Masters 子部
Ink Pond Anthology (Mochi bian 墨池編) comprises a collection of historical texts and treatises on various aspects of calligraphy, arranged by eight categories such as studies of characters (字學), brush techniques (筆法), stele inscriptions (碑刻), evaluations (品藻) and tools (器用). Zhu Changwen 朱長文 (1039-1098), a well-known scholar, calligrapher, and expert of zither (琴), compiled the textual collection during the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127). It is regarded as one of the primary sources for pre-Song works on calligraphic studies. Donated by Dr. Peter Marie Suski, USC's copy is a revised edition published in 1733 (清康熙甲午 [1714] 朱氏刻雍正癸丑 [1733] 重修本). The unofficial personal seal (閒章) on the cover page (內封面), which consists of the four characters "進呈御覽 (Presented to the emperor for review)" and a motif of two dragons playing with a pearl (雙龍戲珠), was probably stamped by Zhu's descendants in the Qing dynasty. According to the preface written by the notable Qing poet and literary critic Shen Deqian 沈德潛 (1673-1769) for Zhu's monograph entitled History of Zither (Qinshi 琴史), they presented four of Zhu's works, including the Ink Pond Anthology and History of Zither, to the Qianlong 乾隆 emperor (1711-1799) for review during his fourth southern inspection tour (南巡) in 1765.
Further Reading:
- De Laurentis, Pietro. "The 'Forbidden Classic of the Fade Hall': A Study of an Eleventh-century Compendium on Calligraphic Technique." Asia Major, Third Series, 24, no. 2 (2011): 113-46. Accessed February 7, 2021. https://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41650012.
- Chen, Zhi-ping 陳志平. "A Trace to the Source: The Qing Block-Printed Editions of Mochi Bian 清刻本《墨池編》版本源流考述." Taida Journal of Art History 國立臺灣大學美術史研究集刊 45 (2018): i-ii+159-183+185-188+280. DOI: 10.6541/TJAH.201809_(45).0004