The purple brush is made of the hair on the back of the rabbit's neck, so it's named after its dark purple color. The strength of rabbits in the north and south is also different, and some are made in the north and south. The tenacity of rabbits is called health brush, which is better than that of the north. It is long and sharp, suitable for writing straight Fang Zhengzhi characters, and is valued by calligraphers. Bai Juyi's "Purple Pen Yuefu Poetry" says: "Purple pen is like a cone and sharp as a knife." Describe the characteristics of Zihao pen very completely. However, because only the hair on the back of the rabbit's neck is available, it is expensive and heroic, so you can't write big characters on the plaque.
Wolf brush is actually made of wolf hair. The previous generation did make pens with wolf hair; But today, the wolf's hair is weasel's hair, not wolf's hair. What Langhao saw was recorded very late, and some people used "mustache pen" as Langhao pen, so the use of Langhao can be pushed to before Wang Xizhi's Jin Dynasty, but it is not certain. Weasels can only use the tip of their tails as pens. They are tough by nature, second only to rabbits but too woolly, and they are also healthy pens. Disadvantages are similar to those of Zihao, not too big.
Wool is made from the hair or tail hair of green sheep or antelope. Textual research began before the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and the new pen improved by Meng Tian in Qin Dynasty has become a pen-making material. Calligraphy is the most important thing, sheep are soft and have no front, and books are "weak and boneless", which are rarely used by calligraphers in past dynasties. Sheep hair became popular only after the Southern Song Dynasty. But it was widely used after the early Qing Dynasty. Because the Qing Dynasty paid attention to roundness and delicacy and was not allowed to show off talents, only soft wool could meet the requirements and was widely used at that time. The softness of wool is also poor. If it is properly combined with paper and ink, it can also show a plump and gentle style, and it is cheap and easy to get. Wool is so long that it can be written in large letters more than half a foot.
There are more than two kinds of pens with two brushes, which are named according to their mixing ratio, such as three purple seven sheep and five purple five sheep. Meng Tian's improved pen, with deer hair as the column and wool as the quilt, belongs to a double-stranded brush. Double double brush takes one more health value and one more softness value to match, with health value as the main factor, which is called "column". Gentleness is a bad habit, called "righteousness". No matter how long the column is, the quilt is also short. This is called a pen with a column and a quilt. Quilts also have many layers, such as rabbit hair as a column, short wool quilt, and three layers of * * * are the same length as the column, so the roots are extra thick and thin, storing more ink, which is convenient for writing. The characteristics are different according to the mixing ratio, either rigid or soft, or moderate in hardness, and cheap and labor-saving, all of which are advantages.
In addition, there is our famous Hu Bi, which is one of the "Four Treasures of the Study" and is known as the "crown of pens". Hu Bi's hometown is Shanlian Town. There is a Bizumeng Temple in the local area. According to legend, Meng Tian, the general of Qin Shihuang, invented a brush with dead wood as the tube, deer hair as the column and wool as the quilt. Therefore, Shanlian is also called Meng Xi. Why is Shan Lian's brush so excellent? One legend is credible: Sun Zhiyong, the seventh generation monk of Wang Xizhi, once lived in Yongxin Temple in Shanlian and was good at calligraphy. The people who asked for books were packed, and the bald brush was immediately buried next to the temple, named "Linbi Tomb". There were still relics before liberation, and thousands of words were passed down from generation to generation. Monk Zhiyong studied with calligraphers in Shanlian and developed a perfect brush. Since then, famous teachers have emerged in large numbers. According to "Huzhou Fuzhi", "Feng Yingke and Lu Wenbao made pens in the Yuan Dynasty, and they learned from their hometown, so Hu Bi became famous all over the world." There is a poem that says, "Huzhou Lake has a wonderful brushwork and can work well. If you wave your hand in Yutang, you will not hesitate to ask for it like a pearl. " It can be seen that the lake pen is precious.
Tiger skin is also called tiger skin. The so-called "Ying" is the neat and transparent front Ying at the tip of the pen, which is called "sunspot" by people in the industry. The depth of the "sunspot" reflects the length of Feng Ying. Hu pen is generally made of fine goat wool through nearly 100 processes, such as soaking, drawing, combing, splicing and combining. The fame of Shanlianhu Brush is closely related to Zhao Mengfu, a great painter and calligrapher in Yuan Dynasty. Zhao Mengfu, a native of Huzhou, who is known as "a thousand words a day", is very concerned about and attaches great importance to the local skills of making lake pens. According to "Huzhou Prefecture Records", he once asked someone to make a pen, but once he was not satisfied, he took it apart and made it again. This strict quality requirement has been passed down to this day. Bai Juyi once described the exquisiteness and complexity of pen-making skills as "one stroke in a million" and "one stroke is light, but it is very important". Tiger skin has the characteristics of being sharp, neat, round and healthy, and is called the "four virtues" of tiger skin, so it is said that "Mao Ying's skill is the best in the world".
If you use paper, it depends on your personal choice. For example, if you choose what kind of Xuan paper or practice writing, you should reconsider. There are many kinds of rice paper, which can be divided into three categories according to the material selection: cotton material, clean skin and ultra-clean paper; According to the thickness, it can be divided into: single publicity, double publicity, two-layer clip, three-layer clip and so on. According to paper grain, it can be divided into single silk road, double silk road, rib and turtle grain.
The main raw materials for papermaking are mostly plant fibers, mainly bamboo and wood. The fiber of wood is elastic, which makes the paper have strong ink absorption. Bamboo fiber is brittle and hard, and the paper made of it has weak ink absorption, so it can be divided into two categories:
Weak blotting paper: made of bamboo fiber, the paper is smooth, the ink floats on the surface, and it is not easy to open slowly, so the color is bright. Mainly paper, such as Tang paper, clay paper and today's foreign paper also belong to this category.
Integrity paper: a famous paper used by Li Houzhu in the Southern Tang Dynasty, which is as famous as Tingguimo. It is characterized by smoothness and compactness, and is known as "as slippery as spring ice and as dense as a seal". It is the top grade of weak blotting paper, which is almost called jade water paper, and the inferior one is called cold jade. "Light and crisp" is its characteristic.
Shu Gui: According to legend, the ancient papermaking method of Cai Lun was spread in West Shu, and the Shu Gui produced by it was quite famous since the Tang Dynasty, such as Xue Taogui and Xie Gonggui. It is said that its water quality is pure, so its paper is great. "Thank the official document" is named after the teacher's creativity, because it has ten colors, also known as ten-color text. "Xue Taogui" is named after pottery, but this kind of colored paper is made according to the ancient method, which is easy to dye and cannot be circulated for a long time. Just for fun.
Tibetan scripture paper: Tibetan scripture paper is a paper used by Buddhist temples to write or print Buddhist scriptures, also known as Jin Sugui, which is available in yellow and white.
Clay gold and wax jars commonly used in Ming and Qing dynasties are rare today, and cold light jars are rare even if they have the lowest appearance. Bird paper made in Japan is widely used now, but it is expensive, not durable and really not practical.
Strong blotting paper: mostly wood fiber, with strong ink absorption and rough surface. When ink falls off the paper, it is easy to disperse, and writing is often done with paste or wax. The paper is bright and delicate, mainly Xuan paper. Although it appeared late, it has replaced paper and become the most valuable writing paper.
Xuan Paper and Imitation Xuan: The most valuable writing paper today is Yupan Xuan. Lime for yubanxuan, mulberry, short wood, straw and sandalwood skin has the strongest ink absorption and the best texture. Xuan paper is named after Xuancheng, Anhui Province, but Xuancheng itself does not produce paper, and the surrounding local paper is declared as scattered land.
Let's continue to talk about the precious jade plate announcement. This kind of paper can't be used by everyone, because it has strong ink absorption, so it is hard for people who use it slowly: as long as they stop writing, the ink will seep out and form a big ink ball! However, some people use its characteristics to write distinctive characters, such as Bao's light ink book and Qi Baishi's freehand brushwork.
Because rice paper is too ink-absorbing and difficult to write, some people have improved it: either calendering, adding glue alum or adding pulp. After improvement, the ink absorption of rice paper is slightly reduced, making it easier to write.
Wool paper, Yuan Shu paper and cotton paper: Xuan paper is expensive and is often used when learning Chinese characters. This kind of paper was originally used to print books, but because of its good paper quality, some people bought books and cut them out to practice writing, so it is called "pleated paper". The raw material of this paper is mainly bamboo, which is yellow in color and excellent in texture, which is very different from the machine-made selvage paper used by primary and secondary school students now. Yuanshu paper is similar to fringed paper, but it is unknown today. The cotton paper produced in this province can also be regarded as this kind, with good texture, toughness and low price, which can be used as calligraphy.
It all depends on whether you practice writing with a soft pen or a hard pen now, but also on the degree and level of your practice, as well as your personal habit of using paper and pen, writing style and so on. I hope it helps you.