Inkstone in the Shape of a Roof Tile with Seal Script Characters
Workshop of Jian Guzhai
1700s–1800s
Medium
She stone
Dimensions
diam. 14.9 cm
Classification
Stone
Department
Chinese Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund
Accession Number
2023.50
Tags
male
About this artwork
This inkstone is particularly noteworthy for its inscriptions in two styles. The base shows four characters in seal script (zhuanshu) expressing auspicious, or favorable wishes, while the characters on the side in standard script (kaishu) record the name of the workshop and that of the collector’s studio. Inkstones were used to grind solid ink cakes with the addition of water to produce liquid ink for brush painting and calligraphy.