The "Preface to the Lanting Collection" has not yet been found.
The full text of "Lanting Preface" has 28 lines and 324 words. The whole text is charming and elegant, and the words are exquisite. The stippling is like a dance, like the help of gods and men. It has been regarded as the best in the calligraphy circles of the past dynasties. Mi Fu, a great calligrapher in the Song Dynasty, called it "the first calligraphy in Chinese running script".
Anyone who learns calligraphy in future generations will be fascinated by Lanting and cannot extricate themselves. The dancing-like calligraphy of "Lanting Preface" really makes calligraphers like us in the future generation marvel at Wang Xizhi's superb calligraphy skills and Wang Xizhi's literary talent as smooth as water.
However, it is this "Lanting Preface", "the best running script in the world", that has created an eternal mystery in the history of calligraphy. This calligraphy masterpiece "is among the best in Guiyue and ancient times". Until now, his whereabouts are still confusing, which makes people regretful.
Among the eight existing Lanting columns, the unsigned third of the eight columns was once suspected to be the original work of Wang Xizhi. However, after extensive research, it was found that this work was still filled with double hooks and ink by the later calligrapher Feng Chengsu. It is not the original work of Wang Xizhi.
Extended information:
The full text of "The Preface to the Lanting Collection" has 28 lines and 324 words. The whole text is charming and elegant, and every word is exquisite, like a divine help. For example, among the 20 characters "Zhi", none of them are similar, making it a unique masterpiece in the history of calligraphy. He rewrote it many times in the future, but none of it was as good as this drunken work, which was regarded as the best in the calligraphy circles of all dynasties.
Mi Fu, a master of calligraphy in the Song Dynasty, called it "the first calligraphy calligraphy in China". However, even today, the whereabouts of this masterpiece of calligraphy, which is "a masterpiece of Guiyue and among the best in ancient and modern times", are still confusing. It is impossible not to regret it.
He Yanzhi's "The Story of Orchid Pavilion" once said that Li Shimin, a literary and military man, had a special liking for calligraphy, especially the calligraphy of the "Sage of Calligraphy" Wang Xizhi. He used the emperor's convenience to spread his calligraphy throughout the world. To search for Wang Xizhi’s calligraphy works.
Every time I get an authentic work, I regard it as a treasure. When I am interested, I will copy it and speculate on it to understand the interest of its brushwork. After appreciating its natural charm, I treasure it by my side for fear of losing it.
Not only that, he also advocated Wang Xizhi's calligraphy style, personally wrote the "Biography of Wang Xizhi" for "Book of Jin", and collected and copied Wang Xizhi's authentic works. In his later years, Taizong liked Wang Xizhi even more.
Although there are a lot of Wang Xizhi's ink paintings in the collection, including the "Preface to the Lanting Anthology", the authentic copy of Wang Xizhi's "Preface to the Lanting Anthology" has never been found. As a monarch of a country, he could not obtain the rare treasures of the previous dynasty. Whenever Taizong thought about this, he seemed depressed.
It turns out that Wang Xizhi himself cherished the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" written by "divine assistance" very much. He carefully kept it and regarded it as a family heirloom, which was passed down to his seventh generation Sun Zhiyong.
Zhiyong became a monk as a young man and loved calligraphy. He greatly admired the calligraphy of his ancestors, Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi, and was determined to make Naizu's calligraphy famous forever. Zhiyong practiced calligraphy very hard. When he was in Yongxin Temple, he built a small building just for practicing calligraphy and vowed "if he can't succeed in calligraphy, he will not go down to this building."
In this deserted small building, he practiced calligraphy like crazy, using one brush after another. He often threw the worn brush into a big urn, and continued to practice calligraphy for a long time. , and accumulated several jars. Zhiyong later buried these brushes together in one place and wrote his own inscription to bury them. It was called "Tuibi Tomb" at that time.
After thirty years of hard work, Zhiyong's calligraphy fame has become more and more popular. Many people seek his authentic calligraphy, and so many people come to ask for advice that his outdoor penis is often full and even the doorstep is broken down. However, Zhiyong had no choice but to use iron sheets to reinforce the threshold, which was called the "iron threshold" by people at the time.
"The True Book Thousand-Character Essay" is Zhiyong's representative work, and later generations spoke highly of it. After his "True Book Thousand Character Essay" spread to Japan in the Tang Dynasty, it had a great influence on Japanese calligraphy.
Zhiyong died at the age of 100. Before his death, he passed the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" to his disciple, monk Biancai. Monk Biancai also studied calligraphy very well. He knew the value of "Preface to the Lanting Collection" and kept it in a specially dug hole in the beam of his bedroom.
When Li Shimin learned that the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" was with Monk Bancai, he was very excited and sent people to ask for it many times. Monk Bancai always claimed that he did not know the whereabouts of the original work. Li Shimin saw that force would not work, so he resorted to outsmarting him. He sent Xiao Yi, the supervisory censor, to dress up as a scholar and get close to Biancai, looking for an opportunity to obtain the "Preface to the Lanting Collection".
Xiao Yi also studied calligraphy very much, and had a very good conversation with Monk Biancai. After the two became close, Xiao Yi deliberately took out some of Wang Xizhi's calligraphy works for Monk Bancai to appreciate.
After reading it, Biancai said disapprovingly: "It's true, but not good. I have an authentic copy, and that is Wang Xizhi's real treasure passed down from generation to generation."
Xiao Yi pretended to be confused and asked calmly what the post was. After much hesitation, he mysteriously told him that it was the original "Preface to the Lanting Anthology". Seeing that Xiao Yi didn't believe it, Bencai decided to open his eyes and took the original "Preface to the Lanting Collection" from the hole in the roof beam for Xiao Yi to see.
Xiao Yi inspected it carefully and found that it was indeed the original "Preface to the Lanting Collection". His expression changed, and he quickly put it into his sleeve, and at the same time showed the relevant "Edict" of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty to Bencai. Only then did Biancai realize that he had been deceived, but it was too late to regret it.
Li Shimin was extremely happy when he finally got what he had dreamed of.
Because Xiao Yi had merit in outwitting the "Preface to the Lanting Collection", Li Shimin appointed him with Zhubi, promoted him to the rank of Yuanwailang, increased the fifth rank, and rewarded him with a silver vase, a gold vase, an agate bowl, pearls, etc., and also gave him There are two royal horses in his palace, equipped with saddles and bridles decorated with jewels, one each in the house and manor.
Li Shimin was angry at first for hiding the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" and not dedicating it to him, the emperor of the dynasty. After calming down, he considered that Biancai was old and couldn't bear it. As a punishment, Bencai was let go.
A few months later, the kind-hearted Li Shimin gave Master Biancai 3,000 pieces of brocade and silk and other items, and 3,000 stones of grain. He issued an edict to the Yuezhou Governor's Office to pay for it on his behalf.
After receiving these rewards, Master Biancai, who was still in shock, did not dare to take them as his own. He managed to convert this gift into money and used the money to build a three-story pagoda.
This pagoda is particularly exquisite and gorgeous, and it still exists in the world today. Biancai became ill due to fright and stimulation, and died a year later.
Li Shimin admired Wang Xizhi's calligraphy so much that he ordered the four calligraphers Zhao Mo, Han Daozheng, Feng Chengsu and Zhuge Zhen who served in the palace to make several copies each and give them to the crown prince, princes and ministers. , at that time, this kind of copy, which was "first-class authentic", was also "Luoyang paper expensive". In addition, there are also copies handed down by famous artists such as Ouyang Xun, Chu Suiliang, and Yu Shinan.
Historical records: "Preface to the Lanting Collection" states in Li Shimin's posthumous edict that it should be placed under the head. That is to say, this treasure should be in Zhaoling (the mausoleum of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty). The warlord Wen Tao of the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties stole Zhaoling while he was serving as the military governor of the northern part of Guanzhong, Shaanxi.
Historical records record: "In the seven years since I was in the town, all the tombs of Emperor Tang in the territory were excavated and the gold and treasures hidden in them were taken." Li Shimin's Zhaoling Mausoleum was naturally not spared. After the tomb robbers entered the underground palace of Zhaoling, they saw that its architecture and internal facilities were magnificent, just like the Chang'an Imperial City Palace.
In the middle of the tomb is Taizong's main bedroom. A stone letter is placed on the bed. When the stone letter is opened, an iron box is hidden inside. The iron box is full of valuable books, calligraphy and paintings collected by Li Shimin during his lifetime, among which the most valuable ones are the original works of Zhong Yao, a great calligrapher of the Three Kingdoms period, and Wang Xizhi, a great calligrapher of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
When you open it, you will see that the paper and ink written more than 200 years ago are as new as new. All these rare treasures were taken out by Wen Tao, but their whereabouts have been unknown for more than a thousand years. No one knows where these treasures have gone.
However, there is no "Preface to the Lanting Collection" on the list of unearthed treasures written by Wen Tao, and there has never been any record of the circulation and collection of the authentic works. Some historians believe that Wen Tao's excavation was hasty and careless, and he did not conduct a comprehensive and careful cleanup. Therefore, the authentic work is probably still hidden in a more secret place in the Zhaoling tomb.
There is another theory in the historical circles, that is, the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" was not buried with Li Shimin in the Zhaoling Mausoleum, but was buried in the Qianling Mausoleum of Tang Gaozong Li Zhi.
People who hold this view believe that when Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty died, he did not propose to bury the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" with him, but gave the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" to his son who also loved handed down works of art. Li Zhi.
Li Zhi was the ninth son of Li Shimin. He was established as the prince in the seventeenth year of Zhenguan (643) and ascended the throne in the twenty-third year of Zhenguan (649). Li Zhi reigned for 34 years, died in the first year of Hongdao (683), and was buried in Qianling.
Before his death, Li Zhi left an edict on his deathbed and buried the calligraphy and paintings he liked during his lifetime. Therefore, after the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" was lost, some people suspected that the "Preface to the Lanting Collection" was not buried with Zhaoling, but was hidden in Qianling.
There were eighteen imperial tombs in the Tang Dynasty. It is said that seventeen of them were dug by Wen Tao. However, when they reached the Qianling Mausoleum, there was heavy wind and rain and the work was unsuccessful. After the Tang Dynasty, no one has ever seen the original "Preface to the Lanting Anthology", which makes more people believe that the "Preface to the Lanting Anthology" was buried with Qianling Mausoleum.
The whereabouts of the original "Preface to the Lanting Collection" is still a mystery. It seems that the truth will only be revealed when the Zhaoling and Qianling mausoleums are officially excavated in the future. The questions left by history can only be answered by time. We should have enough patience to wait for this, and there will always be a day when the truth comes out.
People's Daily Online - Revealing the Secret: The whereabouts of the authentic "Preface to the Lanting Collection"
Baidu Encyclopedia - Preface to the Lanting Collection