The inkstone is one of the four treasures of the study. According to historical records, inkstones originated in the Huangdi era and have a history of five to six thousand years. It has witnessed the development of great Chinese culture and carries the wisdom of the Chinese nation. In the long course of history, with the continuous improvement of the production and carving level of inkstones, the multi-level development of inkstone material types, and the directional integration of culture and art, inkstones integrate carving and painting, and condense the culture and economy of various dynasties of the Chinese nation. Even various aesthetic information has gradually changed from simple writing tools to ornamental objects and collectibles with quite high artistic taste. It integrates history, art, use, appreciation, research and collection value. It has unique national style and traditional art. It is a dazzling flower in the palace of Chinese art.
The inkstone is a traditional Chinese writing utensil. Its emergence and development are in line with the civilization and progress of the Chinese nation, and it has played an important role in the progress of human civilization. According to recent archaeological discoveries, the inkstone has a history of more than 5,000 years, which can be traced back to the time of the Yellow Emperor 5,500 years ago.
Inkstone was formed after the emergence of writing, with the frequent communication of words and the emergence of other tools for writing (such as ink and brushes). In 1975, the inkstone and ink unearthed from the Qin Dynasty tomb in Suihudi, Yunmeng, Hubei Province are the earliest writing inkstones and artificial inks in my country discovered so far. The inkstone is polished with pebbles into a round cake shape, without any decorative carvings, and comes with a pestle stick next to it. Ink ingots with a relatively rough texture are cylindrical and need to be grinded with a pestle.
The significant development of inkstone was during the Western Han Dynasty. Most inkstones of the Western Han Dynasty are rectangular stone inkstones equipped with exquisite wooden boxes or painted lacquer boxes. Since then, inkstones have gradually emerged from practical writing tools and entered the palace of handicrafts. Jade inkstones, lacquer inkstones, and pottery inkstones emerged as the times require, becoming symbols of social status and wealth for people in the Han Dynasty.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the development of inkstones experienced an obvious turning point. Most of them are round, three-legged, and covered in shape, and some are even equipped with grindstones. The level of craftsmanship has been significantly improved compared to the past. The decoration adopts a combination of openwork and relief. The three-legged and edge and The covers are often engraved with animal patterns, such as cloud dragons, doves, etc. However, from a practical point of view, the inkstones of the Qin and Han Dynasties have not yet reached a mature level in quality and form, and are still in their infancy.
In the more than three hundred years from the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties to the unification of the Sui Dynasty, porcelain appeared in large quantities, replacing expensive copper and lacquerware. The round three-legged celadon inkstone became the main variety of inkstones in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties.
During this period, in addition to celadon inkstones, pottery inkstones continued to exist. At the same time, northern carved square stone inkstones with prominent local colors and national styles began to appear. Among them, the Northern Wei Dynasty stone carvings are the most exquisite.
In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, porcelain inkstones became more popular. In addition to the round three-legged inkstone, multi-legged inkstones appeared. In the Tang Dynasty, in addition to porcelain inkstones, famous special inkstone materials such as Duanshi and Sheshi appeared. Red silk stone and Chengni also became the materials for making inkstones. At this time, the inkstone-making technology developed rapidly, and my country's four famous inkstones were born.
The typical inkstone of the Tang Dynasty is a dustpan-shaped inkstone with enough legs. One end is round (or square) and narrow, and the other end is flat and wide, opening like a dustpan. One end of the bottom of the inkstone is supported by a foot, which can be single foot, double foot or ladder foot; it is also called the phoenix-shaped inkstone because it resembles the character "phoenix".
Red silk stone was famous in the Tang Dynasty. It was produced in Qingzhou, Shandong Province. It has bright colors and various varieties. At this time, people began to study excellent stones. Liu Gongquan, a great calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty, believed in "On Inkstones": "Qingzhou is the first place to store inkstones, followed by Jiangzhou. Later, Duan, She, Lintao, and those who have good intentions used Weiyang Palace Bronze Bird Terrace tiles, and then All of them are not as good as the top, and She is the second best." (Jiangzhou is located in Xinjiang County, Shanxi Province, and is the origin of "Chengni Inkstone"). After the mid-Tang Dynasty, inkstones showed a prosperous scene. In terms of texture, there are stone inkstones, pottery inkstones, porcelain inkstones, copper inkstones, iron inkstones, lacquer inkstones, jade inkstones, etc. Not only are there many varieties and styles, but the production and style are also more refined than those of the Qin, Han and Six Dynasties.
Although the Five Dynasties period was short, study utensils were valued by the court. Li Jing, the leader of the Southern Tang Dynasty, set up an inkstone officer in Shezhou for the first time to manage the production of Kaishi and She inkstones, and provide high-quality products to the palace, which greatly improved the status of the inkstone itself.
Coupled with the further popularization of tables and chairs, people gradually formed the habit of sitting at their desks when writing and painting. As a result, footed inkstones gradually withdrew from the stage of history and were replaced by platform inkstones without feet. The shape of inkstones underwent major changes.
Stone inkstones became increasingly popular in the Song Dynasty. At this time, inkstones were mined in addition to Qingzhou red silk stone, purple gold stone, Duanzhou stone, and Shezhou stone. Zizhou gorse stone, Tangzhou purple stone, Luzhou stone, Yongjia Guanyin stone, and Fugaishan immortal stone were also developed. etc. People in the Song Dynasty had a strong interest in the color and texture of stone inkstones, and even became a pursuit. According to historical records, the inherent color of precious stone inkstones makes people more and more cherish them and find them more and more mysterious.
The shapes of stone inkstones in the Song Dynasty tended to be diversified, and their styles swept away the single style of round three-legged and dustpan-shaped inkstones in the Han and Tang Dynasties. Since then, stone inkstones have dominated the world and their shapes have become diversified. The "Shezhou Inkstone Pu" recorded in the Song and Tang dynasties records as many as 40 types including Duan type, Yue type, Gui type, and Toad type. Duan inkstones also include Taishi inkstone, Lanting inkstone, etc. The outline of Song inkstone is simple and elegant, practical and elegant, and its main style is hand-chao inkstone. The so-called copying hand can be grabbed with the bottom of a hand-made inkstone, so it is named after its small size.
Since the Song Dynasty, the "Four Famous Inkstones" have successively established their unshakable status. The "Inkstone Pu" written by Su Yijian of the Song Dynasty points out that there are more than 40 products, among which the Qingzhou red silk stone is the first, the Duanzhou Hukeshan stone is the second, the Shezhou Longwei stone is the third, and the Gansu Taohe stone is the fourth. Later, the veins of the red silk stone were cut off and were replaced by Chengni inkstones. Since the Ming Dynasty, the "Four Famous Inkstones" have become "Duan Inkstone, She Inkstone, Taohe Inkstone, and Chengni Inkstone".
The guiding ideology of Ming inkstone production and craft decoration has undergone great changes. Its function has changed from practicality to art, and it has become a collection of literati. In the Ming Dynasty, Duan stone, She stone and Taohe stone were still the most valuable products for making inkstones. At this time, because the mining of Duanshi had not stopped, and the mining scale of Sheshi was very small, and the Taohe stone was difficult to obtain due to the deep water, Duanshi's reputation grew and became more and more famous, and it was regarded as the top of all inkstones. . During the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty, due to the excavation of Duanshi Puddle, many more beautiful inkstones were discovered, such as blue and white, ice patterns, fish brains, etc. The style of carved inkstones of the Ming Dynasty is dignified and thick, with simple decoration, elegant and refined. Suixing inkstones (special-shaped inkstones) are lively and lively, pioneering inkstone carvings by literati who pursued charm.
The Qing Dynasty was a glorious period for inkstone production. In addition to continuing the famous inkstone materials of the previous generation, the inkstone materials used also included crystal, lacquered sand, jade, ivory, and glass (formerly known as "material ware"). and other materials, some of which cannot be ground. At this time, inkstones focused on dexterity, and large and thick ones were very rare. The inkstone carvings of the Qing Dynasty absorbed the strengths of stone carvings, ivory carvings, wood carvings and lacquer carvings. They had various patterns, including flowers and trees, birds and animals, mountains, rivers, sun and moon, historical allusions, character stories, famous calligraphy, seal inscriptions, etc.; round carvings, deep carvings , hollow carving, relief carving, bas-relief carving, intaglio and other carving techniques are interlacedly used.
Due to the rapid development of inkstone carving skills, the aesthetic taste of inkstones in the Ming and Qing Dynasties became higher and higher, and the evaluation of inkstones became more and more sophisticated. Inkstones have been transformed from practical use to objects of artistic appreciation and collection. On the history of inkstones, many works on the art of inkstones and inkstone carvings have been published one after another. There are no less than thirty-five kinds of works that have been handed down to this day, such as: "Lun on Ancient Inkstones" by Cao Zhao of the Ming Dynasty, "Lun on Inkstones" by Zhang Yingwen, and "Duanxi" by Huang Qin'a of the Qing Dynasty. "History of Inkstone", Wu Lanxiu's "History of Duanxi Inkstone", Zhu Yizun's "Shuo Inkstone", Cao Rong's "Inkstone Record", Yu Huai's "Inkstone Forest", Zhu Mei's "A Brief History of Inkstone", Ji Nan's "Mo Yuzuo Manuscript", "A Study of Duanxi Inkstones", Jin Nong's "Dongxinzhai Inkstones", Gao Zhao's "A Study of Duanxi Inkstones", Yu Minzhong's "Xiqing Inkstones", etc.
Inkstones from past dynasties, with their different forms, textures, types and rich cultural connotations, constitute a rich and colorful history of Chinese inkstones.