What was China's original pen like and how did it evolve step by step?

The research shows that the writing brush was produced in the Neolithic Age in China, and people in China have used it for thousands of years. Paintings and patterns on painted pottery should be painted on the embryo with brush strokes. Oracle Bone Inscriptions should also write with a brush first, and then carve with sharp tools. However, the earliest brush was found in the Chu tomb in the middle of the Warring States period about 2,500 years ago.

The writing brush entered a new development stage in the Han Dynasty. First, it pioneered the decorative technology of lettering and inlaying on pens. For example, the writing brushes engraved with "White Horse" and "Shi Hu Block" were unearthed in two tombs of the Eastern Han Dynasty in Wuwei, Gansu.

In the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, a number of pen makers such as Wu Yunhui, Feng Yingke, Lu Wenbao and Tianxi Zhang emerged in Huzhou, Zhejiang Province. Sheep brushes made of goat hair are popular all over the world and are called "lake pens".

Huzhou has been the center of brush making in China since the Qing Dynasty. At the same time, many famous brand brushes have appeared in other places, among which Liu Brush in Ruyang, Henan Province, Li Dinghe in Shanghai, Wu Yunhui in Jiangxi Province and Yipin Zhai in Lu 'an, Anhui Province all won prizes at the international fair.

Extended data:

Features of writing brush:

Although the writing brush is a practical tool, with the needs of society, economy and culture, the making and varieties of the writing brush are constantly improved, and the technology is constantly improved, which makes the writing brush increasingly perfect and exquisite, and gradually becomes an antique for collection and appreciation.

Brush is not easy to store, and it is practical and easy to break, so the appreciation of brush can start with the shape of brush, with emphasis on strong decoration, rich colors and rich pen tubes.

The shape of brush strokes is improved for the needs of writing and painting. The ancients used bamboo shoots to make brush, which is a traditional China name, belonging to short-edged wool and double brush. The front short body is short and thick, shaped like a bamboo shoot. The front abdomen is thick, and the paper is easy to be dignified and thick. Besides being practical, it also gives people an appreciation interest. Another example is orchid-style bristles, which is also one of the traditional brushes in China.

The handwriting is round, white, pure and delicate, like a magnolia in bud, giving people a beautiful viewing and pleasing feeling. There was also a name in ancient times, which made the brush into a gourd shape. Double brushes are round and strong.

Baidu encyclopedia-brush

People's Network-Brush: China's Unique Cultural Invention