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Bowl in Black Glaze with 'Hare's Fur' Striations
Floral-shaped Censer with Handle
Inkstone Shaped as the Character Feng (Wind)
Mirror with Children Playing (the story of Yen-shan wu-kuei)
Scholar
Egrets Frolicking in a Pond
Poem on Bitter Bamboo Shoots


  

Inkstone Shaped as the Character Feng (Wind)
Huo-ts'un Stone
Sung Dynasty, 10th-13th c.
Length: 19.1 cm, width: 11.6-10.9-14.7 cm, thickness: 1.2-2.8 cm, weight: 1054 g

Inkstone Shaped as the Character Feng (Wind)

    This trapezoidal shaped inkstone resembles the shape of the character for wind in Chinese, hence its name. The sides curve inwards and the grinding surface gradually slopes down to the recessed ink well at the narrow end. The underside is hollowed out and engraved with an appreciatory poem by the Ch'ien-lung emperor (r. 1736-1795) that is dated to 1778. From the published poems of the emperor, it is revealed that this inkstone was kept in the Yang-hsin palace hall, where it remained until the early 20th century.

    Huo-ts'un stone comes from Soochow in Kiangsu. Since the Sung dynasty, it has been a famous material for making inkstones. However, few records mention it. In the Ch'ien-lung emperor's catalogue on inkstones are five made from Hu-ts'un stone, this being one of them.