Zhuan Shu (篆书) stílus - a "pecsétírás"

 vissza  |  stílusok 汉字字体风格 

The unification of zhuan shu was in the Qin Dynasty when Li Se (李斯) simplified and standardized the earlier zhuan shu (篆书) characters. The structure of each zhuan shu character looks solid and stable and brings to the viewers an interesting mood and artistic feeling. The zhuan shu standardized by Li Se is called Small Seal Style (小篆, xiao zhuan), as opposed to Great Seal Style (大篆, da zhuan). Great Seal Style refers to those zhuan shu characters existed in the pre-Qin Dynasty period. Da zhuan is also known as zhou wen (籀文).

zhou wen (籀文)

Great Seal Style is not very different from Ancient Script (古文, gu wen). It is a synthesis of the variants of Ancient Script. The most famous example of Great Seal Style is Stone Drum Inscriptions (石鼓文 shi gu wen). It has been the subject of Chinese calligraphy, linguistics, and archaeology for centuries. The famous Tang Dynasty writer, Han Yu (韓愈, 768–824), published a long poetic eulogy in praise of these characters. The drums were discovered in the province of Shangxi. Unfortunately, only two hundred characters remain, and many versions of rubbings of them taken by scholars has left even these in a very worn condition.

Small Seal Style is also known as Jade Ligament Seal Style (玉筋篆, yu jin zhuan) because it resembles ligaments in its twisting and symmetric strokes without showing expression in each stroke. Each zhuan character also renders a beautiful structural design for everlasting appreciation. However, zhuan shu specialists were fewer in number in each dynasty compared with xing-, and kai shu specialists. One of the reasons was that a zhuan style practitioner must also study linguistics concerning the origin and evolution of Chinese characters.

Most calligraphers and linguists agree that Small Seal Style is suitable for beginners. Because of the frequent irregularities found in Great Seal Style, the rules in Small Seal Style are easier to follow. This is due to the fact that the characters from the Shang and Zhou Dynasties to the Spring Autumn and Warring States Periods were in chaos - each character could be written in a complete different way in each area and era. The founder of Small Seal Style thus spent countless efforts to standardize the writing. So the writing rules of Small Seal Style can be analyzed and followed in an easier way than those of Great Seal Style.

Li Style was very popular in the Han Dynasty. Zhuan style was used in ceremony and important occasions to show respect at that time. Most tablets in li shu during the Han Dynasty had titles written in zhuan shu. Xin Mang Liang (新莽量), Yuan An Bei (袁安碑) and Yuan Chang Bei (袁敞碑), and various tablet titles were full of feelings and grandeur; they were all sources of Deng Shiru’s (鄧石如, 1739/1743–1805) study.

Xin Mang Liang (新莽量)

Yuan An Bei (袁安碑)

Features of zhuan shu

Basic features of Small Seal Style include:

• A character has to be tall. The ratio of length of height to width is about 3 to 2.
• Symmetric. Left and right sides of a character are usually symmetric.
• Vertical strokes are straight. Horizontal strokes are flat.
• Curves and circles are smooth, not rugged.
• Spacing between strokes is adequately and delicately designed
• Strokes don’t usually vary in thickness and thinness.

Revolution & Changes of zhuan shu

Small Seal Style became the officially approved script following the unification of Chinese languages in the Qin Dynasty. It is also known as Qin Seal Script (秦篆, qin zhuan). It contrasts with the previous seal character script called Great Seal Style (大篆). The Qin Dynasty used Small Seal Style to engrave inscriptions on stones extolling the merits of persons or things, to engrave seals or marks of authenticity or emblems or to write imperial edicts. It replaced Great Seal Style, marking tremendous historical progress. For a country the size of Qina, where dialects are more numerous than in the European countries, a unified written language plays an important link between various nationalities to cement national solidarity and achieve national unification. It was the "Qin Zhuan" that served as a link and deserves much credit. And it’s Li Se (李斯) that exerted a profound influence on the seal character script for calligraphers and seal makers of later generations.

Small Seal Style is also known as Jade Ligament Seal Style (玉筋篆) for its rigid and emotionless strokes that don’t vary in thickness or thinness. The term "Jade Ligament Seal Style" appeared in Su Yuanyu’s book in the Tang Dynasty while he was referring to Li YangBing’s (李陽冰) work. The strokes resemble jade chopsticks or lead threads and the style is kind of boring and strict in making curves, turning and circles. Later people view the Small Seal Style of Li YangBing’s (李陽冰) as an ideal type. To sum up, the Jade Ligament Seal Style was not affected by han zhuan. It traces back directly to Qin Zhuan and it is a more condensed form. People usually refer to Li Se and Li Yangbing as "the Two Li's" in Chinese calligraphy history.

Li YangBing’s (李陽冰) work, 临李阳冰谦卦卷 手卷 水墨纸本

Resurrection of zhuan shu

"San Ti Shi Jing 《三體石經》 of the Three Kingdoms Period inherited zhuan shu of the Han Dynasty. It was neatly arranged and characteristic for the "hanging needles (懸針, xuan zhen)" feature.

San Ti Shi Jing 《三體石經》

However, this tablet was erected by the government and the calligraphy looked very solemn. Then during the South and North Dynasties era, there were many derivatives for zhuan shu writing. And it was until Li YangBing (李陽冰) of the Tang Dynasty that resurrected zhuan shu. Li was a contemporary of Yen Jenqing. He was a proficient linguist and he reedited Suo Wen Je Zu 《說文解字》 簡稱 《說文》 (a book that exemplifies revolution of Chinese characters.) He was very satisfied with his work and said he was the successor of Li Se (李斯).

Later in the Qing Dynasty, Deng Shiru (鄧石如, 1739/1743–1805) devoted his lifetime effort to study Small Seal Style of Qin. He was the most outstanding zhuan shu specialist in the Qing Dynasty. He resurrected Small Seal Style and instilled into it vital force and represented it in a grand manner. Thus, it’s widely recognized to start learning zhuan from Deng Shiru's work and then trace to his followers such as Wu Rang Zhi (吴让之, 1799-1870) and / or Zhao Zhiqian (趙之謙, 1829-1884).

In the Qing Dynasty, Bao Shicheng (包世臣, 1775-1855) published a famous calligraphy book "Yi Zhou Shuang Ji 《藝舟雙輯》" His deep admiration for Deng Shiru and his method gave a revelation to Wu Rangzhi and Zhao Zhiqian. In this book, Bao emphasized the importance of holding a brush as adopted by his teacher Deng Shiru. Bao's theory had a great influence on Qing Dynasty's emphasis on li and zhuan styles and calligraphy works on monuments.

Guide to start zhuan shu

A lot of calligraphy teachers prefer students to start from Wu Rangzhi's zhuan shu. Then the students may continue learning Deng Shiru's and Zhao Zhiqian's zhuan shu. Wu had more condensed strokes while Deng had more expressive strokes while Zhao had inherited the kai shu of wei bei into his zhuan shu strokes. However, none of them followed the traditional rules strictly set by the zhuan shu of the Qin Dynasty. Those three zhuan shu specialists were close in styles and system. After we are familiar with practicing their work, we may move up to Li Se and Li Yangbing or directly start learning Stone Drum Inscriptions, jin wen and then finally jia gu wen.

It is quite common that we can refine our li shu by practicing more zhuan shu, or vise versa. They share some mutual aspects in theory.

As we are getting more familiar with zhuan shu, we also need to study linguistics. It’s a tedious job. However, we may understand the origin and changes of each character better from this study and it will reward us abundantly later. It can also help us to prevent making mistakes in writing.

There have been laymen trying to coin Zhuan Style characters themselves. They make up their own ways of writing without reliable sources and principles. For example, it’s quite popular to write "100 tigers", "100 longevity", or "100 good luck" in a single work just to show that they have collected 100 different ways to write a single character and cater the public. However, a sincere calligrapher should check the legitimacy and avoid flattering the audience.

The change from zhuan shu to li shu and then to kai shu has a long history. Later, in dynasties when Kai and Li were popular, people still used zhuan shu for titles of tablets to show respect. And it’s also a good way to learn zhuan shu by emulating a tablet’s title in zhuan style.

A scholar of the Sung Dynasty wrote that Xu Xuan (徐鉉, 916-991) was good at Small Seal Style. When his work was taken under sunshine for a closer look, they found tiny but darker lines inside each stroke. This is exactly the Center Tip Theory Zhong Feng (中鋒理論, literally, brush pen tip at the middle of hairs that is the core of all Chinese calligraphy theories). It was mentioned by every prominent calligrapher. When Yen Renqing stated how his teacher Zhang Shui passed to him the secrets of using a brush, he pointed out that the calligraphy should look like drawing on sand with Zhui Hua Sa (錐劃沙) The principle requires keeping our brush and brush hair as straight and vertical as possible. It’s different from painting or the Western way to hold a pen. According to this principle, we should never ever bend the brush and the hair. We may rotate the brush when necessary with fingertips (knuckles not recommended). Bending a brush outward or toward oneself is a very common defect and is seen among laymen. By strictly obeying this principle, the sharpness or tip of hairs are hiding inside during brush motions rather than going scattered and collapsed. Hsu Shian’s method was also a supportive evidence that most zhuan shu specialists were inheriting Lee Yangbing’s method.

Masters and Works of zhuan shu

 kalligráfusok  |  klasszikusok 

Li Se (李斯, ?-208 BC) [wikipedia]

After Qin Shi Huang (秦始皇, i.e 259-210) demolished the Six Nations and united the ancient Qina in 221 BC, he asked the Prime Minister Li Se (李斯) to unify characters based on previous styles. The official standardized characters are called "zhuan shu", or known as "Small Seal Style (xiao zhuan)." Li Se was the founder of "xiao zhuan."

Li Yangbing (李陽冰, ?-?) [wikipedia]

He specialized in a very skinny Zhuan Style. He considered his zhuan shu only after the Prime Minister Lee Si ( 李 斯 ) of the Qin Dynasty.

Xu Xuan (徐鉉, 917-992) [wikipedia]

An expert in ancient characters. He and his brother, Hsu Kai, were working together to correct and add comments to "Suo Wen Je Zu (說文解字)" written by Xu Shen (許慎, 30-124) in the Tang Dynasty.

Deng Shiru (鄧石如, 1743-1805) [wikipedia]

His family was poor when he was young and he could not attend school. He learned calligraphy and seal making from his father and literature from older men in town. When he was after twenty years old, he earned his living by making seals. He traveled widely to make friends with scholars.

When he was twenty-seven, a chief lecturer of an academy who appreciated his intellect referred him to Mae Mio. He was a big collector of ancient calligraphy works since the Qin and Han Dynasties. While staying at Mae Mio’s house for eight years, Deng Shiru treasured every moment of his time to practice emulating ancient calligraphy pieces. He learned up to Stone Drum Inscriptions "shi gu wen" and Li Yangbing’s work, and down to all li shu in the Han Dynasty.

Then he began to travel again when Mae Mio was not rich any more. We he was forty-eight, he visited Beijing but was not satisfied there. He traveled again and received recognition from other scholars.

Because of his poverty and lack of instruction, his works around age thirty was not highly regarded.

His works around forty were almost Jade Ligament Seal Style. In his later life, he was regarded as the greatest zhuan shu specialist after Li Se and Li Yangbing.

Wu Rangzhi (吳讓之, 1799-1870) [baidu]

He learned from Bao Shichen (包世臣, 1775-1855) and Deng Shiru. He was highly regarded for calligraphy, painting, and seal making. He was also considered to be mature at a younger age than Deng Shiru. The condensed beauty of his strokes was different from Deng Shiru’s lively and interesting strokes.

Yang Yixun (楊沂孫, 1813-1881) [wikipedia]

A highly esteemed zhuan shu specialist.

Zhao Zhiqian (趙之謙, 1829-1884) [wikipedia]

He learned Yen Jenqing’s calligraphy at first. Then he also learned Huai Nantien’s painting. He failed exams at the capital Beijing five times. Later he decided not to be confined by Yen Jen-Qing’s kai shu rules for government exams. He began to focus on Wei Bei as promoted by Bao Xucheng. He studied various works of zhuan shu in the Qin and Han Dynasties and created his unique style. Yet his work was criticized as lacking masculine power.

Wu Dacheng (吳大澂, 1835-1902) [wikipedia]

A highly regarded linguist and collector of jin wen (金文).

Summary of Learning

Most calligraphers agree that beginners of Small Seal Style start from the three calligraphers in the Qing Dynasty: Deng Shiru, Qu Rangzhi, or Zhao Zhiqian. Each of them has unique structure, brushstroke, and style that are suitable for beginners. However, their levels may not be the ultimate goals of serious learners. We may learn more deeply by diving into the works of Qin and Han Dynasties and even jia gu wen (甲骨文) and jin wen (金文) in the Shang & Zhou Dynasties. Once we are familiar with the brush motions and strokes for qin zhuan ((秦篆)) or other Small Seal Styles, the way to understand jin wen (金文), jia gu wen (甲骨文), shi gu wen (石鼓文) will be clearer. The basic principles of brushwork will be the same. Only the character structures differ. Good copies of masterpiece of qin zhuan (秦篆) , jin wen (金文), or shi gu wen (石鼓文) are always our best lifetime teachers. Those masterpieces were the ultimate achievement of the ancient wise men. Their condensed and unsurpassed beauty will always guide us for lifetime and generations.

After being familiar with Small Seal Style, we may proceed to jin wen or jia gu wen.

Glossary

• Center Tip Theory (中鋒理論) – Holding a brush vertically but not bent; never let hairs collapse.
• Qin Zhuan (秦篆) – Standardized and simplified zhuan shu in the Qin Dynasty derived from Great Seal Style.
• Great Seal Style (大篆, da zhuan) – Characters in pre-Qin periods.
• Han Zhuan (漢篆) – zhuan shu in the Han Dynasty.
• Jade Ligament Seal Style (玉筋篆, yu jin quan) – Nickname for Small Seal Style.
• Jin Wen (金文) – Inscription on bells or bronze tripods in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. The bronze insriptions appreared in the Shang Dynasty (ca. 16th -11th century BC) and fully developed in the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century - 771 BC).
• Jia Gu Wen (Oracle Bone Inscription 甲骨文) – Characters inscribed on the turtle shells and animal bones of over 3000 years ago. They are the earliest systematic Chinese written language extant today. Most of them are divinatory in content and were found at the Shang capital city of Yin (Xiaodun Village, Anyang County, Honan Province).
• Li Se (李斯, ?-280) – Prime minister who standardized Small Seal Style in the Qin Dynasty.
• Li Yangbing (李陽冰) – Small Seal Style specialist in the Tang Dynasty.
• Reverse In Flat Out – A brush technique generally required for writing Seal Style strokes.
• Small Seal Style (小篆, xiao zhuan) – As opposed to Great Seal Style; the zhuan shu simplified from Great Seal Style.
• Shi gu wen (Stone Drum Inscriptions 石鼓文) – The earliest Chinese characters inscribed on ten stones.

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