Imre Jakabffy (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 8. (Budapest, 1984)

CHIA-JEN KECSKÉS, Lily: Art and connoisseurship of the ink

the Yellow Mountain in Anhui province or the Western Lake in Hangchow in Chekiang province, were also the favorite subjects. Besides scenes from the nature, we find men in action, such as scenes of ploughing and weaving, a cotton cultivation, etc. We also get illustrations of Chinese sciences, such as pictures of armillary sphere and constellations. Among the religious and mythological themes we find unicorn, dragons, lotus, Dharma, Buddha, deities, stupas, Lao-tzu, etc. Even Christian pictures could be found.

13 Many decorative inks were made for special occasions, such as birthdays or weddings, with symbolic pictures, such as 'Nine Sons', 'Hundred Sons', and 'Dragon and Phoenix', etc. In respect for old traditions, imitations of jade pendants, bronze mirrors, and knife-shaped coins were made by many inkmakers. Others attempted to re-capture famous paintings of old or contemporary artists. In a few cases we find selfportraits.

14 On the other side of an ink piece is usually the inscription containing the inkmaker's name, trade-mark, date of manufacturing, and eulogy in prose or verse of the quality of ink, skill of the inkmaker, or the theme of the design on the other side. We also find moralizations, religious vows, and good wishes. In one of the ink catalogs published during the Ch'ing dynasty, an ink made by Yeh Li carried the entire poem by Li Po on the one side and his portrait on the other.

15 During this time a new type of ink appeared bearing special inscriptions of the name or pseudonym of a famous personality copied from his own handwriting, apparently by special order.

16 Inscriptions on Chinese ink, together with designs, serve as rich documentary sources of contemporary literary, economic, religious and political life. Always 1. IMPERIAL INK, with the inscription: Ch'ien-lung hsin mao nien chih. Made in hsin mao year (1771) of the reign of Ch'ien-lung (1736—96). Inv.-Nr 5653. well executed in fine calligraphy, these inscriptions also give examples of Chinese writing styles that ever existed in history. Such styles include the chuan (seal) used on bronzes, stone, oracle bones, and seals, li (clerical) risen after the writing brush became the chief writing tool, ts'ao (draft) with wavy strokes, k'ai (regular) the formal script form, and hsing (running) with features of some formality and waviness. The inscriptions were written in fine calligraphy by inkmakers or artists; it is, however, the skill of mold-cutters who transformed the original ones into the surface of the ink, with minute precision and full understanding, and made the ink, in both technology and aesthetics, as refined as any other art. One of the most significant artistic achievements in Chinese inkmaking was the invention of the chi chin mo (decorat147