal" method.  Since the Han Dynasty, tortoise, camel, horse and other seal buttons have been used to distinguish emperors and hundreds of officials.  

For example, the tortoise button, camel button, and snake button used by high-ranking official historians are common button systems granted to brothers in the Han, Wei and Jin Dynasties.  

The button system forms of the past dynasties are rich. Among them, the altar button, the nose button, and the double bucket button are the most common. Now some button systems are listed on the right to see.

18. Official Seals Since Sui and Tang Dynasties  

In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the official seal began to increase.  With the widespread use of paper, Zhu Wen gradually replaced Bai Wen.  Many official seals began to have the year number chisel on the back.  

Sui seals often use small seals in writing, and began to use the quipped "jiudiewen" into the seal (the ancient "nine" is the ultimate number, so it doesn’t have to be Jiudie.  Change) in order to fill the printed surface.  

In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the official script was used to enter the seal. The official seal of the Manchu script in the Qing Dynasty was used in both the Chinese and the Chinese scripts.  The official seals left by the various generations of peasant regimes in the Ming and Qing dynasties are also revolutionary cultural relics that we cherish.

19. Song Yuan Yuan Zhu Wenyin  

Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, paper silk has gradually replaced bamboo and wood slips. In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, seals were directly covered with printed color seals on paper silk. 

In the Yuan Dynasty, during the heyday of literati painting, literati seals were written by literati, and the seals engraved by the sealers became poems.  The book and painting are integrated, which plays a bright point role, and is loved by painting and calligraphy.  

At this stage, firstly, Zhao Mengfu, the painter and calligrapher of Song Weiwuchu, advocated the art of seal cutting. Due to the influence of Li Yangbing's seal script in calligraphy, the pen writing was smooth and round and beautiful, resulting in a unique style of seal "Ruan Zhu Wen".  "The seal was taken by later seal cutters.

20. Seal of Brother National Characters  

Under the influence of the Han national culture, the brothers since the Song Dynasty created their own national characters based on Chinese calligraphy, and used their characters to imitate the Chinese character seal type for official seals.  ) Book, Basiba script of Yuan Dynasty and seal script of Xixia script, many of which are not known yet.

21. Modern Type Seal  

In Chinese calligraphy, seal script has become the main body of seal art because of its strong decorativeness.  However, after the Qin and Han dynasties, with the evolution of calligraphy, seal script is no longer the only calligraphy used for seals.  

In addition to the Likai seals in the Tang and Song Dynasties and the Yuan dynasty, there were precedents of Likai entering the seal in the Wei and Jin Dynasties.  

Since the Qing Dynasty, seal cutters have also tried to use the modern style (Li, Kai, Xing Cao) to enter the seal, and there are many excellent works.  This makes us realize that the embodiment of seal art is not limited to the use of a certain type of script, but the key lies in the high level of ability to use chapters, calligraphy, and swordsmanship.

22. Collection seal, Zhaiguan seal, free seal  

The seal developed into the Tang and Song dynasties, as a branch of art appreciation.  Special stamps for collection, appreciation, and revision began to appear.  

There are many kinds of seals for calligraphy and painting collections.  "Zhaiguan Seal" is a seal carved with the elegant name of the literati's study room and residence, such as "lou, pavilion, hall, nest, courtyard, zhai, xuan, hall" is too numerous to list, in fact, many names are not real (Wen Zhengming said  However, most of his bookstores are built on seals) but nothing more than an expression of intellectual spirit.  

Xianzhang originated from ancient Jiyu seals. These works of poetry, idioms, famous sayings, and common proverbs have further transformed seal carving from a purely engraving of official positions and names into an independent art of appreciation with literary meaning.  , Complement with poetry, writing and painting.


 

SEAL MATERIAL

Printing material (ie, printing blank) is the most basic material for seal carving art.  Before the Song and Yuan Dynasties, most of the printing materials used harder gold, silver, copper, jade or aquatic products, rhino horn, ivory, bamboo, wood and so on.  

In the Yuan Dynasty, Wang Mian began to try to use flower milk stone as a seal.  Because of its fine and moist texture and easy to be affected by knives, flower milk stone became a common material for literati who were good at calligraphy and painting.

In the Ming Dynasty, stone printing materials were more and more widely used by Indians.  The texture of the stone seal is crunchy and waxy, easy to cut, and the different knife methods will produce a richer artistic effect than other printing materials, so it is deeply favored by the seal carvers of the past dynasties.  

Since then, the seal altar used stone seals as the main material for engraving, and it has continued to this day.   Among the stone materials used in the past dynasties, the most common ones are Qingtian stone, Shoushan stone and Changhua stone. In addition, there are Inner Mongolia stone and Northeast stone which have been introduced into Yintan not long ago.  

Because of the different origins of various types of stone seals, their texture, performance and color are also different, and each has its own characteristics.  A precious stone seal not only has its own value, but also has a high artistic aesthetic value, so there is no shortage of people in the collection of precious seal stones.   

Qingtian stone is produced in Qingtian County, Zhejiang Province, and hence its name.  The quality of Qingtian stone is delicate and moist, easy to be affected by knives, and the knives are rich in expressiveness. It is one of the most popular printing materials used by seal carvers.  

Qingtian stone has the colors of blue, yellow, light red and blue gray. Among them, the light jelly, white jelly, and pine flower jelly are more expensive, and the top grade Fengmenqing is the most famous.   

Shoushan stone is produced in Shoushan, Fujian.  Due to the different production pits, the texture of various Shoushan stones is also different, and some even have great differences in quality.  

Shoushan Stone is divided into fields, puddles and mountain pits.  As far as quality is concerned, Tiankeng comes first, water hole comes second, and mountain hole comes second.  

There are many types of Shoushan stone, the common ones are Bai Furong jelly, brain fat rouge jelly and so on.  

Tian Huangshi, which has the elegant name of "King of Stones", is the best among Shoushan Stones. Its surface is transparent and yellow in color, and its skin is clear and regular.  

Among them, "Golden Yellow" and "Orange Peel Yellow" are the most precious. "Loquat Yellow", "Osmanthus Yellow", and "Cooked Millet Yellow" are also treasures.  

For Tian Huangshi, there has always been a saying that "gold is easy to get, but Tian Huang is hard to find".  Ordinary Shoushan stone is not as fine and waxy as Qingtian stone, and the knife has a rough feeling.   

Changhua Petroleum is produced in Changhua County, Zhejiang Province.  The stones are also divided into puddles and dry pits. The puddle stone is of uniform and smooth powder and clean, while the dry pit stone is coarse and tough, and often grows with sand nails.  

But no matter whether the puddle or drought pit, the overall feeling of receiving the knife is tight and obstructed.  Chang fossils have red, yellow, gray and other colors, and they are often intertwined.  

Among them, there is a kind of "Lotus Root Jelly" (Changhua Jelly), which is like boiled lotus root powder, which is more superior, and the one that has the color of chicken blood condensed in the stone is called "Soapstone".  In "Soapstone", the better the texture of the stone bottom, the more blood color, the fresher, the more lively, and the more precious it is.  

If there are three color blocks of black, white and red on a stone, it is also called "Liu Guanzhang" (i.e. the metaphor of Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei).  If a stone is covered with chicken blood, it has the reputation of "Dahongpao", which is the most rare and precious.


SEAL OF CALLIGRAPHY AND PAINTING

From an artistic point of view, a good painting is mainly viewed from three aspects: one is the painting itself, such as style, composition, pen and ink, and color.  The second is the inscription, such as location, font, size, and consistency with the painting itself, with a certain level of calligraphy.  

The third is the seal, such as the style, size, genre, collocation of the Yin and Yang seal, the position of the seal, the correctness of the text and the unity of the calligraphy and painting.   

Since the Ming and Qing dynasties, seals, as an important part of calligraphy and painting, have become a fixed form.   

An all-round painter should have the theory of calligraphy and calligraphy, be proficient in calligraphy, painting, seal cutting, and be skilled in techniques.  

Some famous painters are like this, such as Zhang Daqian, Fu Baoshi, Qi Baishi, Wu Changshuo, Zhao Zhiqian, Gao Fenghan, etc.   

Not only do they excel in calligraphy and painting, but they can also fix the seal, so that the seal they use can better match their paintings to achieve a more perfect harmony and unity.

The seals on calligraphy and painting are mainly divided into three categories: 

1. The seal of the author himself.  

2. The seal of the inscription.  

3. Collecting and appreciating people's seals.  

The seals used are divided into three aspects: 

first, name, font size, restaurant, hall number seal.  

2. Xianwen, Jiyu, and aphorisms.  

3. Collection and appreciation seal.   

Name and font size: usually stamped below or on the left and right of the author's name.  The seal of the hall and hall is usually stamped around or below the letter, and it is also used to welcome the head and is stamped on the upper right corner.  

Xianwen, Jiyu, and aphorisms are usually stamped on the left and right lower corners of the calligraphy and painting, as a bet, and also used to welcome the head.  

The collection and appreciation seals are generally covered in the left and right lower corners of the calligraphy and calligraphy, or the blank space that does not hinder the calligraphy and calligraphy itself, 

or it can be covered on mountings other than the calligraphy and painting.  There are also the most prominent places in calligraphy and painting to show their authority, such as Emperor Qianlong and Emperor Jiaqing.


Appreciation of calligraphy and painting is mainly observed from the aspects of the work's style, pen and ink, color, composition, composition, painting method, seal, paper, mounting, inscription, etc. The main aspects are the calligraphy and calligraphy and seal.   

As a major aspect of the identification of calligraphy and painting, the seal must be paid attention to, because most of the paintings have a seal.   Where the seal is exactly the same as the seal on the work we have now determined to be authentic, there is the possibility of authenticity.  

Of course, this is not the only standard, but only one aspect of identification. Especially since the late Qing Dynasty, western photo-engraving has been introduced into our country, so that the copied and reproduced seals can be almost identical to the original seals. 

This means that the seal cannot be used to identify calligraphy and painting.  If the seal on a work from the middle or earlier period of the Qing Dynasty is exactly the same as the seal on the known authentic work, there is no doubt in other respects, it can basically be regarded as authentic.  

Because under normal circumstances, when copying and copying the seal, the artificial imitation will always be somewhat different from the original seal. It is extremely difficult for the seal to be copied exactly like the original seal.  

If it is a calligraphy and painting work after the end of the Qing Dynasty, it must be more carefully identified from many aspects.   From the identification of the seal, there will be some differences between the seal seen and the original seal.   

Such as the thickness of the printed text, the width of the border, damage, and the clarity and blur of the imprint are different.   

This may be due to the following reasons: the initial use and long-term use of a seal will be different. The initial use of the seal will have a clearer handwriting. 

After a long time, the clarity of the seal will change due to wiping, abrasion, and bumping.  The quality, quality, new and old, intensity, dryness and wetness of the ink pad will also cause different changes after the seal is sealed.  

The width of the frame is related to the force when stamping and the underlying material, and sometimes it will have different changes in width.  The seal stone is relatively soft, and it will be worn or bumped over a long period of time, and it will also cause a certain amount of variation around the seal border.  

The clarity of the imprint has a certain relationship with the technique of the person using the seal. Some people use a lot of force to stamp, some use less force, some people shake a little, the quality and amount of the underlying material, the change of the ink pad in the cold and warm weather, which will be left unused for a long time.  

Ink pads and frequently used ink pads, these will make the sealed seal effect different. Some people also sprinkle some white powder or color powder on the imprint of the stamp that has just been stamped to prevent stains when the paintings and calligraphy works are squeezed.  

The stamp used by frequent wiping or brushing will be different from the imprint of stamps that are not frequently wiped or brushed.   The print to be identified is basically the same as long as the size of the stamp is the same as the known authentic seal and the position of the text strokes of the seal is the same.   

The seal of a famous painting and calligraphy work should also have a certain level of art.  If the seal is poor, it may be fake.  The artistic level of the seal is mainly distinguished from calligraphy, composition, and knife. Especially the words must not be wrong. A famous calligrapher and painter cannot often make typos and use typos.

Many modern calligraphers and painters often do not inherit enough traditions and have poor basic skills. They always want to create new and original styles. They only reconstruct drawings, do not emphasize pen and ink, have no basis for calligraphy, and have no research on seal cutting. They use seals to analyze their works.  

It is extremely difficult. Their seals are engraved by others and stamped on their own works. As for whether the style is consistent or not, it only differs from person to person.  

Modern stamp photo-engraving technology has reached the point where it is difficult to distinguish between true and false. Therefore, it is almost impossible to identify a certain painting and calligraphy by the stamp alone.


 

The artwork of each era has the style characteristics of each era, and so does the seal. The seal on the calligraphy and calligraphy must be consistent with the style of the era. If not, it must be a fake.  Such as the calligraphy and painting works before the middle of the Qing Dynasty, it is impossible to have the seal of oracle bone script. 

Well, today's ancient Chinese seal calligraphy is shared here, and I hope it can bring you a new understanding.

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