What is the origin of pen and ink?

The origin of pen, ink, paper and inkstone

Among many pen products, the brush is a unique category in China. Traditional brush is not only a necessary learning tool for the ancients, but also has a unique power in expressing the special charm of China's paintings and calligraphy. However, because the brush is fragile and difficult to preserve, ancient pens that have been passed down to this day are rare.

There are many kinds of pens in ancient times. Judging from the raw materials of the pen, there are rabbit hair, white hair, Miki Sayaka, yellow hair, sheep beard, horse hair, deer hair, musk hair, badger hair, raccoon hair, mink hair, moustache, mouse tail, tiger hair, wolf tail, fox hair, otter hair, orangutan hair, goose hair, duck hair and chicken feather. In terms of performance, there are bristles, soft bristles and double brushes. Judging from the texture of the pen holder, there are bamboo joints, feather bamboo, spotted bamboo, brown bamboo, purple bamboo, chicken wings, sandalwood, nanmu, rosewood, fragrant wood, carved lacquer, green lacquer, snail, ivory, rhinoceros horn, horn, tortoise shell, jade, crystal and glass.

The earliest writing brush can be traced back to about two thousand years ago.

Although there were no physical objects of writing brushes in the Western Zhou Dynasty and above, we can find some signs of using pens from prehistoric painted pottery patterns and Oracle Bone Inscriptions in Shang Dynasty. During the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the brush was widely used to write bamboo slips and silk books. The writing brush of the Spring and Autumn Period was found in the tomb of Zeng Houyi in Leigudun, Suizhou City, Hubei Province. It is the earliest pen found so far. Later, the Warring States pens unearthed in Zuojiagong Mountain, Changsha City, Hunan Province, the Qin pens unearthed in Shuihudi, Yunmeng County, Hubei Province, and Fangmatan, Tianshui City, Gansu Province, as well as Mawangdui in Changsha, Fenghuang Mountain in jiangling county City, Gansu Province, Xuanquanjia in Dunhuang City, Maquanwan, the Han pens in the ancient rock area of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and the Western Jin pens in Wuwei are all precious materials left by ancient times.

The impression of ink seems a little simplistic, but it is an indispensable article in ancient Chinese characters. With the help of this original material, the fantastic artistic conception of China's paintings and calligraphy can be realized. The world of ink is not boring, but rich in connotation. As a consumable, ink can be presented intact today, which is very precious.

Before the invention of artificial ink making, natural ink or semi-natural ink was generally used as writing material. Prehistoric painted pottery patterns, Shang and Zhou Oracle Bone Inscriptions, bamboo slips, silk paintings and so on have left traces of original ink everywhere. According to documents, ink was also used in ancient ink punishment (face painting), ink rope (carpenter's use) and ink turtle (divination). After this long course, in the Han Dynasty, artificial ink finally began to appear. This kind of ink raw material is taken from pine smoke, which is first kneaded by hand and then molded, and the ink quality is solid. According to Ying Shao's "Han" in the Eastern Han Dynasty, "Shang Shuling, Servant Shooting, Cheng Lang, give a large amount of ink and a small amount of ink every month." Bai Weiling is located in Qianyang County, Shaanxi Province, near Zhong Nanshan Mountain. There are many pine trees on the right side of the mountain, which are very famous for the tobacco used to make ink.

From the production to the final product, there are many processes such as glue injection, blending, steaming and baking, and there is also a molding process. Ink carving is an important process and also an artistic creation process.

The shapes of ink are generally square, rectangular, round, oval and irregular. Ink mold is generally composed of front, back, top, bottom, left and right six pieces, while circular or idol-shaped ink mold can be synthesized only by four or two pieces. Built-in ink, close the hammer and smash the finished product. Most of the nib is engraved on the side, so that the ink mold can be easily replaced when it is reused. There are many forms of ink, which can be divided into natural ink, lacquer ink, gold ink and lacquer ink.

Paper is one of the four great inventions in ancient China, which has made outstanding contributions to cultural exchanges in history. Even in the prevalence of machine-made paper today, some traditional handmade papers still reflect its irreplaceable role and glow with unique brilliance. Ancient newspapers can still get a glimpse of him in Gu Shuhua.

For a long time before the invention of paper, what did people use as notes?

According to literature and physical data, the earliest people used knots to take notes. When something happened, they tied a knot and solved it when it was over. Later, he carved on the tortoise shell, which is called "Oracle Bone Inscriptions". After the bronze wares were made, they were engraved with inscriptions, namely "Bronze Inscription" or "Zhong Dingwen". Then, write the words on the pieces cut from the bamboo, which are called "bamboo slips". For example, a wide piece of bamboo is called a "bamboo slip". At the same time, some of them are also written on silk fabrics. In the pre-Qin period, in addition to the above materials, words carved on stones were also found, such as the famous "Shi Guwen".

As we all know, paper was invented by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty. However, recent archaeological excavations have questioned this. With the progress of archaeological work along the Northwest Silk Road, many sites and tombs of the Western Han Dynasty have been discovered, including many paper cultural relics. These rights documents are named after the unearthed places.

According to the chronological order of ancient paper unearthed at present, it can be arranged as follows: Fangmatan Paper, Baqiao Paper, Xuanquan Paper, Maquanwan Paper, Juyan Paper in the Middle Western Han Dynasty and Dry Beach Paper in the Late Western Han Dynasty. These papers not only predate Cai Lun paper, but also have ink fonts on some papers, indicating that they have been used to write documents.

Although inkstone ranks first among the "pens, ink, paper and inkstone", on the one hand, it is in a leading position, headed by the so-called "Four Treasures of the Study" inkstone, which is solid in texture and can be passed down from generation to generation. Therefore, in today's Four Treasures of the Study, inkstone is the most common and popular.

When was the earliest inkstone in China formed? What's the difference between it and the inkstone we use now?

Archaeologists once found a set of tools used by primitive people to draw pottery in a primitive social site in Jiangzhai, Lintong County, Shaanxi Province. Among them, there is a stone inkstone with a cover, a slightly concave surface, a stone pestle in the recess, and a few black pigments left beside the inkstone. Obviously, this is the shape of an early inkstone in which our ancestors used a pestle to grind pigments. Because this site belongs to the meaning of Yangshao in the matriarchal clan period, the actual life of this inkstone has exceeded 5000 years.

When did the shape of the pestle or stone mill inkstone change, that is, the pestle or stone mill was cancelled and it was close to the present inkstone? As far as we know, until the Han Dynasty. Since manual ink making was invented in Han Dynasty, ink can be ground directly on inkstone, so it is not necessary to grind natural or semi-natural ink with pestle or stone. From this point of view, the grinding pestle or grinding stone gradually disappeared in the long course of more than 3 thousand years in prehistoric times and Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties. Although it is no longer used today, its contribution to spreading culture is still indispensable.

In the ancient study, in addition to the four main stationery, pen, ink, paper and inkstone, there are some other supporting instruments, which are also an indispensable member of the stationery family.

In the Ming Dynasty, Tu Long described more than 40 kinds of stationery in the "Stationery Collection". Usually, the common ones are:

Pen holder: also known as pen holder and pen holder, used for holding pens. It is often mountain-shaped, and the pen can be placed in the recess. There are also people and animals, or the old roots and branches of nature, which are particularly wonderful.

Pen holder: Insert the pen in it when not in use. There are many materials, such as porcelain, jade, bamboo, wood and lacquer. It has a round or square shape, and it also has a plant shape or other shapes.

Wash pen: Wash the remaining ink with a pen after use. Most of them are bowl-shaped, and there are also flowers and leaves or other shapes.

Ink bed: stop for a while when grinding ink, because the grinding place is wet and is used for temporary ink storage.

Ink box: used to store Mo Ding. Mostly paint boxes, away from humidity and moisture. The paint surface is often painted with gold patterns or inlaid screws.

Paperweight: Also known as book town, it is used to press paper or books to keep paper and writing flat. Usually made into various animal shapes.

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Water injection: water is injected into the inkstone surface for grinding, mostly in the form of round pots and square pots with mouths, as well as animals such as toads and pheasants to ward off evil spirits.

Ink drop: also known as water drop and book drop, ink drop is stored for grinding ink.

Inkstone box: also known as inktone box, used for placing inkstones. It's best to choose purple, ebony, watercress and paint.

Seal: used for calligraphy and painting works, such as famous seals and leisure seals. , mostly made of Shoushan stone, Qingtian stone, Chang fossil, etc. There are also bronze, jade and ivory seals.

Yin He: Also known as inkpad and inkpad, it is used to store inkpad. Mostly porcelain and jade, round and square, divided into two parts: cover and body.

Pen inkstone: Also called pen inkstone, it is used to check the depth of ink or straighten the brush, and is often made into a leaf shape.

Handrails: also known as secret cabinets, handrails and wrist pillows, used to prevent ink from polluting hands and underarms when writing. Arched, mostly bamboo products.

Poetry tube: an instrument for inserting and placing songs and books recited daily behind poetry notes. Most of them are made of bamboo, which means elegance.